'Notes from a Small Island' by Bill Bryson
'Notes from a Small Island' by Bill Bryson

The good

  • There are a few chapters that will truly make you laugh-out-loud, especially early in the book.

  • The book gives you an interesting taste of Great Britain, focused not on famous tourist destinations, but on the more “normal” towns. It makes it feel a bit more authentic and honest.

The not so good

  • While a few chapters are funny, most are not.

  • While some of the destinations Bryson visits are interesting, most are not. This is the double-edged sword of focusing on “normal” places rather than famous ones.

  • I found it weird that Bryson travels alone. He ends up eating alone, drinking at bars alone, walking around all these destinations alone. Occasionally, that makes for some fun antics, but mostly, it’s just weird and a bit boring, or even occasionally cringey when Bryson proudly describes some anecdote of him being whiney or just plain rude.

Rating: 3 stars