Book Picks: USA

Without new experiences, something inside of us sleeps. The sleeper must awaken.
Franz Herbert

Funny in Farsi: A Memoir of Growing Up Iranian in America
Firoozeh Dumas

While most people will be attracted to reading this book by Dumas' quirky, and entertaining, sense of humor, I think the book's best quality is its wistful, yet not overly sappy, view of the immigrant experience in the USA. Few books make such a complicated subject- the collision of two very different cultures - so imminently approachable to their readership.

States of Mind: A Search for Faith, Hope, Inspiration, Harmony, Unity, Friendship, Love, Pride, Wisdom, Honor, Comfort, Joy, Bliss, Freedom, Justice, Glory, Triumph, and Truth or Consequences in America
Brad Herzog

States of Mind starts with an intriguing premise "How easy is it to find positive states of being (such as Unity) in a town named after these states of being (like Unity, New Hampshire) in the USA?" Even after reading this book, this question remains unanswered in my mind. However, I think this book offers readers a lot anyway. Few books provide so many unique tidbits of American history and culture and leave such an indelible view of America today.

Travels with Charley
John Steinbeck

Though nearly fifty years old, Travels with Charley still packs one of the most honest, and powerful, portraits of the American experience anywhere. Steinbeck deftly describes his adventures with Charley, a dog, traveling around the USA in Rocinante (his car, named after Don Quixote's horse) in the late 1950s. Along the way, we also learn a lot about the inner thoughts of one of America's most famed twentieth century voices.

The Americans
John Steinbeck

One of Steinbeck's last books, The Americans is one of the best analyses of the American political, economic, and culture scene. Suprisingly fresh even forty years later, Steinbeck gives his readers a lot of food for thought. You may not agree with his portrait of our countrymen, but, you'll be glad you read this book.

The Majic Bus: An American Odyssey
Douglas Brinkley

I love this book. The Majic Bus is the story of a group of college students, and their professor, David Brinkley, who take to the road for a semester in search of American literature and culture. Along the way, these lucky students, met many of America's most potent voices including Lawrence Ferlinghetti and William S. Burroughs, and, most importantly, get to see the US in a whole new light. By the end of this book, I wished I could take a class like these students. However, maybe that isn't that necessary since thanks to Brinkley's book, I almost felt like I had taken the class anyway.

Sixty Miles from Contentment: Traveling the Nineteenth Century American Interior
M.H. Dunlop

While a bit academic and pedantic in spots, Sixty Miles from Contentment is nonetheless a fascinating book. Between the covers of this text, you'll discover a whole new way to look at the Midwest: from the standpoint of a nineteenth century tourist. At that time, the Midwest was one of the planet's most exotic quarters. Nowhere else did transience, equality, and vastness reign so supreme. The Midwest today seems so vastly different from the one captured on these pages that one wonders what happened.

Democracy in America
Alexis de Tocqueville

Probably the best known travelogue to the USA, De Tocqueville casts a unique look at the American culture: that of an early nineteenth century, French aristocrat. While the America he captures is not always pretty (or even fair) nonetheless he has one of the most perceptive views of the American experience even captured in a book.

American Places: A Writer's Pilgrimage to 15 of this Country's Most Visited and Cherished Sites
William Zinsser

In my mind, the best books either produce an intense, emotional reaction or have you saying "hmm, I didn't know that." This book evokes more "hmm" moments than any book I've read in awhile. What's more, Zinsser's wistful commentary at times provokes an intense feeling of pride in the power of the American dream to transfer monuments made of stone into meaningful messages of hope for mankind.

Skipping Toward Gomorrah: Seven Deadly Sins and the Pursuit of Happiness in America
Dan Savage

The most insightful and entertaining book about the US, I?ve read in a long time. Savage gives a compassionate voice to the millions of everyday Americans who seek out the dark side of the American experience -- be that through eating too much or swinging. He makes you see that these people are not freaks. They merely find entertainment, and even at times, enlightenment in ways outside of the mainstream, puritanical American experience. I wish with all my heart that Savage?s understanding and informed voice would find more allies in the halls of power in the USA. My homeland would be a much better place!

A Hell of a Place to Lose a Cow: An American Hitchhiking Journey
Tom Brooks

Parts of A Hell of a Place to Lose a Cow are a fabulous read and other parts falter a bit. Brooks is at his best when he is actually hitchhiking. He writes deftly about the diverse, yet ultimately kind, people he encounters on the road. The book gets bogged down whenever he talks about his travels with his photographer though.

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Reviews of books about California from my new website: www.californiatourguy.com.

Notes

• I, (Paul Heller, founder of Big Blue Marble) have prepared these reviews to help you travel-like-a-local.
• Check out my upcoming reviews of links related to travel in the USA.
• Do you agree or disagree with my comments about the books listed on this site? Know of any books that should be added? If so, please send me your comments. I promise to post your comments on the Big Blue Marble blog.
• indicates that I highly recommend these books.