Another great Bill Bryson book. If you have ever been to Europe, or even if you haven't, you'll enjoy his witty sense of humor and his trails as he crisscrosses the continent. As usual, it is a very funny book and it makes me want to go back to Europe now, even though the book was written about 20 years ago.

Rereading a Bryson book is like visiting an old friend. I love his sense of humor and ability to describe a situation so well that you feel like you are there with him. This is not my favorite of his travelogues, but anytime Bill Bryson goes adventuring it is a hilarious story.

I want to read this book again after traveling in Italy, France, Germany, etc etc. If you have been to these places - you'll love it. If you haven't - it will create a strong desire for you to go.

Bill Bryson is one of my favorite writers. His books are smart, funny, and you always learn something new.

dnf. so not funny.

Cracked up a lot during the first half -- Bryson is absolutely hilarious. But by the second half it turned into the same old: Arrive to new town, find tourism desk to pay for hotel, complain about how much he's spent at hotel or food, make negative remarks about the city, buy train ticket to next town, and repeat. Definitely worth reading though, but I think it would have been a more exciting read had he traveled with others, or interacted with more people throughout his travels.

I think I prefer him narrating audiobooks. This was funny though, and timely for me, but dated as he went through Europe in the 90s. Kind of bummed he didn't go through Spain.

I recently read an interview with Bill Bryson in an intermission magazine at a play, and was immediately hooked. Here, I thought, was a man who had clearly had some experiences worth sharing. So I immediately checked out several of his books from the library to see if my first impression was correct. And boy, was it. Bryson has an absolute way with words. He is humorous but vividly romantic in his descriptions of landscape and people, and while reading about his multiple European excursions I felt transported, not only into his experience, but back with glorious nostalgia into my own adventures across the pond. Even if you have never been to Europe yourself, this book is definitely worth reading. This is a memoir that is oozing with fondness for times past and is replete with genuine sentimentality that does not become gooey or obnoxious. I am looking forward into my next Bryson book, and anticipate reading through his entire body of work before I am satisfied.

"I sat on a toilet watching the water run thinking what an odd thing tourism is. You fly off to a strange land, eagerly abandoning all the comforts of home and then expend vast quantities of time and money in a largely futile effort to recapture the comforts you wouldn’t have lost if you hadn’t left home in the first place."