One arduous read.
|
|
Whilst this is the first Bryson book I've finished (not the first of his I've attempted to read) it'll almost certainly be the last. I just don't get this guys popularity (a case of "The King's New Clothes" perhaps). It would've been much better if he'd integrated more with people he met on his travels and wrote about their thoughts rather than his own and his transparent exageration of mundane happenings in an effort towards being comical generally fell far short of the mark for me. He'd also benefit from occasionally choosing not to stay in accomodation he initially doesn't like the look of, but then this would leave him something short of to moan about. Disappointing.
|
|
|
Rants about a Small Island
|
|
This was the fifth Bryson book that I have read and by far the most disappointing. The appeal of the other books of his that I've read (Short History, Thunderbolt, Mother Tongue, Walk in the Woods) is that they had provided a dose of iteresting trivia in an easy to read format (although I've seldom found them "laugh-out-loud funny" as many a reviewer seems to have done.) Small Island is just about as pointless a book as you could imagine. A journey around some random places in Britain with little in the way of description, history, geography, dialogue with locals or anything else. Instead we're treated to the sorts of rants that any person travelling on their own for eight weeks might have. He hates big dogs, people with interests that he doesn't share, anyone who makes an innocent mistake, architecture, etc. etc. etc. Almost anyone (with two months holiday and a limitless budget) could have written this book but I would suggest that most would have done it better.
|
|
Funny
|
|
I'm really enjoying reading this book. A couple of nights ago I was in bed reading Chapter 11 (the rainy night in Weston-Super-Mare) and laughed so hard I was in pain. I kept letting out the occasional gasp for air as the tears rolled. I had to keep the noise down as my girlfriend was asleep but the part where he tries to remember the name of the kick-boxing arcade game was too much and I've been chuckling about it for the past few days. A very enjoyable read.
|
|
|
Great book that is now a little dated
|
Bryson needs to re-write this book. By this I mean he should travel around Britain once more and write a new book based on his experiences. The reason for that is that Notes is now somewhat dated - it was written in the early 1990s and since then the nation has changed enormously, having had to bear the brunt of Blair's ruinous policies, most notably unlimited immigration, plus the general decline in public behaviour and old fashioned genteel Englishness. (His criticisms of the then Tory government have dated particularly badly when we now know how corrupt and incompetent its successor would be.) I'd say that much of what Bryson came across is now very different or has just disappeared. Since seaside towns are now populated by asylum seekers and cities by Third World immigrants, the characteristics and FEEL of our nation has changed considerably. I wonder whether Bryson will be wise and courageous enough to note this? It's a shame that he rarely pens travel books nowadays.
Bryson probably always was guilty of romanticising Britain, but these days he really would have to turn the other cheek plenty of times to keep his romantic notions intact. Manners and traditions have changed considerably in the last 15 years.
A few more observations on this book: it starts superbly; the first chapter set in Dover in the 1970s is funny and nostalgic and cosy and sets a standard that the rest of it can't quite live up to. If it had continued like this it would have been the funniest and most precious book ever written.
Bryson is occasionally prickly and spiky, nothing like the avuncular image he seems to have acquired. The incident in the McDonald's illustrates this - the chap behind the counter was only doing his job.
For me, the whole idea of a man wandering round towns and cities alone is quite evocative and a little sad. But I admire his courage in doing so. His experiences of pubs and Chinese restaurants really make you feel something. Sitting alone in a restaurant has always seemed to me an excruciating experience. However, if you have a copy of this book on me it may be more tolerable. Did I forget to say it's highly enjoyable?
|
|
I have read it again and again
|
|
I love this book. I first read it when it came out and loved it. Now I read bits of it again and again. It's really funny and good to see what he says about places you know well or visit. I like the contrasts between the England of the 1970s when I was a child and of the 90s.Reading this has inspired me to read other travel books at the moment I am on 'Looking for England' by H.V Morton-written in the 1920s.
|
|
|
United States | 
United Kingdom | 
Canada