One should always read about a location before visiting it. And I don’t mean just reading the guidebook.
There are countless wonderful reads out there–both fictional and historical–that will provide far better perspective and understanding to a place than a guidebook could ever dream of doing.
Better guidebooks usually have a section recommending appropriate literature to read before stepping foot on the plane and I highly suggest you pick up at least one of these books. Perhaps an even better source for appropriate literature, however, can be found on the National Geographic Traveler website. The Ultimate Travel Library contains the suggestions of travel professionals who were asked “to name the books that have most enriched their sense of place and best informed their peregrinations.”
The results are nicely organized by region and then by country. The lists aren’t extensive, but the books included are quite powerful in their ability to conjure up a true understanding of far off lands.