Notes from a Small Island

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Summary: Funny, evocative and true-to-life
Review: Made me homesick to read this travelogue written by an american anglophile on a tour of the UK in the autumn. An easy read, but worthwhile.

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Summary: An insightful look at Britain and the British
Review: This is truly a wonderful book, filled with insightful observations about the British and Britain.Weaving his way all through the Island, Bryson brings to life the eccentricities of the land and its people. It's a terrific read, whether you have ever been to the "green and pleasant land" or not.

Rating:
Summary: Bryson's talents are best displayed in this book
Review: Unlike in the more recent 'A walk in the woods', Bryson does here what he does the best: he describes people and situations, rather than scenery. In his descriptions of his experiences on several train journeys, and also of his time in a Dover bed and breakfast, he is quite brilliant. His summaries of the British people and their approach to life is at the same time incredibly accurate and very funny. I highly recommend this book!

Rating:
Summary: What a disappointment
Review: After reading all the glowing reviews, I couldn't wait to read this book. I hadn't read 20 pages before I realized I wasn't going to like it. I think the only reason I even finished it was I was stuck on an airplane with nothing else to read. I think my primary problem with the book was that Bryson just sort of wanders from one destination to another, telling us the travails he experienced getting from Point A to Point B. I didn't get any real insight into the British people. And there were several instances in the book where I was sure he was making things up for alledged comic effect. Several people have made comparisons between this book and Paul Theroux's "Kingdom By The Sea." I will admit that Paul can be kind of mean-spirited and doesn't seem to have a good time when he travels. But he is such a far superior writer that I felt I had a real sense of what Great Britain was about after reading his book. I got little, if any, of that with "Notes From A Small Island."

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Summary: If you're a real Anglophile you will HOWL at this book!
Review: I started this book while in England. On the return plane ride, my seatmate kept looking at me oddly because I was laughing so hard. Having once worked for a Scot, I strongly identified with Bryson's hilarious language difficulties in a Glasgow pub. He captures exactly the essence of Great Britain that keeps me coming back year after year. His descriptions of the mundane are right on target and his love of the subject is in every comical word. Well done!

Rating:
Summary: Bill Bryson at his best!
Review: I've noted that of about 36 reviews of this book, there are only three bad ones. Good work people! I have read The Lost Continent already, and I think NFASI is just as good, if not better. I especially loved the part about his landlady and his experiences in Dover. And the part about parking. I wish I could give more than five stars for this book!

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Summary: A great British-American translation guide
Review: Nothing is more frustrating than trying to translate British to American (just what IS a sod, anyhow?). As a travel virgin about to embark on my first trip to the UK (or anywhere), I let out a cry of joy to discover that Mr. Bryson had included a glossary of terms. This book had me roaring with laughter, and best of all, when I asked my Brit friends about certain details, they all rang true. Hats off!

Rating:
Summary: extremely funny extremely perceptive
Review: As an Anglophile Irishman (I know that's a contradiction in terms)I've always had a high regard for those peculiar people who inhabit the neighbouring island. Bill Bryson's account of his travels around Great Britain are at times quite histerically funny and even his criticisms are couched in terms of deep affection. The only complaint I would have is that after a while his commentary goes a little flat and one gets the impression that he is tiring of his journey and is rushing somewhat in order to return home to his wife and children - not a bad fault in a man but a little irritating in a travel writer. Nonetheless a bloooming good read, I'll leave the last word to him as he sums up the enigma of modern Britain... ''Here is a country that fought and won a noble war, dismantled a mighty empire in a generally benign and enlightened way,created a far-seeing welfare state - in short, did nearly everything right - and then spent the rest of the century looking on itself a! s a chronic failure.''

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Summary: Very very funny..but...
Review: As a Brit married to an American, living in Asia for the past ten years, I can understand Bryson's confusions and frustrations. Most of what he says is absolutely true (especially about Bradford, where I grew up). Take it light heartedly- he's not trying to offer solutions, just observing this funny little country. BUT! He doesn't seem to want ANY kind of progress, he would prefer that we all lived in some kind of Disney-esque country, like the English pavilion at Epcot. Yes, we've concreted our quaint high streets and we don't all live in thatched cottages, but we want things the Americans have, like faceless shopping malls. If you don't mind Bryson's bewailing the loss of a country that may have only existed in his imagination, this is still an excellent commentary on all that's wrong, and right, with modern Britain- and a really funny book at the same time.

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Summary: An American Views Life in Britain
Review: Bill Bryson expertly captures the mental amusement and bemusement of an American living in Britain. I am an American who also lived in England, and I laughed myself silly reading this book. This isn't meant to be a travel guide or an in depth academic study of British culture as some reviewers must evidently believe. There are many ways to reminisce about life in a foreign country, and BB chose to tell us fond, funny stories of his life in the UK. Let's not be stuffily chauvinistic about these things. I'm sure many Brits could write equally hilarious tales of their lives over here in the USA. For me its hard to understand that any American who has lived in Britain would not find funny such tales as the train/bus schedule incident (As I remember it the Brit Rail agent couldn't understand Bryson's difficulty with a schedule that had a daily train arrive in a town minutes after the scheduled departure of the daily bus that took travellers to their next destination.)

If y! ou are a Bryson fan, this is as good as he gets. You will especially enjoy it if you have spent time in both the US and the UK.