A Walk in the Woods

Bill Bryson is great! Bt, I've only read a few of his books. What is A Walk in the Woods about?

And welcome to A2K, flowerpot!

After living in Britian for twenty years, Bill Bryson returns to the states and rediscovers America by walking the Appalachain Trail. He gives a lot of insight into the wilderness as well as silly misadventures he indures during his attempt to walk the AP trail. Kind of book that will makes you laugh out loud and wonder at the same time.

I've just finished A Walk in the Woods myself. It's part of an Appalachian-Trail-book binge I'm on right now. It was indeed very funny and well-written. I didn't find it as satisfying as the more introspective ones, though, particlarly Kelly Winters' Walking Home or Robert Alden Rubin's On the Beaten Path. Check those out if the interior journey is as important to you as the very considerable hikes these people did.

It was entertaining, but had its dull parts. The book did inspire me to hike part of the Appalachian Trail. Beautiful trail, at least the part I hiked (Vermont and New Hampshire)

I read "A Walk in the Woods" and enjoyed it. Parts were a tad tedious, but...

For a great insight into Oz, read his Australian book, called "Bill Bryson Down Under", over there, I think. Talk about LMAO! His time spent in UK means he catches the Australian attitude and humour better than most Americans.

Should becompulsory for tourists

I haven't read his Australian book, but I believe it's called The Sunburnt Country hereabouts (Canada.)

Wow! Two new folk - and interested in books - welc ome Flowerpot and Elegant Fowl (great names!!!!).

I must read some Bryson...

Walk in the Woods
Great book! Beats his later book on Australia hollow.

Re: Walk in the Woods


TK, that's a perspective thing. I've not read any other books on walking the Appalachian Trail (unlikely I'll ever do it!). But I've read plenty of books written by tourists and Aussies about travelling in Australia.

From that American perspective, this one is great. As I said above, his time in England gives him greater understanding of irony and understatement, and makes this one a killer laugh. And he took the time to have a look.

What's happened to flowerpot and Elegant Fowl (wonderful name)/!

Elegant Fowl'
Alive and well,
Wrting my column
And raising hell!

Ahhh! There you are!
Writer, huh!?

What was your last column about?

Humour me - I've been up since an obscene hour watching the US Open tennis. Why do they start the great games at 2am?

Walk in the Woods
Margo - I'm sorry you found parts of Walk "A tad tedious". I laughed and enjoyed all the way through, and it left me worrying about what's going to happen to the Trail with population pressures growing alongside it in so many areas.

My feeling about "A Sunburnt Country" - and I've never been to Australia - was that it made what could have interesting rather dry. It didn't make me want to go there, but Walk did make me wish I could trek the Trail.

I'm a music critic. My last column, or review more exactly, dealt with Copland's Appalachian Spring.

Given the responses here, I'm wondering if Bryson's books are most amusing for the locals for each book. Or if not locals, people who are familiar with the territory.

An Aussies likes the Oz book best, doesn't get the Appalachian trail one. American likes the Appalachian trail one - doesn't get the Oz one. It likely doesn't not hold true over all, but this tiny sample makes it look like an interesting split.

Very nice website, efowl!

I really like that there is a link to the Gatineau there.

That's possible. I've hiked a little of the Appalachian Trail, and that may have helped. Walk in Woods is the only of Bryson's travel books that I've read. I've read his Mother Tongue as well, and enjoyed it, though my linguist friends tell me it leaves a lot to be desired. I see he has a book out now that tells the story of everything!

Thanks for the kind words on my web site. I need to do a major update., and that's going to occupy me for much of the next week.

Walk in the Woods
Well, ehBeth, I think you have something there. Given a common cultural background, if you could call it that, there is a tendency to feel more at home and relaxed with the familiar. There is a shared base from which to move into a topic which means that there are references that don't need explaining.

Of course, reading about a strange place has its own charms. My problem with Sunburnt Country was partly that I just didn't feel it was as good as Walk; perhaps it was rather more chopped up. Many books about Australia can be fascinating. I just wasn't fascinated by this particular one.

I have read most of Bryson's other books, and liked Walk the most, but enjoyed the others also.

Let's talk music sometime, Elegant Fowl. Maybe the glories of Karina Gauvin? That would make a nice winter evening discussion.

I know there are a few people here who share some of your particular interests, as well as some who are interested in the larger << waving arms around to explain >> live musical performance area <<more arm waving>>.


(i don't know why i wave my arms around at the keyboard, but i think talking is talking, somehow)

Walk in the Woods
Elegant Fowl - do you sing charmingly sweet?

What music is your special favorite type? Or is your taste pretty universal?