The Lost Continent

I just finished Bill Bryson's chronicle about a road trip in his somewhat recently past father's Chevelle through much of the continental United States. As a child, his father had loaded them into the car and driven them all over the US each summer for some sort of legendary family road trip vacation to quite often obscure and inexpensive places.

Largely, it was a clever, slightly sardonic take on many places I have either been to or lived in during my life, which either helped me see them in a new light or resonated quite strongly with my own perceptions. At the time he made his observations, he was an American born in the Midwest, living in England and in his early 30's. Perhaps our somewhat common experiences led us to draw similar conclusions about many places in the lower 48. Though there were times when perhaps it was just a bit too snarky, I must confess he also casually makes rather poignant observations about poverty, health care, consumerism, regional differences and the slow progression of American small towns into the same collection of chain restaurants and hotels. It would less impressive if the book were not written over 20 years ago.

Throughout his trip, sometimes there were places I wish he would have visited in his journey but more often than not he informed me of some obscure piece of Americana I myself missed while flying through a town on the highway. Anyway, if you love a good road trip (as I most certainly do), this is a good read for a taste of much of the American experience. Largely the people and regions are treated rather fairly, though a bit condescendingly at times. Mostly though, the language he uses to describe each road he drives down, small town he pulls into, random historical place he visits, natural attraction or diner he eats his fried chicken dinners at is all rather richly crafted, which I found surprising for someone I imagined more as a humorist. The effect is that you feel yourself rather easily being shuttled down the road sharing his experiences and can really see and feel yourself on this scattered road trip towards personal discovery.