The Life and Times of the Thunderbolt Kid: A Memoir
 

The Life and Times of the Thunderbolt Kid: A Memoir

by Bill Bryson

From one of the most beloved and bestselling authors in the English language, a vivid, nostalgic, and utterly hilarious memoir of growing up in the 1950s

Bill Bryson was born in the middle of the American century—1951—in the middle of the United States—Des Moines, Iowa—in the middle of the largest generation in American history—the baby boomers. As... (read more)

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Amazon Reviews (5)
 

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jmadigan
  • Rated 4 stars

One thing I like about Bill Bryson is that he operates under a variety of nonfiction genres. He's done books on linguistics, history, science, and travel. In The Life and Times of The Thunderbolt Kid he tackles a memoir, which is a word I can never reliably spell. Bryson (or his editors) can, however, and he uses that ability to write about the childhood and adolescence he spent in Des Moines, Iowa during the 1950s and 60s.

There's a lot of peering through rose colored glasses here,...

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Community:
  • Rated 3.88756 stars
Amazon:
  • Rated 4.166667 stars
 

Newest Comments

  • uplandpoet

    uplandpoet said:

    umm make that 1950s, remember white mid western boys really had no concept of minorities, be they women, blacks, latinos or any other group. the society they were in was pretty blind to anything but that young white christian males were superior to all other beins. i dont think bryson holds to that notion today, but he is true to the mindset he was emersed in at the time.

    posted Thursday, August 7 2008 ( | view 1 reply )
  • uplandpoet

    uplandpoet said:

    while i found it rolling in the floor laughter type book, i can see where this might not be the best book to start on. it is his look back at a boy of the 1960s mindset and how he would have seen things. his modern travel books give a much better intro to the man and his craft, which is some of the funniest writing being done today.

    posted Thursday, August 7 2008
  • JaÿRaj J

    jaÿraj j said:

    @ selina c...what did bryson say in the book that was so offensive to women? bryson is supposed to be a humourous writer...i suppose you don't like stand-up comics either...the book isn't supposed to have a point per se ("what's it all for?"), it's just the author's take on his childhood and the things that happened around him...personally, i think it's always better to be funny than serious...to everyone else...i live in india and i still appreciated the book; shows the power of bryson's writing...can't wait for his next

    posted Thursday, August 7 2008 ( | view 1 reply )
  • Mycroft

    mycroft said:

    That was lame, and I think probably the wrong book to start reading written by Bryson.

    It seemed so predictable, and unless you are actually the author or one of the other people mentioned in the book you won't be able to relate or appreciate aything. It is like a book that would only be written for your buddies...I dunno...

    *sigh*

    posted Friday, July 4 2008
  • Dana D

    dana d said:

    I enjoyed it - for what it was and passed it off to my parents so they could take it on vacation with them. I wouldn't re-read it, but I lived in Des Moines for 12+ yrs and still work there, so I had a good time with the landmarks and reference points.

    posted Friday, June 13 2008
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