Simon Shuster - anyone home?
I am sorry, but this book was not very interesting, I never really came to care about Newhouse and his description of his trip was spotty. There are many better cycling/cross-country books and there are a few books out there that deal with man's search for meaning in life.
This book is poorly edited with examples such as the simile describing the Columbia as being as wide as the Mississippi, or perhaps spelling mistake on page 22 where the bike "fled" down the mountain instead of "flew". This was followed on the next page by "what was wet and cold and lush with ferns on the eastern side of the Cascades had turned to sand, heat, scrub pine here on the west", sorry but the writer and editor got that one mixed up - the story is moving west to east, and the eastern side is the dry side. A little further on, we meet John who tells us about an early baseball experience at the Met, the Metrodome in Minneapolis opened in 1982, in which Harmon Killebrew hit a home run. Harmon retire in 1975. On page 143 Newhouse says the sun threw my shadow probably a quarter of a mile over the handlebars.
How does this stuff get published?
No ring of truth
I must admit to being quite disappointed with this book. I found
it to feel like a less than honest story, in both the tone
and the details. I found myself doubting the story as the
details didn't seem to ring true. The story of the Wheel Wizard
using a hammer in the manner described to fix a wheel is
either fabricated, or belies the author's cluelessness concerning
bicycle repair and maintenance. The story of the war vet simply
felt anachronistic, like it was a forced story made up to fill
out an otherwise empty section of the book. These are just
two of too many examples where I found my self doubting
the story as told. It really doesn't matter if all the details
are true, because if they are true the book has failed even more
so to convey what is supposed to be a very personal experience
of journey and learning.I was also surprised to find positive reviews of this book. For
anyone considering reading this book, if you haven't yet read
Miles from nowhere, you would read that one instead. That book
is by far the better travel tale, and simply doesn't fail to
convey an honesty that A Crossing lacks.
A Crossing, A Cyclist's Journey Home by: Brian Newhouse
I am an avid Bicycling and Touring book reader. "A Crossing" by Brian Newhouse was a treasure. I read the book in less than 24 hours. It has everything a book like this needs. Insight into crossing the United States by bicycle, a positive attitude, fun, amusing, and one of the best writers I have had the priviledge to read. Thank You Amazon.com, for without you I wouldn't have found this wonderful book. Connie McAyeal
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