You can find another very interesting book on the subject at Amazon at this link
http://www.amazon.com/s?ie=UTF8&search-type=ss&index=books&field-author=Ciro%20Discepolo&page=1
I'v been in contact with the author years ago, he has been dealing with the matter of solar returns from the early 70' and has sent abroad thousand of people, I checked personally the system with a lot of people and yes, travelling at birthday works, it's not perfect but good enough (often astonishing good) so I could for example predict a pregnancy to a friend of mine, by chance travelling on her birthday, she wouln't believe me as at that time she was about 42 yo, still without kids after 6 years of marriage and with very little hope left...
For I did travel a lot when younger (not my choice, my job requested it) I had to spend quite a few birthdays abroad (very often in places not of my liking....grrr) and my personal experience is that the year was always in fairly good accordance with the solar return calculated for the new place.
Of course remember that no system in the world, designed by men and used by men, can be 100% exact and therefore the chances to make a long trip just for nothing are there.....
Anyway I have a very different view of the issue, exactly the opposite of the authors of the books, and ""I do not personally recommand"" to travel on one's bithday just for changing the solar return, as I strongly believe that whatever is due to happen to a person has a meaning, a reason, and a time to happen and we'd better not to mess with it.
For all the above reasons in the past I turned down a lot of requests of travelling at birtday and never sent anyone around the world just for changing the outcome of a solar return, but, as everybody has it's own opinion and view, I'm just telling you my personal opinion, it's up to you to decide...
If we run away we can only harm ourselves, as the famous (one of my favourites authors) astrologer Liz Greene uses to say "the free will we have is not about changing our fate but about changing our way to accept it"
I'm also well aware that, today as well as yesterday, very few are going to listen to her saying...
Good luck anyway
Merry
P.S: The books are good for learning but I don't recommand any kind of "do it yourself" to the apprentice astrologers (you posted on the forum reserved to the totally newbies to astrology), should you decide for travelling on your birthday either you know what you are doing or ....seek advice first...OK