by Paul Theroux
I’m told this is a benchmark in travel literature, a must read, but I couldn’t honestly rate this even three stars. It’s the kind of book that instead of causing you to yearn to see new places makes you want to stay at home. The book would seem to have all the ingredients of a classic; in print afte...
A great read -- no review here, but will comment when I've read (soon) Ghost Train..., which is The Great Railway Bazaar redux, 30 years later.
I love Theroux's rambling architecture. It's a frantic bit of Dylan Thomas-like prose, touching here and moving to the next before any significant revelation has sunk in. He's definitely someone I want to read but he's not someone I want sharing my train compartment for 6,000 miles across the Soviet...
every single person this dude meets, talks to and generally treats like a fellow human being is also a dude. if a woman is mentioned, there's fully 95% chance she's a prostitute. other 5% - someone's wife, mother or a random beggar. also, white people are generally referred to by their proper names;...
A thoroughly enjoyable read that makes me want to take the same trip (which would obviously be very different now). Though it is indeed episodic, Theroux does a great job of making himself relatable as traveller. Having travelled alone for an extended period myself (though nothing like his four mo...
A very early Theroux (copyright 1975). I had not noticed Theroux’s snarky tone until it was pointed out to me repeatedly by my fellow bloggers while I was reading this book. I like it, nevertheless.
I enjoyed it, although the trip across Russia seemed quite truncated. Lots about Vietnam, but then at the time that was a place of intense interest. Entertaining all the way.
Theroux's 1975 railroad travelogue in which he rides trains from London, through Europe, Asia, India, Southeast Asia, Japan, and back through the Soviet Union. It's terribly well written, but after a while, one tires of the details of his train compartment and dining car adventures. I picked it up ...
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