For over 20 years OUTSIDE magazine has devoted itself to featuring the best of contemporary travel writing and here is a magnificent collection of essays and profiles on the world as it is, written by people who revel in experiencing the new, unusual or offbeat. They take us cartwheeling down a Himalayan river, on a journey to the oil fields of Kuwait, chasing after killer bees in Africa, and into the world of cowgirl culture. Here is a wonderful tour of the natural world and an incisive view of the people and animals who inhabit it. Whether they are about the simple pleasures of outdoor life or about confronting the forces of nature, the stories and articles take us out of the noosphere, the term Teilhard de Chardin coined to describe 'the conscious unity of souls'. Each piece focuses our attention on the ways we choose to express our individuality, our passions, and our dreams.