Bill Bryson - which book to read first?

[rosegarden]

Hi everyone, I've got quite a few Bill Bryson books to read (never read anything by him before) and I was wondering which one I should read first....or does it not matter?

Carole
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[Renniemist]

I don’t think it matters which book you read first. Most of them are very good. It is quite a while since I read A Walk in the Woods which was the first one I read. I thought that it was hilarious. I also liked Notes from a Small Island. Hope you enjoy whatever book you decide to read. :)

[Janet]

I agree that I really don't think it matters. I've read quite a few, and they've all been good.

[Sugar]

I don't think that it matters either. I've only read Notes from a Small Islands, but it stood well on it's own, and is a great starting point. It's scary how much you recognise in it. I'm not sure why I haven't read more.

[Sarahrob]

I made the mistake of reading three in a row, and by the end of book three it felt whiny. Individually they were all great books though!

[Sassenach]

The first one I read was "Notes From A Small Island". I enjoyed reading his opinions of places I knew. However, I've enjoyed all the ones I've read so far.

[rosegarden]

Thanks everyone for all your help.

Notes from a Small Island it is! I'm looking forward to reading it.

Carole
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[1sillywabbit]

:) Carole if you enjoy 'Notes from a Small Island'
read 'Notes from a Big Country'

This is the only other one I have read so far.. loved it
Both very funny, and entertaining

Don't read them in a public place though! :oops:

Wabbit x :wave:

[wiccibat]

Good advice wabbit, there are parts to his books that do lead to loud noises!

[1sillywabbit]

Yes and the more you try not to the worse it gets... :oops: lol

[steffee]

Notes From a Small Island, and the others of that kind, such as Down Under and Neither Here Nor There are written as a journey across the UK (or Australia, or Europe) whereas Notes From a Big Country is merely a series of his newspaper columns put together to make a complete book, and as such it appears a little disjointed compared to the others.

Also try his English language books: Made in America or Mother Tongue, which are very good, educational and very funny; and of course A Short History of Nearly Everything.

[Michelle]

I have the latter upstairs, but I haven't even opened it yet. Is it something I can dip in and out of?

[1sillywabbit]

:) He has a new one out in September 06 (UK)

'The Life and Times of the Thunderbolt Kid'

Its a funny new memoir, he travels back in time to explore the ordinary kid he once was...

Sounds like it could be another good one.


Wabbit x :wave:

[steffee]

I have the latter upstairs, but I haven't even opened it yet. Is it something I can dip in and out of?
Yeah I would say so, it's not a story where you can get lost if you take a long enough break from it. It's very educational, hope you enjoy it.

Which book do you mean by the latter? From whose post, I mean? That applies to any of his books really.

[Michelle]

Sorry, I'm trying to do too many things at once. It was in response to
Also try his English language books: Made in America or Mother Tongue, which are very good, educational and very funny; and of course A Short History of Nearly Everything.
and I meant the latter book.. ie A Short History of Nearly Everything :)

[steffee]

Sorry, I'm trying to do too many things at once. It was in response to
Also try his English language books: Made in America or Mother Tongue, which are very good, educational and very funny; and of course A Short History of Nearly Everything.
and I meant the latter book.. ie A Short History of Nearly Everything :)
Thanks, I thought you meant my post, since it was directly above yours, but wih only a few minutes difference in the times between posts, I figured you could have meant the post before mine.

Anyway, yeah, reading a chapter or so at a time will be fine, I reckon.

[poppy]

Don't read them in a public place though! :oops:


Good advice wabbit, there are parts to his books that do lead to loud noises!

Yes and the more you try not to the worse it gets... :oops: lol

It wouldn't pay to have a weak bladder :lol:

[Icecream]

It wouldn't pay to have a weak bladder :lol:

Obviously there is something I shouldn't read there then.:lol:

[poppy]

lol Icecream, no perhaps not at the moment ....and we don't want you going into premature labour :D

[Icecream]

Well I wouldn't. Apparently baby is considered full term at 37 wks. I'm 37wks 3 days. Besides, she hasn't responded to me climbing ladders, moving furniture, or busting a gut to get this test piece right at band..:lol:

[poppy]

Well I'd say you're pretty safe with the Bill Bryson books then ...just might mean frequent trips to the loo ;)

[Icecream]

As if I don't have enough of that already..;)

[Jeannette]

OOOOH, I love Billy Bryson! It might have to do with the fact that I'm an american living in Europe who has travelled quite a bit. I really relate to the jokes he makes about both europeans and about himself as an american. I also enjoy the fact that while he makes fun of others, he makes the most fun of himself. It's all in good fun.

If anybody wants to read a "typical" Bill Bryson book first, then I would say to go for "A Walk in the Woods". And while "A Short History of Nearly Everything" is an interesting read, it's not a humorous book, and therefore not typical Bryson.

[scottishbookworm]

I too have never read bill bryson's books!

my brother-in-law is a huge fan and he's always got one in his hand when I go on holiday with mum and my sister and niece and brother-in-law.

He'll probably have one when I go to spain this year again in July
:readingtwo:

[Liz]

I have only read one of his - it was the one where he goes round Britain.
Thought that was very funny.

[rosegarden]

I have only read one of his - it was the one where he goes round Britain.
Thought that was very funny.
Do you mean Notes from a Small Island? If so, yes it's very funny in parts. What tickled me was the way he talked about how enthusiastic we are when offered a cup of tea :lol:. And it's so true......or is that just me :blush:

Carole
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[Janet]

Do you mean Notes from a Small Island? If so, yes it's very funny in parts. What tickled me was the way he talked about how enthusiastic we are when offered a cup of tea :lol:. And it's so true......or is that just me :blush:
I guess that largely depends upon whether you like tea or not - I wouldn't be at all enthusiastic about being offered tea! :p

[rosegarden]

I guess that largely depends upon whether you like tea or not - I wouldn't be at all enthusiastic about being offered tea! :p
LOL......very true..........I think I presumed that everyone is a tea-aholic like me :giggle:
Carole
:jump:

[Liz]

Do you mean Notes from a Small Island? If so, yes it's very funny in parts.

Yep, that's the one.

[poppy]

A passage from 'Down Under' or 'A Sunburned Country', Bill Bryson's book about Australia, that had me in stitches. Some kind people were giving him a guided tour in their car when he fell asleep.


Quote:I am not, I regret to say, a discreet and fetching sleeper. Most people when they nod off look as if they could do with a blanket; I look as if I could do with medical attention. I sleep as if injected with a powerful experimental muscle relaxant. My legs fall open in a grotesque come-hither manner; my knuckles brush the floor. Whatever is inside -- tongue, uvula, moist bubbles of intestinal air -- decides to leak out. From time to time, like one of those nodding-duck toys, my head tips forward to empty a quart or so of viscous drool onto my lap, then falls back to begin loading again with a noise like a toilet cistern filling. And I snore, hugely and helplessly, like a cartoon character, with rubbery flapping lips and prolonged steam-valve exhalations. For long periods I grow unnaturally still, in a way that inclines onlookers to exchange glances and lean forward in concern, then dramatically I stiffen and, after a tantalizing pause, begin to bounce and jostle in a series of whole-body spasms of the sort that bring to mind an electric chair when the switch is thrown. Then I shriek once or twice in a piercing and effeminate manner and wake up to find that all motion within five hundred feet has stopped and all children under eight are clutching their mothers' hems. It's a terrible burden to bear.

[Jeannette]

:lol: Yes, that's classic Bill Bryson!!