Vollmann is a relentlessly curious, endlessly sensitive, and unequivocally adventurous examiner of human existence. He has investigated the cau... read full description
reviews
Jul 23, 2011
Jimmy
rated it: 
Riding Toward Everywhere, William T. Vollman's non-fiction account of hopping freight trains and attempting to understand the hobo lifestyle, seems to fit rather snugly, into the author's thematic obsession with fringe-dwellers and failures. It's the archetypal form of marginal social life. Or at least it's a lifestyle that Vollmann feels to be dramatically demarcated from that of any normal U.S. citizen. Poverty doesn't even explain why one would engage in such a dangerous and illegal activi
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5 comments
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(11 people liked it)
Feb 07, 2008
Scoobs
rated it: 
I just finished reading this a few minutes ago and in about 30 minutes that madman Vollmann will be here talking about catching out.
This book is pretty amazing.
What's it about?
A lot of things. The decline of the American West. The decline of the American hobo. The decline of dreams. At times this, to me, is a very depressing book. A particular section titled, "I've got to get out of here" was tough to get through. Even though its only 6 pages.
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This book is pretty amazing.
What's it about?
A lot of things. The decline of the American West. The decline of the American hobo. The decline of dreams. At times this, to me, is a very depressing book. A particular section titled, "I've got to get out of here" was tough to get through. Even though its only 6 pages.
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14 comments
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(2 people liked it)
Jan 23, 2008
Mark
rated it:
Life got you down? Maybe you need to become a hobo!
Vollmann's optimism about people and his search for freedom in hopping trains infuses a book that might be seen as depressing. Because most of these people have nothing, and are shunned by the "citizens" they meet, to say nothing of the train bulls who arrest them, kick them off freights, and run them from yard and camps.
But for Vollmann, a little kindness goes a long way, and the feeling of sneaking onto a bo More...
Vollmann's optimism about people and his search for freedom in hopping trains infuses a book that might be seen as depressing. Because most of these people have nothing, and are shunned by the "citizens" they meet, to say nothing of the train bulls who arrest them, kick them off freights, and run them from yard and camps.
But for Vollmann, a little kindness goes a long way, and the feeling of sneaking onto a bo More...
Jan 30, 2008
Dmitry
rated it:
I love this book because it told me something about America I didn't know, and now will do my best not to forget. As for its formal, aesthetic virtues as a text, it is a nearly ideal demonstration of how to frame an intensely personal experience within a literary, political and socio-economic context without abrading any of its numinous qualities.
I have also read J. R. Moehringer's scathing review of this book in the NY Times, and found it wonderful: delicious, punchy and hilarious.
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I have also read J. R. Moehringer's scathing review of this book in the NY Times, and found it wonderful: delicious, punchy and hilarious.
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2 comments
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(1 person liked it)
Jul 02, 2008
Casey
rated it: 
Vollmann is one of those writers who's incredibly frustrating to read, as he's so good at his craft, it makes you feel like a kid with Crayolas describing your summer vacation for teacher everytime you sit down to write something.
Even worse, it's nearly impossible to pick apart his writing and determine exactly what it is that makes it so good. All the standard elements are there, of course, but the main oddity is the different elements he uses to make one point, and the seemingly r More...
Even worse, it's nearly impossible to pick apart his writing and determine exactly what it is that makes it so good. All the standard elements are there, of course, but the main oddity is the different elements he uses to make one point, and the seemingly r More...
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(1 person liked it)
Jun 05, 2008
Jared
rated it:
Embittered by the policies of the Bush administration, disillusioned by the general fear growing within our society and slowed by age and poor health, National Book Award Winner William T. Vollmann sets out on a series of freight trains through the Western United States. He has no destination in mind, only a yearning to discover something pure, something American in the best sense of the word.
His is not the life of one of the real, hard-up hobos, whom he describes throughout Riding T More...
His is not the life of one of the real, hard-up hobos, whom he describes throughout Riding T More...
3 comments
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(1 person liked it)
Feb 05, 2009
Vollmann has spent a good deal of time in some rough places—he made a reputation for his reporting from Bosnia and Afghanistan—and his talent as a writer is hardly disputable. A prolific fiction writer and essayist (Poor People, *** May/June 2007; Rising Up and Rising Down, **** Mar/Apr 2004; Expelled from Eden; The Rainbow Stories), he won a National Book Award in 2005 for his novel Europe Central (***1/2 July/Aug 2005). A chronicle of his adventures on the rails (the book is expanded from a
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Dec 02, 2011
Josh
rated it:
Much like the book I read just before (The Rum Diary for those not up to speed), this was my first journey into the oeuvre of William T. Vollmann.
Going in, I knew that he wrote Europe Central, the National Book Award for Fiction winner from 2005, because I have it sitting unread on one of my bookshelves. As it is a bit more on the voluminous side of things, I opted to ease into the waters as it were with Riding Toward Everywhere.
This book is an account of his experiences hopp More...
Going in, I knew that he wrote Europe Central, the National Book Award for Fiction winner from 2005, because I have it sitting unread on one of my bookshelves. As it is a bit more on the voluminous side of things, I opted to ease into the waters as it were with Riding Toward Everywhere.
This book is an account of his experiences hopp More...
Jan 22, 2011
Erik
rated it:
Kelly is the best of my apartment-mate John's friends from Manitoba. The two of them met while at the Winnipeg bookstore where Kelly still works. His job sees him down in Chicago and on one of our couches for booksellers' conventions regularly. When he comes he brings books like this one.
At first I didn't expect to read it. Yet the reading of one history after another led me to want a break, something light, so I looked at Vollman's book. Well, it wasn't a novel--it's about ridi More...
At first I didn't expect to read it. Yet the reading of one history after another led me to want a break, something light, so I looked at Vollman's book. Well, it wasn't a novel--it's about ridi More...
Sep 13, 2010
Greg
rated it:
I liked this book more than the three stars may lead one to believe. I couldn't give it more than three because I don't think this is a 'book', it's kind of like a really good magazine article with some rambling essays tacked on. I'm not actually sure who the audience for this book is. Vollmann fanatics? Are there that many of them?
For a couple of years I had a mild to more than passing interest in hopping trains. I never actually did it, but it was something that I thought abo More...
For a couple of years I had a mild to more than passing interest in hopping trains. I never actually did it, but it was something that I thought abo More...
6 comments
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(16 people liked it)
Mar 19, 2008
Jenny
rated it: 
I kind of hated this book because the author seems like an uppity stuck up rich person. It's really easy to talk about how much "freedom" riding the rails affords when you know you can call your friends to pick you up and take you to your nice house, or a supermarket where you can buy food. I liked reading it because the people he meets are interesting, and even they sometimes point out what an asshole "citizen" he is.
Basically Vollman reminds me of trust fund k
Basically Vollman reminds me of trust fund k
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(2 people liked it)
Dec 22, 2008
q
rated it:
This isn't really a book about freight-riding or hobos or western landscapes and skyscapes or a handful of American writers or homeland security so much as it is a book about how his experiences of all of these things and more nourish and inform Vollmann's dreams and thoughts. Rather than writing toward conclusions, he writes toward Everywhere. Rarely is there anything like an epiphany in any chapter; one of Vollmann's talents is to let his writing move this way and that, touching on any numbe
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Dec 22, 2009
Ben
rated it:
This book starts out in such a promising way, with its exuberance and patriotism (Vollmann claims that the activities in which he takes part during the narrative are "criminally American"), but ultimately it's a disappointment. Vollmann's major thesis is that catching out (trainhopping) is a journey toward a mythical and mystical Everywhere, rather than any kind of mundane Somewhere, and thus the lack of a destination is crucial to a true experience of freedom. This kind of thing sound
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Jul 14, 2008
Nick
rated it:
Is it possible Vollmann is a long lost Beat...conjuring Ginsberg's stark, angelic prose exalting the eternal Other (the god's of men who are starved and naked, dwelling in tunnels, underneath bridges, in hobo jungle lairs), or walking barefoot over the Road(s) which Kerouac made his journeys of self-discovery of the ultimate freedom?
Great book.
Great book.
0 comments
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Sep 11, 2009
scmorgan
rated it:
Vollmann and a couple of friends ride the rails in modern America, encountering situations common to all vagabonds. They search for 'freedom' while watching the American west die. The book wore on me a bit because the main characters always had a way out of their situation; they returned to comfortable lives and regular meals in between 'catching out' for a ride to anywhere, and often checked into nice hotels while on the road.
It wasn't as good as I hoped it would be. I'd read a rev More...
It wasn't as good as I hoped it would be. I'd read a rev More...
Nov 30, 2010
Marc
rated it:
When I think about this book, I will always remember reading parts of it, while sleeping and staying at Lima's Jorge Chavez airport for 12 hours after 2 flights and 18 hours in the air and terminals, having to wait yet for another plane. I was feeling a little bit like a hobbo, sleeping on the floor, while using my luggage as a pillow.
'Riding...' is a rather light read (at least for Vollmann's standard)about travelling on the rails outside the passanger waggons. As always Vollmann is More...
'Riding...' is a rather light read (at least for Vollmann's standard)about travelling on the rails outside the passanger waggons. As always Vollmann is More...
Aug 23, 2009
Pippypippy
rated it:
This book reads a lot like what I'm told it is like riding freight trains. There are wildly beautiful, poetic parts and then drawn-out stretches of waiting that can get a little tedious. In all, I learned quite a bit about the culture of train-hopping, and enjoyed the discussion of what it means to be free and the search for a destination which is in keeping with one's dreams. I am also a fan of Vollmann's voice, and his way of bringing his reader along as he investigates and reveals what he lea
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Apr 02, 2009
Noah
rated it:
Vollman is the type of person who will ride the rails as a hobo all over the Western US just because. For this and many other reasons mentioned in the book, he is a very strange man. He also happens to be a tremendous writer, perhaps too much so for me - in this book it felt like he was operating on a frequency I couldn't hear, like there was a mountain of meaning and soul in his beat poetic prose that I couldn't quite get at. Even despite that, I found much to enjoy, especially his idiosyncrati
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Jul 28, 2010
Selekta
rated it:
Extremely interesting look into the 'trainhopping hobo' of fact and fable. Vollmann ventures into the world of hobo jungles, boxcars & grainers,tyrannical railroad yard bulls, and the fraternity of trainhoppers which ranges from the classic 'hobo', to the mentally ill, to young punk rockers, to loosely organized thugs like the FTRA, and finally to those like Vollmann himself and his guide who do this basically for the fun of it. Great portrait of a slice of life most of us rarely, if ever, encou
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Oct 24, 2011
Cody
rated it:
For those familiar with his m.o., the fact that William T. Vollmann channeled his frustrations of living in Bush-era America by hopping freight trains will come as no surprise. “I’ve got to get out of here!” he incants while crisscrossing western America by rail. And yet, however seemingly insane his actions, isn’t his mantra as American as apple pie? Isn’t it just another way of asserting one’s freedom?
Thus, while Riding Toward Everywhere is a book about “catching out” in the 21st ce More...
Thus, while Riding Toward Everywhere is a book about “catching out” in the 21st ce More...
Feb 09, 2010
Chip
rated it:
Picked this one up almost out of obligation to have something in my hand for Vollmann to sign when I recently saw him read at Moe's in Berkeley. Nothing revelatory here, just a good basic road trip saga from Vollmann's pen. If you are already an avid Vollmann-ite (which I consider myself) you will enjoy it. If not, I'm not sure if this is going to make you want to read all his stuff.
As always, Vollmann is best at conjuring up the worlds of the downtrodden and forgotten corners of th More...
As always, Vollmann is best at conjuring up the worlds of the downtrodden and forgotten corners of th More...
Aug 05, 2008
Schuyler
rated it:
I have been mildly infatuated with Vollmann for some time, though this is the first book I have read of his. I read a few chapters of his significantly abridged seven volume (yeah, that's right, seven) treatise on violence, Rising Up & Rising Down (The new Roots album is rumored to be named after his book)and was intrigued and impressed. I have marked a handful of his books as To Read, though I started with his most recent and unusually short work, about 180 pages, if you don't count the photo
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Aug 26, 2008
Mary
rated it:
I picked up this book out of curiosity. While I'm from Sacramento and have a former boss who's friends with him, I've yet to spot the National Book Award winner around town. I also used to work for the California State Railroad Museum, so I've got more than a passing knowledge about how the history and culture of the railroad in that community has had a larger impact on the US economy/culture. While Vollmann includes photography and interviews with people in the community (both homeless and pr
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Feb 04, 2008
L.A.Weekly
rated it:
William Vollmann will be reading from his latest - and signing - at Book Soup in West Hollywood on Feb 6 at 7 pm.
Book Soup, 8818 Sunset Blvd., L.A.; Wed., Feb. 6, 7 p.m. (310) 659-3110.
William Vollmann's adventurous streak turns to freight-jumping in his new book, his energetic writing as infectious as his output is daunting. Riding Towards Everywhere is a quick sweetheart of a book full of optimism in man's ability to be good without the hope of a reward, even among tho More...
Book Soup, 8818 Sunset Blvd., L.A.; Wed., Feb. 6, 7 p.m. (310) 659-3110.
William Vollmann's adventurous streak turns to freight-jumping in his new book, his energetic writing as infectious as his output is daunting. Riding Towards Everywhere is a quick sweetheart of a book full of optimism in man's ability to be good without the hope of a reward, even among tho More...
Mar 25, 2008
Edward
rated it:
The 1st Vollman book I've read, so I didn't know what to expect. It is easy to dig into the spare beauty of his descriptive writing here, especially the impressionistic rendering of catching out on trains, and the rumbling impulses behind it. All of that is good stuff. I wished there was more interlacing of characters, both literary and real, into a better, more cohesive overarching narrative about rail riding. Because of the personal focus it's obvious Vollman was intentionally trying to av
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Oct 31, 2009
John
rated it:
I have read a few other stories of riding the rails, and I've ridden a number of freights myself, so I've always got a sort spot for these stories. If I have any criticism of this book, it's that there are two many "literary diversions" and not enough current storyline. That said, it's still an enjoyable tale of modern day train hopping; a subject about which little exists.
Aug 12, 2009
steve
rated it:
Vollmann turns down the usual obsession in this book. As a result he doesn't seem as inspired and I find myself learning less than usual -- perhaps because the literary references are more familiar here than his usual selections. It's still Vollmann -- so I still think he's batshit crazy and there's still portraits of the marginalized. I love him for all of it.
Aug 03, 2011
In the movie Adaptation, Charlie Kaufman (Nicholas Cage) refers to the book he's adapting as "sprawling New Yorker shit." I'm pretty sure this is what he meant. It takes Vollman 200 pages of self-absorbed purple prose and condescending cultural tourism to say absolutely nothing. I don't recommend it.
Mar 19, 2008
Tim
rated it:
This book really deserves 2.5 stars. I thought it was excellent at times and also dragging and self-involved at times.
Good: It mentions and quotes from a couple of my favorite books; On the Road by Kerouac and Hobo by Eddy Cotton. You should read those two instead of this one; I think Vollmann would agree.
Bad: Vollmann tries to BE Jack Kerouac here. There are obvious attempts at Kerouac's improvisational "first thought= best thought" writing style. Hell, for all More...
Good: It mentions and quotes from a couple of my favorite books; On the Road by Kerouac and Hobo by Eddy Cotton. You should read those two instead of this one; I think Vollmann would agree.
Bad: Vollmann tries to BE Jack Kerouac here. There are obvious attempts at Kerouac's improvisational "first thought= best thought" writing style. Hell, for all More...
Apr 25, 2010
John
rated it:
An odd little book about riding the rails. There's the literary aspect (Hemingway, Kerouac, Chinese poetry, Wolfe) and the American notion of expanse, but there's also the reality of what hobos live through and why. There's an odd disconect in the book between the events, the people and the writing.
