Actor Andrew McCarthy releases a travel book "The Longest Way Home"

(CBS News) Andrew McCarthy the actor-turned -award-winning travel writer has released a new book, "The Longest Way Home," about how traveling changed his life.

McCarthy, who struggled with alcoholism, writes a revealing memoir about how travel helped him overcome his fears and become the man he wanted to be.

The book documents his seven exotic trips, from Mount Kilimanjaro, to the Costa Rican rainforests to a riverboat on the Amazon.

"Travel - especially by people who rarely do it - is often dismissed as a luxury and an indulgence," McCarthy explains. "For me, travel has rarely been about escape; it's often not even about a particular destination. The motivation is to go-to meet life, and myself, head-on along the road."

McCarthy starred in Brat Pack films "Pretty in Pink" and "St. Elmo's Fire." Recently, he has appeared in USA's "White Collar" and has even directed an episode.

"The Longest Way Home" is to be released on Sept. 18 by Free Press, a division of Simon & Schuster.

Simon & Schuster and CBS are owned by the same parent company.