Notes From A Small Island
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  • Published: 1 April 2010
  • ISBN: 9781407083681
  • Imprint: Transworld Digital
  • Format: Audio Download
  • Length: 5 hr 39 min
  • Narrator: Bill Bryson
  • RRP: $17.99
Categories:

Notes From A Small Island

Journey Through Britain

Formats & editions
Paperback
1 Sept 2015
EBook
1 May 2010
Audiobook
1 Apr 2010
Audio CD
15 June 2004
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England's favourite American's book about his adopted country: his hilarious No.1 bestseller.

After nearly two decades in Britain, Bill Bryson took the decision to move back to the States for a while, to let his kids experience life in another country, to give his wife the chance to shop until 10 p.m. seven nights a week, and, most of all, because he had read the 3.7 million Americans believed that they had been abducted by aliens at one time or another, and it was thus clear to him that his people needed him.

But before leaving his much-loved home in North Yorkshire, Bryson insisted on taking one last trip around Britain, a sort of valedictory tour of the green and kindly island that had so long been his home. His aim was to take stock of the nation's public face and private parts (as it were), and to analyse what precisely it was he loved so much about a country that had produced Marmite, a military hero whose dying wish was to be kissed by a fellow named Hardy, place names like Farleigh Wallop, Titsey and Shellow Bowells, people who said 'Mustn't grumble', and Gardeners' Question Time.

So in Notes from a Small Island, Bryson turns a laconic but affectionate eye on his adopted country. Britain will never seem the same again.
  • Published: 1 April 2010
  • ISBN: 9781407083681
  • Imprint: Transworld Digital
  • Format: Audio Download
  • Length: 5 hr 39 min
  • Narrator: Bill Bryson
  • RRP: $17.99
Categories:

About the author

Bill Bryson

Bill Bryson was born in Des Moines, Iowa, in 1951. His bestselling books include The Road to Little Dribbling, Notes from a Small Island, A Walk in the Woods, One Summer and The Life and Times of the Thunderbolt Kid. In a national poll, Notes from a Small Island was voted the book that best represents Britain. His acclaimed work of popular science, A Short History of Nearly Everything, won the Aventis Prize and the Descartes Prize, and was the biggest selling non-fiction book of its decade in the UK. His new book The Body: A Guide for Occupants is an extraordinary exploration of the human body which will have you marvelling at the form you occupy.
Bill Bryson was Chancellor of Durham University 2005–2011. He is an Honorary Fellow of the Royal Society. He lives in England.

portrait photo of Bill Bryson

Also by Bill Bryson

A Short History of Nearly Everything
The Body
Down Under
At Home
A Really Short History of Nearly Everything
A Walk In The Woods
A Really Short History of Words
See all

Praise for Notes From A Small Island

Not a book that should be read in public, for fear of emitting loud snorts

The Times

Laugh-out-loud funny

The Good Book Guide

Splendid... What's enjoyable is that there's as much of Bryson in here as there is of Britain

Sunday Telegraph

Bryson is funny because he is not afraid to give completely of himself

Daily Express

Astute and funny...a tribute to [Britain's] enchantments by an unabashed anglophile.

New York Times

'Not a book that should be read in public, for fear of emitting loud snorts'

The Times

'Laugh-out-loud funny'

The Good Book Guide

'Splendid...What's enjoyable is that there's as much of Bryson in here as there is of Britain'

Sunday Telegraph

'Bryson is funny because he is not afraid to give completely of himself'

Daily Express
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