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Liked It1 of 1 members found this review helpful “Bill Bryson is awesome. Hes awesome not just because he has written wonderfully or pulled out interesting anecdotes; Hes awesome cus hes travelled to 38 US states on his chevette, covering more than 12,000 miles in the process, ate all kinds of sick food on the way, met some ghastly experiences...” see full review » see other reviews » |
Didn’t Like It1 of 1 members found this review helpful “Starts out amusing but gets increasingly repetitive and sarcastically judgemental. The whole book can be summarized thusly: small towns are filled with dumpy and stupid people. Tourist attractions are always over-priced (though Bryson always seems to pay, hmmm) and always filled with stupid dupes...” see full review » see other reviews » |
Newest Reviews
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“Amusing, but not one of his best.”
Quilter wrote this review 2 days ago. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No“About a car tour Bryson took through America. One grim statistic, if you are a black man you stand one chance in nineteen of being murdered, in World War II the changes of being killed were fifty to one (p.125).”
Jack R wrote this review 5 days ago. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
“This is a journey across America, taken away from the interstates as much as possible, and showing the America of glorious bad taste and sublime scenery and people. As with any Bill Bryson book, you will frequently find yourself laughing out loud, often when you least expect it.”
Shibopshibop wrote this review 6 days ago. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
“This was Bryson's first book after years as a journalist living in Britain. He decides to return to his home town, DeMoines, Iowa, and road trip a figure eight across the lower 48. He loops east first, waits a few months, and then loops west. The eastern trip takes up the first two-thirds of the book.
Jane V wrote this review 8 days ago. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
I've read all of Bryson's books now (I think) except for A Sunburned Country. I have to say this is not his best. I gave it three stars because I didn't feel it deserved only two, but if I could give fractional stars I would have rated it 2.75. Bryson can be snarky: a little bit is OK but this book had a high 'snark factor'. There are lots of comments about "dumpy wives" and what-he-sees-as-boring little towns. He often comes across as just a bad-tempered person. The trip itself didn't strike me as that interesting, which is unusual because I love any kind of travel book, even if it isn't to exciting places, simply because the things you see and the people you meet are always so interesting. He didn't appear to interact with people at all on this trip, just stuck to the car and hotel room and snarked.
That said, he did describe a lot of places in the United States that I've never been to (e.g. Yellowstone) and the book did interest me enough to inspire me to see more of my own country. It wasn't a terrible book, just disappointing to a Bryson-lover.”“Mr. Niedermeier says: While I think that Bill Bryson is funny, I find his casual dismissal of most towns and people as ugly and vulgar offensive. I also dislike the idea of someone who has already rejected America by moving away from it writing a book about it. I already know what his final analysis will be, as I'm sure he did when he started his journey. ”
Mr. Niedermeier's Class wrote this review 2 weeks ago. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No“Humorous! Light read...great way to think about writing travel diaries. ”
Terri B wrote this review 3 weeks ago. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No“This one read much more slowly than my other Bryson reading. I read it in very short bits, over a period of months. I liked the concept and the basics, but got a little tired of his tone, even some of his phrases got a little too familiar. Perhaps that was part of what he was finding- that many small towns are gobbled up or overrun, taking away some of their character; and, how boring it can be to drive long distances. Having just been to Iowa for the first times in my life, thanks to my college student there, I found I liked the Iowa parts pretty well. ”
kirsten a wrote this review 3 weeks ago. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
“Another victory for Mr Bryson.
Chris W wrote this review Sunday, November 8 2009. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
This time his travels take him back to his home country for a whilstlestop visit. There are fewer delights in life than Bill Bryson making fun of small town America as he does it so well! I don't believe they sold many copies of this book in his old town..i'm not surprised! ”
“This book is a bit sentimental. Bryson travels around the US, remembering the travels he did with his family when he was a child.”
Janet S wrote this review Tuesday, November 3 2009. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
“He's definitely improved since this early book. His early style was more about insulting people it seemed and less humorous, but still filled with researched and interesting facts.”
Traveling Teacher wrote this review Saturday, September 19 2009. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
