Expat's Manual

When moving overseas it is advisable to do as much research as possible. Expat books offer a great resource for people and there are a number of publications available that cater to all needs. Here’s a selection of the best:

Being an Expat

• The Absentee American by Carolyn D. Smith. This is a great expat book about Americans abroad and reflects on how other people see Americans as well as how things have changed since WWII.
• Culture Shock! A Parent’s Guide by Robin Pascoe. A guide to moving and working overseas. This is a must read for parents, single people
• The Expert Expatriate: Your Guide to Relocation Abroad by Melissa Hess and Patricia Linderman. This is a must read for all potential expats. It details everything there is to know about expat life including what to do before the move, during the move and how to settle in.
• A Moveable Marriage: Relocate Your Relationship Without Breaking It by Robin Pascoe. A useful guide to married couples moving abroad.
• Realities of Foreign Service Life edited by Melissa Hess and Patricia Linderman. This book offers musings and information on what its like to be an expat with the Foreign Service throughout the world.
• New American Expat: Thriving and Surviving Overseas in the Post-9/11 World by William Russell Melton. A must-read guide for all American expats.
• Expat: Survival of an Expatriate in Latin America by Robert Ampudia. This memoir discusses what it’s like to live in South America and the adventures often experienced; even when working there.
• The Grown-Up’s Guide to Running Away from Home: Making a New Life Abroad by Rosanne Knorr. This book deals with issues which concern everyone when moving abroad. It does not matter whether you are retiring, relocating with work, setting up a business or just looking to have some fun, this is a must-read.
• The Expert Expat, Revised Edition: Your Guide to Successful Relocation Abroad. by Melissa Brayer and Patricia Linderman.
• Getting Out: Your Guide to Leaving America by Mark Ehrman. A collection of tales from people who have left America and set up a new life all across the world.
• The Greatest Moving Abroad Tips in the World. by Lorraine Mace. A book aimed at guiding expats through the challenges of moving abroad.

Business and Working Abroad

• Expat Entrepreneur: How To Create and Maintain Your Own Portable Career Anywhere In The World by Jo Parfitt and Debbie Jenkins. This book is a must read for any bored expat housewife looking to set up a portable business (which can be anything from making jam to hairdressing).
• GenXpat: The Young Professional’s Guide To Making A Successful Life Abroad by Margaret Malewski. This expat book is an excellent read for any young entrepreneur hoping to make it big abroad. It deals specifically with the 25-39 age group who are looking to further their career.
• Working Abroad: The Complete Guide to Overseas Employment by Jonathan Reuvid. This book is a practical guide for anyone taking local employment abroad. If offers country profiles and offers the perspective from both employer and employee.
• The Guardian Guide to Working Abroad by Nick Clayton. This comprehensive guide offers advice in working in many countries throughout the world.
• The Young Professional’s Guide To Making A Successful Life Abroad. by Margaret Malewski.
• International Jobs: Where They Are and How to Get Them, Sixth Edition by Nina Segal. The latest edition of this guide to researching and starting an international career.
• Expat Investor’s Working and Retiring Abroad: A Financial Guide by Robert W. Maas. This book is full of very useful information and lists an abundance of resources which will help anyone looking to start a business abroad.
• Work Your Way Around The World: A Fresh and Fully Up-to-date Guide for The Modern Working Traveller. By Susan Griffith. A guide to finding work opportunities abroad.
• Teaching English Abroad. by Susan Griffith. A guide to living and working abroad as a teacher.
• The Guardian Guide to Working Abroad. By Nick Clayton. Practical advice on how to find the perfect work opportunity abroad.

Expat Books on Teaching Abroad

• Make a Mil-¥en: Teaching English in Japan by Don Best. Guide has information on everything related to teaching in Japan from the job search through to settling in.
• Opportunities in Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages by Blythe Camenson. Overview of the types of roles and lifestyle involved with the field of Teaching English as a Foreign/Second Language.
• Teaching Abroad Without Certification by William Nolting. A list of US organizations that offer programs for TEFL teachers.
• Teaching English Abroad: Teach Your Way Around the World by Susan Griffith. Provides in-depth information on everything from preparation (including TEFL courses) to the job search. Country-by country coverage worldwide. Many firsthand reports from teachers.
• Teaching English Overseas: A Job Guide for Americans and Canadians by Jeff Mohamed. Written by an experienced TEFL teacher, this book covers teaching with and without training, TEFL courses, and contact information for 450 schools worldwide.
• More Than a Native Speaker: An Introduction to Teaching English Abroad by Donald B. Snow.

Women Abroad

• A Broad Abroad In Thailand; An Expat’s Misadventures in the Land of Smiles. by Dodie Cross. Tale of a newly wed expat who tries to settle into her new life in Thailand.
• Culture Shock! A Wife’s Guide by Robin Pascoe. This is a comforting and practical read for any trailing spouse, discussing the most common fears and concerns.
• A Portable Identity by Debra R. Bryson and Charise M. Hoge. This is a must-read for all trailing spouses. It is an invaluable resource boasting a wealth of information and support wherever you are in the world.
• Expat: Women’s True Tales of Life Abroad by Christina Henry De Tessan. This book is a collection of articles and stories and being an expat woman. It covers motherhood, lesbianism, education, work, cross-cultural marriages and much more.

Nationality Specific Books

• British On The Costa Del Sol by Karen O’Reilly. A guide to living in Spain.
• Expatriate Children and Parents a Guide to Living Well in Jakarta. by Linda Chaput. A novel about raising expat children in Jakarta.
• Tales from the Expat Harem: Foreign Women in Modern Turkey by Jennifer Gokman. A personal memoir of one woman’s life in Turkey.
• The Aussie Expat – The Luckiest Person on Earth. By Steve Douglas. A guide to living life as an expat in Australia.
• The Expat Arc: An Expat’s Journey Over Culture Shock by Danielle Barkhouse. An expat book about one woman’s adventures living in India.
• New American Expat: Thriving and Surviving Overseas in the Post-9/11 World. by William Russell.

Raising Expat Children

• Culture Shock! Successful Living Abroad: A Parent’s Guide. by Robin Pascoe. A study of children who move from one country to another.
• Raising Global Nomads: Parenting Abroad in an On-Demand World. by Robin Pascoe. A guide to raising expat children.
• Third Culture Kids, Revised Edition: The Experience of Growing Up Among Worlds by David Pollock. An insight into the concept of children who are raised between two very different cultures.
• Bring your own children: South America! A Family Sabbatical Handbook by Robin Malinosky-Rummell and Christopher Malinosky. A guide to taking your children to South America for a prolonged period of time.
• The Family Sabbatical: The budget guide to living abroad with your family. by Elisa Bernick. A guide to extended travel with your children.
• Diary of an Oil Expat Family. by Heidi Vaughan. A diary account of a family’s expat experience in Norway.

Retiring Abroad

• Retirement Without Borders: How to Think About Retiring Abroad–in Mexico, France, Italy, Spain, Costa Rica, Panama, and Other Sunny, Foreign Places. by Barry Golson.
• The Grown-Up’s Guide to Retiring Abroad by Rosanne Knorr. A witty book that looks at the challenges and benefits of retiring overseas.
• Retiring Abroad by Ben West. A detailed guide that gives readers all the information they need to buy a property abroad for retirement purposes.
• How to Retire Happy, Wild, and Free: Retirement Wisdom That You Won’t Get from Your Financial Advisor by Ernie J. Zelinski. A book that offers inspirational advice and takes a holistic look the fears, hopes, and dreams that people have about retirement.
• Retiring Abroad: A Survival Handbook by Survival Books.
• Living and Retiring Abroad- The Daily Telegraph Guide by Michael Furnell. A fully comprehensive guide to living abroad as a retiree.

Expat Books for Expat Children

• Expat Cats by Lesley Holland. A book about the Middle East and Muslim culture that is aimed specifically at children.
• Spirit of Saint Valentine: An Expat’s Tale of Love. by Grant Simens. A story that is set within the context of an international school, which explores the concept of love.
• When Abroad-Do as the Local Children Do by Bettina Kaltenhuaser. A guide for young expats.

Relationships

• A Moveable Marriage: Relocate Your Relationship Without Breaking It. By Robin Pascoe. A guide to keeping your marriage healthy when you relocate as an expat.

Fiction about Expatriates

• The Quiet American by Graham Greene. Tale of a CIA agent who is posted in Saigon during the French colonial war.
• A Woman of Bangkok by Jack Reynolds. Story about an Englishman who is posted in Bankok and falls for a dancing girl.
• The Alexandria Quartet by Lawrence Durrell. Tales of an English teacher living in Greece, the story revolves around his memories of the people he met there.
• The Gentleman in the Parlour by Somerset Maugham. A Record of a Journey from Rangoon to Haiphong.

Are you aware of any useful expat websites that should be included in this guide. Please do drop us a line and let us know.

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