So well written. I laughed out loud more than once!! Thank you, M. E., for introducing me to Tom and, Tom, for reminding me of the genius of Bill Bryson. Looking forward to diving into both. :)
Ah. Well, another amazing city. We lived in Croydon for a couple of months last winter! Okay, that's not London proper, but we got into the city a fair bit despite all the train strikes.
What a serendipitous moment I just had! I literally just closed the chapter where Bill is alarmed seeing his bear in the night and Katz being indifferent and going to sleep in 'A Walk in the Woods.' I then open Substack to find this piece. I've read a lot of AT literature and hiked 1,300 miles of the AT myself but for some reason, I never read any Bill Bryson until now and am blown away with how funny and well-written his work is. Thanks for sharing! This made my day. Cheers!
Is it a stereotype that Italians are bad drivers? I didn’t know that. I thought they simply went by a different set of road rules. In Italy, the center line is made so a driver can center his car properly, which makes perfect sense, especially if one is also an airplane pilot. The center line is where your front tire goes.
A Fiat truck on the Autostrada in the left lane while going 60 kmph also makes sense, just not to a German. The Italians are much more egalitarian and the lanes are for everybody, not only for the rich few in their Mercedes-Maybachs. Even a heavily laden 20hp Fiat truck driver has a right to enjoy the thrill of driving in the left lane.
But the best thing about driving in Italy is the sense that we are all in this mess together. Sure, Italians throw up their hands in what a visitor might misinterpret as frustration when traffic stops moving, until someone breaks out some cheese and wine, someone starts playing an accordion, and a soprano with the voice of an angel starts singing so that what once seemed like a traffic jam is suddenly and reasonably an opportunity for a block party. Mayhem is the obvious, beautiful antidote to the brutal efficiency of Facism.
My parents’ house is brimming with Bill Bryson books and yet I’ve never ventured past the jacket. That will now change.
Also, Mikey, I think “which books did you think were brilliant because you were supposed to think they were brilliant?” would be a great topic for future discussion.
We’re huge bill bryson fans, so thanks for the fish intro. We’re always on the lookout for such sources. And as an aside, I learned to drive in Italy, but have never come close to killing a soul. Yet.
Just want to say I really like this write up of a book I have never read. It is giving me a good idea of how to approach writing about a book that influenced me.
This is wonderful. I love Bill Bryson. When my kids were young we used to play a tape of one of his books in the car, over and over again, and the jokes live on in family legend. If you can't see the entrance to a destination, you shout 'How did those people get IN there?' If you can't understand someone's directions you repeat 'You makes a square'....
Oh is that The Life and Times of the Thunderbolt Kid?! I usually get a bit bored of other people's childhood memoirs but I make a big exception for Bryson's.
So well written. I laughed out loud more than once!! Thank you, M. E., for introducing me to Tom and, Tom, for reminding me of the genius of Bill Bryson. Looking forward to diving into both. :)
Thanks so much Holly! :-)
Thank you Maureen!
Love Bill Bryson. Combines two things I enjoy humor and travel.
Agreed Linda!
I am currently in Australia reading Bryson's In A Sunburned Country, which is very true and very fitting.
Ah I love that book! Also an example I like of a book being called a different name in the UK and the USA, it's just called Down Under here.
So you are in Australia? Whereabouts?
Oh no not Australia, London :-)
Ah. Well, another amazing city. We lived in Croydon for a couple of months last winter! Okay, that's not London proper, but we got into the city a fair bit despite all the train strikes.
Oh it counts I think! And, incredibly, there are still some train strikes.
We did the same when traveling there. Bryson is the BEST!
What a serendipitous moment I just had! I literally just closed the chapter where Bill is alarmed seeing his bear in the night and Katz being indifferent and going to sleep in 'A Walk in the Woods.' I then open Substack to find this piece. I've read a lot of AT literature and hiked 1,300 miles of the AT myself but for some reason, I never read any Bill Bryson until now and am blown away with how funny and well-written his work is. Thanks for sharing! This made my day. Cheers!
So glad you enjoyed Justin! I LOVE that scene, I definitely think it was a bear.
A Walk in the Woods is one of my favorites. 😂
This is only semi-related, but Faulkner’s short story “The Bear” is an all time favorite of mine!
I'm going to check it out!
Is it a stereotype that Italians are bad drivers? I didn’t know that. I thought they simply went by a different set of road rules. In Italy, the center line is made so a driver can center his car properly, which makes perfect sense, especially if one is also an airplane pilot. The center line is where your front tire goes.
A Fiat truck on the Autostrada in the left lane while going 60 kmph also makes sense, just not to a German. The Italians are much more egalitarian and the lanes are for everybody, not only for the rich few in their Mercedes-Maybachs. Even a heavily laden 20hp Fiat truck driver has a right to enjoy the thrill of driving in the left lane.
But the best thing about driving in Italy is the sense that we are all in this mess together. Sure, Italians throw up their hands in what a visitor might misinterpret as frustration when traffic stops moving, until someone breaks out some cheese and wine, someone starts playing an accordion, and a soprano with the voice of an angel starts singing so that what once seemed like a traffic jam is suddenly and reasonably an opportunity for a block party. Mayhem is the obvious, beautiful antidote to the brutal efficiency of Facism.
I'm not even necessarily sure it's that they're bad drivers, just, like you so rightly point out, that it's mayhem!
My parents’ house is brimming with Bill Bryson books and yet I’ve never ventured past the jacket. That will now change.
Also, Mikey, I think “which books did you think were brilliant because you were supposed to think they were brilliant?” would be a great topic for future discussion.
Amazing - his travel books are my favourite but his history books are fantastic too
I love it. Saved for next week’s question
Thanks for a good laugh (or three) this early morning, Tom. ‘A Walk in the Woods’ and ‘In a Sunburned Country’ are both such a pleasure to read.
Thanks so much Julie! I agree, I love both of those books
We’re huge bill bryson fans, so thanks for the fish intro. We’re always on the lookout for such sources. And as an aside, I learned to drive in Italy, but have never come close to killing a soul. Yet.
Just want to say I really like this write up of a book I have never read. It is giving me a good idea of how to approach writing about a book that influenced me.
Thanks Mikhail! Your comment is much appreciated
This is wonderful. I love Bill Bryson. When my kids were young we used to play a tape of one of his books in the car, over and over again, and the jokes live on in family legend. If you can't see the entrance to a destination, you shout 'How did those people get IN there?' If you can't understand someone's directions you repeat 'You makes a square'....
Oh is that The Life and Times of the Thunderbolt Kid?! I usually get a bit bored of other people's childhood memoirs but I make a big exception for Bryson's.
No, The Lost Continent. It starts 'I come from Des Moines. Somebody had to'. Love that book!
Oh of course! This is clearly my excuse for a re-read as I do love that book!