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A review by michael_odonnell
A Walk in the Woods: Rediscovering America on the Appalachian Trail by Bill Bryson
2.0
This is probably a tired trope for goodreads reviews but oh well. This book can be described in three different categories: the good, the bad, and the ugly.
The good: Bryson is a good writer in my opinion. The descriptions of nature were vivid and descriptive, but no overbearing. I really feel like I could envision him and Katz on the trail. I also really enjoyed when he included information/history about the different sections of trail he was on. I liked learning this.
The bad: I felt a bit lied to by the book. When I saw this book at Barnes and Noble and read the back, I was expecting this to be a grand adventure. And it was still was. SPOILER: But they only liked 40% of the trail, which is a huge accomplishment, but a decent chunk of the book was dedicated to the history of the trail between hikes and not of the hike. The back of the book made it seem like Bryson hiked the whole trail. I enjoyed the history when it gave helpful context, but it felt a bit too long, almost like filler because of the lack of time on the trail. I might be being too hard here but this annoyed me a bit, but not a deal breaker.
The ugly: Bryson and Katz are assholes. I know I am being an annoying snowflake or whatever, but the way they treated people on the trail was awful. I hope this was exaggerated for the book. I know Bryson was trying to be funny and this was written 'in a different time,' but it just wasn't funny. You can be edgy and offensive without being a dick to people.
The way he treated and wrote about the woman at the beginning who was clearly neuro-divergent. Or making fun of poor people in the south. Or making fun of fat people. Or making fun of women. Or writing in a racist tone. It just wasn't funny.
Tldr: Bryson seems like an asshole who punches down on marginalized groups for cheap laughs. He is a good writer and his journey on the AT was interesting, but I would have much rather read an AT hiking adventure by someone else.
The good: Bryson is a good writer in my opinion. The descriptions of nature were vivid and descriptive, but no overbearing. I really feel like I could envision him and Katz on the trail. I also really enjoyed when he included information/history about the different sections of trail he was on. I liked learning this.
The bad: I felt a bit lied to by the book. When I saw this book at Barnes and Noble and read the back, I was expecting this to be a grand adventure. And it was still was. SPOILER: But they only liked 40% of the trail, which is a huge accomplishment, but a decent chunk of the book was dedicated to the history of the trail between hikes and not of the hike. The back of the book made it seem like Bryson hiked the whole trail. I enjoyed the history when it gave helpful context, but it felt a bit too long, almost like filler because of the lack of time on the trail. I might be being too hard here but this annoyed me a bit, but not a deal breaker.
The ugly: Bryson and Katz are assholes. I know I am being an annoying snowflake or whatever, but the way they treated people on the trail was awful. I hope this was exaggerated for the book. I know Bryson was trying to be funny and this was written 'in a different time,' but it just wasn't funny. You can be edgy and offensive without being a dick to people.
The way he treated and wrote about the woman at the beginning who was clearly neuro-divergent. Or making fun of poor people in the south. Or making fun of fat people. Or making fun of women. Or writing in a racist tone. It just wasn't funny.
Tldr: Bryson seems like an asshole who punches down on marginalized groups for cheap laughs. He is a good writer and his journey on the AT was interesting, but I would have much rather read an AT hiking adventure by someone else.