About Charles
Oh yes, Charles Rawlings-Way is the great pretender: a guitarist who can't read music; a cartographer with a dodgy sense of direction; a surfer who can't swim; an Australian with a British passport; and a rock 'n' roll biographer who only occasionally reads Rolling Stone. Forget fate and fortune: this strange brew of talents owes more to enthusiasm, one-eyed commitment and the ability to blag oneself in and out of opportune doorways. Seduced by Jack Kerouac at a porous age, Charles hit the road at 21 and has since written 30-something guidebooks for Lonely Planet, covering every fleapit hostel and dive bar from Toronto to Tasmania. These endeavours peaked back in 2009 with his enshrinement as 'Best-selling Travel Writer in Australia', shifting more books than Bill Bryson and Billy Connolly (...might be time to grow a beard). He's also a #1 best-seller on Amazon, courtesy of his 2018 biography of Scottish rock band Del Amitri. Charles lives in the Adelaide, South Australia with his family, books and music. He has a Bachelor of Architecture degree he only uses when absolutely necessary.
