Thursday, March 4, 2010

Stephen Fry in America


Stephen Fry in America: Fifty States and the Man Who Set Out to See Them All
by Stephen Fry [917.3 Fry]

A companion book to the BBC series of the same title, this offers an outsider's view of the U.S. (although Fry has homes here and resident alien status) as he travels the country, state to state. Fry, perhaps best know to Americans as P.G. Wodehouse's "Jeeves" on television, is an accomplished comic, actor, and writer. Fry's attitude toward his subject is at times quite superior but at others completely in awe of the vast array of people and places that make up the nation. Unfortunately he gives very short shrift to a couple of the states, and there are a number of misspellings of names in the "Well-known Residents" section that's included with each state's chapter. The section on Nebraska didn't really have much to do with our state but did give some interesting background on the Interstate Highway system. I liked the book but didn't love it. It's worth looking at, though, and is easy to browse in small bits. -- recommended by Becky W.C. - Walt Branch Library

[ official BBC Web page for this documentary series web site ] | [ official Stephen Fry web site ]

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