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p_t_b's review against another edition
3.0
conflicted about this one - theroux (or mr thorax, as he occasionally gets misnamed) comes off as a bit of a pill. he seems shocked, shocked that poor people sometimes live in ways that aren't quite what he's used to in (checks bio) cape cod and hawaii. he can come off as condescending and a little squicky about indian immigrants. he might need a reality check about how relevant faulkner is to most people's day to day existence. but he's also astute, sympathetic, observant, intrepid in the way only an rich old white man can be. he pushes a little too hard to trace patterns - i'm not sure what the arkansas delta and south carolina have in common, any more than like, chicago and new york do? i found myself irritated with him repeatedly but in the faintly endearing manner of friendship. i havent read any of his other books; i'm sure they have merits, as this one does. i plowed through all 500+ pages and never quite decided whether it was good. i've lived in the south long enough to have some reflexive defensiveness about it, but i was still interested to see the close-by/still-faraway parts of it from fresh eyes (greensboro, mary ward brown, etc). anyway probably not for you unless you really care about the idea of the south or paul theroux. PS i was shocked that his hair was dyed when i finally looked at the pictures.
lindsey_bear's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
reflective
relaxing
medium-paced
3.5
I love Theroux’s writing style as always. He is so descriptive in his writing and has a way of connecting with those he encounters on his travels, despite being an outsider. I think he is rather self-aware and vulnerable. I found parts of this book repetitive, so getting through the whole thing was a bit of a drag towards the end. That being said, having the insight into poverty in the deep south was super interesting. I’m left wanting to know more about some of the people he encountered. Overall, a nice travel piece.
swoody788's review against another edition
adventurous
hopeful
informative
reflective
slow-paced
4.5
esshgee's review against another edition
3.0
This is a tough one to rate. It's been a long time since I read a Paul Theroux book, and although I found the discussion points interesting, overall I found this to be a bit of a rambling waffle and I did lose interest several times along the way. Theroux admits that this was different to his usual way of travelling as he drove his car and visited the area several times, so it wasn't really a "Start at point A, Finish at point B and describe what happened in between" type of book
kingarooski's review against another edition
4.0
Paul Theroux comes across as a bit of an arrogant buffoon. This book, though, is a very good insight to the South, especially the poorer, neglected parts of the US. The lack of job opportunities, the attachment to guns, the ever-prevailing racism, the feeling of betrayal still tied to the Civil War all went a long way to explain why someone like Trump resonates with some people in the US.
lauravm's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
informative
reflective
sad
slow-paced
4.5
Travel writer extraordinaire Paul Theroux gives readers thoroughly engaging, but also deeply sad and frustrating insight into a hidden part of America where time has stood still. The resigned (or stubborn) acceptance of old ways, and the damage done by inequitable progress creates a landscape that is both frighteningly ugly but also somehow beautiful thanks to inexplicable hope and resilience. As always with Theroux, the prose is intoxicating. This one will live in my mind for a long time.