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mwash87's review
5.0
Amazing book. Rog is a tremendous writer and a tremendously good person. Go Bears, Go Sox, Up The Toffees.
rpych2's review
4.0
I’ve been a huge fan of the Men in Blazers pod for years now, so when Rog said he was coming out with a book there was no doubt that I’d read it. It’s a fantastic coming of age story that is made better by his amazing sense of humor and wit that comes through his writing perfectly. It’s so interesting to read about an Englishman who felt they were born to be an American, especially as someone who has always felt the opposite. Highly recommend this book to anyone, especially fans of his work.
lyonsmw's review
5.0
Perhaps because I’m just a few years older than Mr. Bennett, I felt this book (the music, the painful fashion choices) in my soul. The writing is a nostalgic delight and if Rog’s deflowering is of interest, it’s all here. This homage to what an English boy wanted America to be is a rollicking read.
leslielu67's review
4.0
Pretty entertaining stroll through the 80s with music, movies and fashion, many of which were central to my high school and college years. Rough story about the Beastie Boys playing Liverpool! May have to check out Men in Blazers.
jedster247's review
2.0
Humorous coming of age memoir filled with pop culture references and highly obscene adolescent hijinks. Not sure any person could recall their upbringing with this level of detail.
guarinous's review
4.0
Roger Bennett loves America, and Reborn in the USA is his "scream it from the rooftops" paean (or is it a caterwaul?) to his country of choice. Premier League fans in the USA (may) know Bennett as one half of the moderately popular Men in Blazers duo who attempt to mask their sub-optimal footballing analysis with an endless stream of guest stars, one liners, and pie predictions. Bennett, a recently naturalized US citizen, here steps back from (most) of the football banter to deliver a heartfelt memoir of his life as a Liverpudlian lad with a simple dream of leaving it all behind for the glitz and glamour of 1980s Chicago(?) as soundtracked by Bruce Springsteen. Bennett's tales of childhood and coming of age in Liverpool are as uncomfortably honest and self-deprecating as you'd imagine from a man who's always pointing when his nipples are tingling from excitement. Sandwiched between these chapters is Bennett's lifechanging trip to Chicago, his first experience of the USA. These stories are full of bizarre hero worship of the Chicago Bears, questionable American fashion, and John Hughes movies. Bennett's wide eyed awe of the country he's dreamed about for so long shines through on the pages and one has to wonder how many telephone polls he walked into while trying to take the bright lights of America in.
As with everything Bennett does, Reborn in the USA is full of heart, wit, and jokes that are funny 60% of the time. In a nation so bitterly divided and politically in turmoil, we could do far worse than sit down with a longneck Budweiser (or twelve) and read about the love and passion a boy from Liverpool has for the USA. Perhaps after a long period of loggerheads, Bennett can help us remember exactly what makes us love this country as well.
**I was given a copy of this book by the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. My thanks to
Dey Street Books**
As with everything Bennett does, Reborn in the USA is full of heart, wit, and jokes that are funny 60% of the time. In a nation so bitterly divided and politically in turmoil, we could do far worse than sit down with a longneck Budweiser (or twelve) and read about the love and passion a boy from Liverpool has for the USA. Perhaps after a long period of loggerheads, Bennett can help us remember exactly what makes us love this country as well.
**I was given a copy of this book by the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. My thanks to
Dey Street Books**