Stephen Fry in America

Perhaps it takes a Brit to convince an American to take another look at the abundance of good things that the USA has to see and experience. Well, maybe it helps if the American reading happens to think highly of Stephen Fry and also be an Anglophile. I gained a new appreciation for the sheer variety and wonder of our 50 states, and am thinking that the next big vacation should be to one or more of those marvelous states. I also really appreciated Fry's commentary on the people and places he encounters - while he clearly states his biases/dislikes, he doesn't overpower his ideas with those biases - he keeps an open mind as much as possible. But he also refrains from the other extreme,where all is treated with kid gloves and is marvelous show more and squeaky clean. You know that when he liked a place, he was sincere. Sincerity, scenes of beauty, and Stephen Fry in lots of uniforms that make him look 'ten kinds of dick' make this a definite pickmeup. Waiting for the actual documentary to put on the Netflix queue. show less

The estimable Stephen Fry tours the 50 states, offering his unique views as he meets with famous people and everyday folk, learns the culture of each state, and takes in the sights. With typical wit and poshness, Mr. Fry documents his experiences and gives a taste of each state's particular culture.

I will admit upfront that this book may have played to my ego a bit; Americans are often regarded as being uncivil, crass, rude, materialistic, and unintelligent, which is a bit of an annoyance to those of us who consider themselves to not be unintelligent at all. Mr. Fry actually directly contradicts this idea - or at least says that it is softened by the good qualities of America - and this becomes a running theme in his work. He finds the show more good in everyone, or at least most everyone. New Jersey, I'm afraid, was the only one which he did not have a positive thing to say about, so it is destined to remain the butt of jokes for years to come. Others, like Ohio, he only briefly mentions before moving on, which may have been a disservice and quite a disappointment to any Ohioans who picked up the book eager to find out what Mr. Fry had to say about their state.

The good, however, is overwhelming. Even to someone as widely traveled within my country as I am, I was surprised and delighted to learn new things - beyond the state bird and state neckwear or other such nonsense - and felt my feet itching to visit the same sights he did. He seems to find something favorable to say about nearly everything, and though others have accused it as coming across as treacly and sentimental, I must disagree. Being cynical and relentlessly negative is not a sign of intelligence, it's a sign of a tiresome personality. If you want to read that, I would recommend you check out The Last Continent: Travels in Small-Town America by Bill Bryson, which serves as a photonegative (literanegative?) of Stephen Fry in America. Bill Bryson is a native Iowan who moves to England who comes back and tours America and finds absolutely nothing good to say about anything and spends even less time anywhere he stays than Mr. Fry does. And I say this as someone who adores Mr. Bryson's other writings. Sometimes it takes an outside perspective to see things as beautiful and good; natives see only what could be better and bemoan what has changed.

That said, some of the critiques are valid, I will admit. He sometimes shows an ignorance of the inner depths of certain relationships, racial especially, but I will say that it is hard to pick these things up without being intimately familiar with the culture, which time constraints would not allow. I do not agree, however, that he dismisses bigotry and racism completely and implies that it does not exist - if anything, he actually specifically comments on the fact that he isn't aware of the nuances and so is not able to say anything more.

He does make several disparaging comments toward religion which were a bit much, even after reminding myself that everyone has a right to their own opinion, but these did not overshadow my enjoyment of the book.

I will also say that I bought the Kindle edition. I prefer "real" books, but I needed something to read on my phone while attending a mind-numbing assembly at work. I would highly recommend getting the physical copy of this one; the layout was odd and unpleasant - cutting off anecdotes in the middle for the "state facts" before resuming them and other jarring issues - and the pictures were impossible to see. I switched to reading it on my computer and it was better, but I'm sure nothing like a book with photographs in full glossy spread glory.

Overall, the book had its flaws, but was still engaging, witty, and pleasant, much like Mr. Fry himself. The people he talks to are always interesting (a WWII veteran who served with Jimmy Stewart, an old money socialite who attended the wedding of Jackie Kennedy, scientists, social activists, and more). On a personal note, I decided to resist my selfish impulse to flip straight to my state. As a consequence, I had ample time to speculate on which city he would visit - Dallas? Austin? El Paso? I didn't even dream that he would visit Houston, as it's almost universally forgettable. To my surprise and delight, he actually went to the Galleria (which was somewhat funny, considering that as a native of Houston, I have yet to go) and hobnobbed with the Houston society class. He wasn't exactly overwhelmingly flattering to them, but I'm happy just to see Houston - for once! - not overlooked.

If you enjoy Mr. Fry in shows or movies or books and are interested in taking a small taste of the fifty states, this is your book.

N.B. Popsugar 2016: A book about a road trip show less

A delightful trip through the United States, where the author visited all 50 states (though giving a couple of them short shrift) in an attempt to try to figure out what America really is. I appreciate a book like this, which takes some time to appreciate the beauty of the country and what is good about it in a world where too many people think if one (or several) things are bad, all must be rotten. At first, though, I was worried this would be one of those books where he came in, visited people, found them nice, and wrote off all possibility that there might be some dark undercurrents; fortunately, this is not so. He does a pretty good job of catching part of the spirit of America, as good as can be expected in a whirlwind tour of show more short visits. The style is witty and often self-mocking, in a manner only the British can quite pull off, and he offers many profound insights. Now I am going to try to find the TV show that was the basis for this tour. show less

I somehow completely missed watching this TV series when it was on air a couple of years ago. I've always been aware of it, and caught the occasional bit of an episode (always the same one... about the Body Farm. Normally whilst eating.), but never watched much of it.

I learnt quite a bit whilst reading this book - although I think I could probably name every state, and had a general idea of where each one was located, I previously couldn't tell you much about them. For instance, I never had any idea that Wisconsin and Minnesota were cold states. Fry creates a pretty clear picture of each landscape that he travels through, enough to make me want to visit several states that I previously knew nothing about. He also covers some less show more well-known (and very unappealing) places, such as a body farm in Tennessee, used to study how the human body decomposes in various conditions.

Whilst being the sort of travel fiction that I enjoy - factual, yet witty, enough information to interest but not too bogged down - this felt a bit sparse. I think it is very much a companion to the series rather than something you could read by itself; there just isn't enough information on each state, I think the most is about four pages.

Personally, I would've loved a proper book about Stephen's trip - especially coming from such a humourous, talented person - but I guess this just wasn't it. It's definitely more of a 'coffee table' book (as one of my lecturers used to refer to big hardbacks with pretty photos), that you might flick through, or pick out certain bits to read.

I do definitely now want to watch the series (it's not as long as I believed it was) - but perhaps I'll skip through part of Tennessee...

Also posted on my book blog, Rinn Reads. show less

I've enjoyed Stephen Fry's work on screen for a few decades now, back to his classic A Bit of Fry and Laurie, and his Jeeves in the Jeeves and Wooster adaptations. He's got a wry, sarcastic sense of humor, yet his intelligence and observant eye show through in everything he does.

In the case of this book tie-in to the BBC documentary series he filmed, I found myself enjoying it and being annoyed by it in equal parts. Fry's love affair with America -- you'll be amused by his explanation of the differences between Stephen (the Brit) and Steve (the Yank) at the beginning of the book -- shows through in the many ways in which he pays tribute to ordinary Americans he comes across in his travels.

At the same time, for someone wanting to pay show more tribute to the good old U.S. of A., he gives genuinely short shrift to several of the 50 states he travels through. And the choices he makes of "activities" to participate in in some of the states seems completely out of left field. It was like a non-stop episode of Dirty Jobs, if Mike Rowe was an urbane, sophisticated British gay man.

Overall, despite numerous bits of incorrect information -- Thanksgiving is NOT celebrated on the Third Thursday of November, Stephen! -- I still very much enjoyed Fry's observations on the heart and soul of America throughout the book. In the end, I can safely give this one 4 stars, but wish there had been even more content. I hope BBC America eventually airs the documentary he was filming, as I imagine Stephen's adventures would come over even better in a video format! show less

Stephen Fry's tour through the fifty states was mostly entertaining. Readers should consider that the access he was allowed isn't necessarily available on a wide scale. Further, I would suggest skipping the middle portion of Louisiana through Ohio. He was either behind schedule or pissy due to his broken arm, but generally gave this area less attention and less flattering views. It might not be the most touristy section of the country, but prison and homeless is not particularly representative. Overall a fun read with some great photos.

Damn, Stephen Fry can get bitch-ay. He hates so hard on hicks and bros! So *charming*. But he's obsessed with Sherlock Holmes and Wodehouse so he could flat out murder someone for having a big truck and guns and faith in God and he'll still be in my good books. Bah, who am I kidding it's not like I don't want to kill one of them myself sometimes.

This must be so much better as a TV show. I often wondered, "Why am I reading this? I am American; I know all this boring unflattering shit." Fry isn't writing to an audience of Americans either. Which isn't a problem with the book, it's a problem with me reading the book. He doesn't spend much time in one place and he doesn't find or think anything that surprises me. So. But watching it you show more get to see Stephen Fry look like a dick doing Americany things! Must be a laugh.

UDPATE:
I have seen the TV show. SOOOO MUCH BETTER! But man, it was an interesting exercise. Reading this book and watching the show is kinda like reading the diary of someone you know. Like, geez, that's what you were thinking about me? OMG. that's what you were thinking about Americans? OMG show less