The Road to Little Dribbling

Summary:

The hilarious and loving sequel to a hilarious and loving classic of travel writing: Notes from a Small Island, Bill Bryson’s valentine to his adopted country of England

In 1995 Bill Bryson got into his car and took a weeks-long farewell motoring trip about England before moving his family back to the United States. The book about that trip, Notes from a Small Island, is uproarious and endlessly endearing, one of the most acute and affectionate portrayals of England in all its glorious eccentricity ever written. Two decades later, he set out again to rediscover that country, and the result is The Road to Little Dribbling. Nothing is funnier than Bill Bryson on the road—prepare for the total joy and multiple episodes of unseemly laughter. (Summary and cover courtesy of goodreads.com)

Review:

I love most of the books I’ve read by Bryson, but this is not one of them.  For those familiar with Jeremy Clarkson, I feel like Bryson veered towards Clarkson’s random rants where sometimes he just goes a *touch* too far into the grumpy / cranky is no longer funny and is a bit cringey.  For those who do love Bryson I think you’ll agree that everything about the rants in this one are just a bit extra.  More generally the book is fine but doesn’t match the others for entertainment.

Don’t get me wrong, I still gave this book 3-stars, but it is more due to living in the United Kingdom for 2.5 years and appreciating some of the observations more than I think the average couch traveler might.  The one thing I absolutely can’t help but agree with, and came through strongly, is that more could be done to take care of the beautiful landscapes.

Rating: 3 stars!

Who should read it? Folks who lived in the United Kingdom and wouldn’t mind hearing about a few lesser-known spots.