book data
588 ratings, 4.00 average rating, 137 reviews
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published
March 7th 2001
by St. Martin's Griffin
binding
Paperback, 264 pages
isbn
0312274920
(isbn13: 9780312274924)
description
On his only prior visit to Ireland, English songwriter-comic Tony Hawks had seen a man hitchhiking with a refrigerator. For years, he was wont to tell...more
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Read in June, 2008
This guy's funny. But ridiculous.
It reminds me of my travels from when I was in college, when much of the excitement was a direct result of me and my friends being stupid and broke, and consequently everything around us goes wrong. And all of us wishing we were getting laid.
Tony Hawks is basically all of those things. Except he's probably still a little less broke, a smidge more competent, and a whole lot funnier than your average idiot on a college road trip. The premise, of course, i...more
It reminds me of my travels from when I was in college, when much of the excitement was a direct result of me and my friends being stupid and broke, and consequently everything around us goes wrong. And all of us wishing we were getting laid.
Tony Hawks is basically all of those things. Except he's probably still a little less broke, a smidge more competent, and a whole lot funnier than your average idiot on a college road trip. The premise, of course, i...more
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Read in January, 2002
This is a gimmick travel book, and the gimmick is awesome: the author made a bar bet that he could travel around Ireland with a fridge. And by "travel," I mean "hithchike."
Unfortunately, that's the funniest part of the book. The rest of it - I got the feeling the author hadn't quite settled into his narrative voice in a written medium; much of it sounded like the kind of prolonged story that'd be hilarious if someone told it to you while you were having a couple of drink...more
Unfortunately, that's the funniest part of the book. The rest of it - I got the feeling the author hadn't quite settled into his narrative voice in a written medium; much of it sounded like the kind of prolonged story that'd be hilarious if someone told it to you while you were having a couple of drink...more
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Read in March, 2008
recommended to Andrea by:
Nobody--I found it surfing the internetrecommends it for: Travel Enthusiasts
What a fun book about a guy who lost a bet and thus hitch-hiked around Ireland with a fridge. (A true story.) I don't think I've ever laughed out loud as much as I did with this book. My only "complaint" would be that there wasn't enough info about the actual cities that he visited--I would have liked to learn more. The focus was really on the people, friendships and pubs. Definitely a fun read though if you're into travel books and can see the humor in hitch-hiking around Ireland...more
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I hereby bet Tony Hawks the sum of One Hundred Pounds that he cannot hitchhike round the circumference of Ireland, with a fridge, within one calendar month.
Prompted by such an unsober bet in a London Party, starts the journey of Tony Hawks, round the Irish country where things always fall into place 'aiding and abetting' him to complete the bet. And through it flows the enriching experience of a Man and a Fridge(Saoirse), as they together hitch-hike around a series of hilarious event...more
Prompted by such an unsober bet in a London Party, starts the journey of Tony Hawks, round the Irish country where things always fall into place 'aiding and abetting' him to complete the bet. And through it flows the enriching experience of a Man and a Fridge(Saoirse), as they together hitch-hike around a series of hilarious event...more
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Read in November, 2008
A hilarious book about, as you may have guessed, hitchhiking around Ireland with a fridge. My only disappointment was the involvement of the nationally broadcast radio program. Not that Hawks' escapades weren't still entertaining, but I wonder how his trip would have differed without much of the country knowing about it. Most of the drivers who stopped for him, at least at the beginning of the odyssey, stopped because they recognized him from the radio program.
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Read in January, 2005
If I remember correctly, the premise of this book was dreamt up in a bar while much liquor was being consumed. Based on my experience with Tony Hawks' book, more people should take notes amid alcoholic hazes and pursue their zany quests. The book is good reading, laugh-aloud funny at times. I think the younger members of our family liked it more than the elders, but everyone read it.
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Read in December, 2007
recommends it for:
everyone
What, nobody in marketing suggested an orange cover for this book was a bad idea?
Fortunately, mine is green.
This book is a very enjoyable read, although I found the first half more laugh-out-loud funny than the second. After a while, everything seems to become a bit samey--Tony Hawks is hitch-hiking around Ireland with a fridge, after all. There's only so many things that can happen. I was especially disappointed when he passed on an invitation to take the fridge scuba-diving. I'd al...more
Fortunately, mine is green.
This book is a very enjoyable read, although I found the first half more laugh-out-loud funny than the second. After a while, everything seems to become a bit samey--Tony Hawks is hitch-hiking around Ireland with a fridge, after all. There's only so many things that can happen. I was especially disappointed when he passed on an invitation to take the fridge scuba-diving. I'd al...more
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Read in June, 2008
recommends it for:
EVERYONE!!
the BEST book i have ever read. honestly read this in one day and i actually found it randomly in Peru. Someone had left this amazingly hilarious book behind for me to find!
if you do one thing this year -- READ THIS BOOK!!
if you do one thing this year -- READ THIS BOOK!!
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Read in January, 2006
One night, comedian Tony Hawks got drunk with some friends and recounted a story about driving in Ireland and encountering a man who was hitchhiking with a refrigerator. The next morning, he wakes up and discovers that his friends bet him he couldn't hitchhike around Ireland with a fridge - and he accepted. Now, Hawks and his mini-fridge have just 30 days to hitch around the perimeter of the Emerald Isle. Will he make it in time? Will he survive Northern Ireland? Whose stupid idea was this bet, ...more
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This book was a wonderful adventure around Ireland. Hawks met some really great people and had some really funny observations.
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Read in January, 2005
Great humorous and irreverent travel guide on how to circle the island of Ireland while hitchhiking with a fridge.
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Read in June, 2003
Hilarious!
I had so much fun reading this book that I can't resist quoting one of my favourite passages:
«I'm against the death penalty. [...:] However I'm not against the random killing of people who snore. Okay, I accept that it is harsh, barbaric and against every decent human value, but the simple fact is that there is no other cure for snoring. [...:] The only truly effective way to stop someone snoring is to kill them.
I lay in my bunk considering my options. Suffocation seemed the most a...more
I had so much fun reading this book that I can't resist quoting one of my favourite passages:
«I'm against the death penalty. [...:] However I'm not against the random killing of people who snore. Okay, I accept that it is harsh, barbaric and against every decent human value, but the simple fact is that there is no other cure for snoring. [...:] The only truly effective way to stop someone snoring is to kill them.
I lay in my bunk considering my options. Suffocation seemed the most a...more
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the author bet a friend he could hitchhike round ireland, carrying a (mini) fridge. i've read a couple of his other books before, where he's made similarly ridiculous bets and this wasn't as good. or maybe you can only read one before they all seem the same. his task seemed way too easy, thanks to the radio publicity he got, and the descriptions of people helping him out and spending all night at the pub weren't interesting or unique enough to make up for the lack of drama, even if they did take...more
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This is a quirky, wonderfully funny book about what can happen when you make a bet under the influence of alcohol. Specifically, how English comedian Tony Hawks winds up trying to hitchhike around Ireland in less than a month with a refrigerator in tow. Like Tony, the book occasionaly wanders a bit, but is well worth the trip. This could draw laughter from a stone.
No rating for this one -- it's such an odd experience that my reaction to it and yours may be radically different. Worth the re...more
No rating for this one -- it's such an odd experience that my reaction to it and yours may be radically different. Worth the re...more
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Read in October, 2008
The author takes a seemingly impossible idea and turns it into a hilarious adventure around Ireland. I looked forward to settling in every evening after a long day and reading a chapter or two before going to bed.
This book was charming. It was a wonderful read for anyone who has ever had the opportunity to experience the wit and hospitality of Ireland. It is an even better tutorial for anyone going to Ireland for the first time on what to expect of that wit and hospitality.
This book was charming. It was a wonderful read for anyone who has ever had the opportunity to experience the wit and hospitality of Ireland. It is an even better tutorial for anyone going to Ireland for the first time on what to expect of that wit and hospitality.
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Read in January, 2007
recommends it for:
Anyone and everyone
A fantastically hilarious true story account of a man trying to hitch around Ireland with a fridge. I'd count this as probably the single funniest book I've ever read.
Tony is taken in one night by a drunken bet that he and a mini-fridge could not successfully hitch rides all the way around Ireland within a month. The book details his journey with a wonderful sense of wit and storytelling. Prior to reading this, I never would have thought it possible that a mini-fridge could surf.
Tony is taken in one night by a drunken bet that he and a mini-fridge could not successfully hitch rides all the way around Ireland within a month. The book details his journey with a wonderful sense of wit and storytelling. Prior to reading this, I never would have thought it possible that a mini-fridge could surf.
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Has a copy to sell/swap
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Read in January, 2006
recommended to Laura by:
random findrecommends it for: everyone
This is a true story about an english guy that makes a drunken bet at a bar (for 100 pounds) that he can hitchhike around the circumference of Ireland in a month... with a refrigerator in tow. Sounds crazy, right? Well, it kind of is but it's incredibly entertaining! I was laughing out loud quite often with this book... Tony (the english guy) meets so many helpful, eccentric people... makes me want to go visit Ireland again (i think I'll leave the refrigerator at home though!) :)
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Read in January, 2005
Tony Hawks (not the Skateboarder) is an English comedian and radio personality who occasionally decides to do mad things - usually when drunk. This book came about as the result of a drunken bet and it really 'does what it says on the tin' in that it's a very funny description of how he travelled around Ireland with a fridge.
Great light reading but not for trains or public places as people get scared when strangers burst out laughing for no apparent reason.
Great light reading but not for trains or public places as people get scared when strangers burst out laughing for no apparent reason.
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Read in March, 2008
Finally finished reading this one, after having started shortly after returning from Ireland. It suffered a bit by comparison to McCarthy's Bar, which was a more enjoyable read. I think part of it is that Pete McCarthy actually wrote his book as someone who enjoys Ireland and the Irish, whereas Hawks simply uses Ireland as a backdrop for a random bar bet. The book is humorous, just based on the premise alone; it just wasn't quite the 'travel' book I was expecting.
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Read in January, 2004
recommends it for:
travel book fans.
Post-college graduation in 2004 I went through a big Ireland phase. I had no job, no plans and was rapidly running out graduation gift money.
I was positive I was going to burn the rest on a trip to Ireland and picked this up at Powell's.
I havn't gone to Ireland yet. But when I do, I hope it's as much fun as the author seemed to have. I don't want to carry a fridge around Ireland, but I also don't want a cookie cutter bed and breakfast pre-fab trip either.
I was positive I was going to burn the rest on a trip to Ireland and picked this up at Powell's.
I havn't gone to Ireland yet. But when I do, I hope it's as much fun as the author seemed to have. I don't want to carry a fridge around Ireland, but I also don't want a cookie cutter bed and breakfast pre-fab trip either.
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