Posted by Jason Hussong on Monday, July 4, 2011,
I have struggled with separating myself from Paul Theroux. As much as I can't stand the arrogant tone in his writing, I can't help but buy another book of his when I see it on the shelf -  in this case, his newest work, The Tao of Travel: Enlightenments from Lives on the Road. And, quite to my surprise, I'm for once not regretting that decision as I have with most of his other books. The Tao of Travel by Paul Theroux is just that, Theroux's view on the way of travel. There is no doubt his e... Continue reading ...
Posted by Jason Hussong on Thursday, June 23, 2011,
I'm not much of a listmaker outside of grocery shopping, packing for vacations, or - alright, I'm a listmaker, born and raised. There, I admitted it. I create lists and write notes down, only to feel the pleasure of crossing something off of them, for most anything I do. And it is no small wonder I haven't yet created any sort of list when it comes to travel writing. Well, that is until now.
I stare at my bookshelf in wonder and am amazed at the great number of fantastic sto... Continue reading ...
Posted by Jason Hussong on Tuesday, March 8, 2011,
I have read too many serious travel books lately - heck, too many serious books in general if you want to throw in the likes of East of Eden and Les Miserables - and needed a break with  something fun. Cue one of the world's best authors in Bill Bryson. Notes From a Small Island had sat on my bookshelf for some time, all the while waiting to be read prior to my trip to England, so I decided to pick it up. After all, I'm hoping to make it across the pond this coming summer to see a friend who... Continue reading ...
Posted by Jason Hussong on Monday, January 31, 2011,
Several months ago, maybe even a year, I saw Bill Bryson's African Diary on the shelf at the bookstore. I had wanted to read it for some time simply because Bill Bryson wrote it. I love his work and this was one of the outstanding books of his I had yet to read. Well, when I saw it on the shelf, I passed on purchasing it - the book  was too skinny at only fifty pages for the price. I wanted something more for my dollar and decided to go another route. But, when I was given a gift card for Ch... Continue reading ...
Posted by Jason Hussong on Thursday, October 28, 2010,
I have been unable to find a Bill Bryson book that I don't love. From page one to the end of each of his books I find myself absolutely rivited, and thoroughly entertained. It's as though I  have an old friend telling me about his travels abroad. And so, when I picked up Neither Here Nor There: Travels in Europe for a bit of light reading, I knew I would not be let down. Neither Here Nor There is nearly twenty years old now, but that didn't matter. The stories of Bryson's travels throug...
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Posted by Jason Hussong on Wednesday, August 4, 2010,
When I planned my trip to Australia I was pretty much a newbie when it came to reading travel books. I was headed to  my final of the seven continents, and already held a great appreciation for traveling, but hadn't read much in the way of travel literature. I was hesitant to pick up a book talking about another person's trip somewhere since I didn't want it to influence my own adventure, but I had heard so many good things about this Bill Bryson fellow and his book, In a Sunburned Country. ...
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Posted by Jason Hussong on Thursday, November 19, 2009,
It's no secret that I'm a fan of Bill Bryson's writing. I have yet to find a book of his that I don't like, even mildly, and don't suspect that I will either. The most recent book of his I've read, one of his earliest works - The Lost Continent: Travels in Small-Town  America - is perhaps my favorite though. I had a difficult time putting it down and am sure that I'll read it again before the new year. The Lost Continent reminded me, as I turned the pages, of the roadtrips I grew up on as...
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Posted by Jason Hussong on Tuesday, August 18, 2009,
Bill Bryson's A Walk in the Woods: Rediscovering America on the Appalachian Trail turned out to be a much better buy at the Denver Public Library used book sale than the Theroux sadness I recently read. Granted it was only a dollar as well, but what a great find, or gift rather. And that gift is what I want to talk about here. Why not review the book I'm saying I'm going to review? Well, alright, I'll do that first. It's a Bill Bryson book, so everyone already knows it'll be a winner. And yeah... Continue reading ...
Posted by Jason Hussong on Tuesday, August 18, 2009,
The Life and Times of the Thunderbolt Kid is a fantastic memoir of what life was like growing up in Des Moines, Iowa in the 1950s  for Bill Bryson. And as far as I'm concerned, despite a 30 year difference, it's not much different than what it was like growing up for me just a bit farther up Interstate 35 in the Twin Cities. With each page I turned I felt as though I swam a lap in my own memory. The book helped me recall so much of my own childhood that I found it quite difficult to put down. T... Continue reading ...
Posted by Jason Hussong on Tuesday, August 18, 2009,
I read my first Bill Bryson book about 16 months ago before I took my vacation to Australia and New Zealand. In a Sunburned Country seemed like the perfect book to read before heading downunder, and it came highly recommended to me by several friends. Since then I have not had an opportunity to pick up another one of Bryson's books, which I  regret, until I was given I'm a Stranger Here Myself: Notes on Returning to America After Twenty Years Away by my father for Christmas. When I first picked ...
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