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Way Off the Road: Discovering the Peculiar Charms of Small Town America
by
Bill Geist
Celebrated roving correspondent for CBS News Sunday Morning and bestselling author Bill Geist serves up a rollicking look at some small-town Americans and their offbeat ways of life.
“In rural Kansas, I asked our motel desk clerk for the name of the best restaurant in the area. After mulling it over, he answered: ‘I'd have to say the Texaco, 'cuz the Shell don't have no mi...more
“In rural Kansas, I asked our motel desk clerk for the name of the best restaurant in the area. After mulling it over, he answered: ‘I'd have to say the Texaco, 'cuz the Shell don't have no mi...more
Hardcover, 256 pages
Published
May 15th 2007
by Broadway
(first published 2007)
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Non-Fiction - Travel/Humor
CBS correspondent Bill Geist shares true stories of small town America's eccentric individuals:
* The 93 y/o pilot/paperboy/publisher who delivers his news to far-flung subscribers by plane;
* The Muleshoe, Texas anchorwoman who delivers the news from her bedroom (occasionally wearing her bathrobe);
* The struggling Colorado entrepreneur who finds business success employing a high powered sewer vacuum to rid Western ranchers of problematic prarie dogs.
LOL funny, heart-war...more
CBS correspondent Bill Geist shares true stories of small town America's eccentric individuals:
* The 93 y/o pilot/paperboy/publisher who delivers his news to far-flung subscribers by plane;
* The Muleshoe, Texas anchorwoman who delivers the news from her bedroom (occasionally wearing her bathrobe);
* The struggling Colorado entrepreneur who finds business success employing a high powered sewer vacuum to rid Western ranchers of problematic prarie dogs.
LOL funny, heart-war...more
If you've never seen or heard of Bill Geist, I strongly urge you to stop reading this, and click this link: http://bit.ly/h0oM1, and revel in what CBS considers some of his best contributions to their news programs over the past 30 years.
This is a guy who doesn't shy away from going up in the air on a newspaper delivery route with a 90+ year-old one-engine-prop-plane pilot (the oldest in the country), or on a mail route down into the Grand Canyon, on mules. Nor is he afraid of traveling to Beave...more
This is a guy who doesn't shy away from going up in the air on a newspaper delivery route with a 90+ year-old one-engine-prop-plane pilot (the oldest in the country), or on a mail route down into the Grand Canyon, on mules. Nor is he afraid of traveling to Beave...more
2 likes · like · see review
Geist, Bill. WAY OFF THE ROAD: Discovering the Peculiar Charms of Small-Town America. (2007). ****. I didn’t know who Bill Geist was until a friend of mine, after reading a book by Bill Bryson that I sent to him, said: “He writes a lot like Bill Geist.” For all I knew, Bill Geist was somebody we used to hang out with at bars and maybe shoot the occasional game of pool with. Turns out that Geist is a TV correspondent and appears regularly on CBS Sunday Morning and other talk shows. I wouldn’t kno...more
“Way off the Road” by Bill Geist tells of the author’s experiences traveling to small towns across America. But these aren’t just any small towns; all of them have something unusual and bizarre that makes them stand out, whether it’s hosting cow dung chucking contests (Beaver, Oklahoma) or celebrating “Frozen Dead Guy” day (Nederland, Colorado). Some towns have only one or two residents, such as Monowi, Nebraska or Moonshine, Illinois, while others are may be larger, but are famous for somethin...more
A travel book on some of the more esoteric people in small town U.S.A. It ranges from the eclectic (lost luggage city, delivering mail in the Grand Canyon) to the banal (spitting water melon seeds, tossing cow chips – a euphemism for cow dung, feces,sh..). And then there is the macabre from headless chickens and iced over dead bodies. Sometimes I thought I was reading the “Guinness Book of World Records”. The author ingests humour in most and tries hard not to pass judgement, although one feels...more
I only gave this book 3 stars because it doesn't feel like much of an accomplishment to have read it, but it was very fun reading. It is a book that compiles tales of a long time reporter, who has visited many, many small towns in American and become acquainted with their kookiness. For instance, one town's main business is a store that sells items lost or abandoned on airlines -- now with post 9-11 security, this entails plenty of knives, packages of mace, and exacto knives, but there are plent...more
A delightful mini vacation for your brain!
Bill had me from the authors note on through till the end. Taking me on a tour of places I probably would never visit physically, he found the heart of the people he spoke with and the places he visited. From the 92-year-old flying paper boy to the groundhog sucking business (which totally brought to mind Wallace and Grommit: The Curse of the Were-Rabbit thus rendering everyone into Claymation form) to the cow photographer and her arsenal of unusual beau...more
Bill had me from the authors note on through till the end. Taking me on a tour of places I probably would never visit physically, he found the heart of the people he spoke with and the places he visited. From the 92-year-old flying paper boy to the groundhog sucking business (which totally brought to mind Wallace and Grommit: The Curse of the Were-Rabbit thus rendering everyone into Claymation form) to the cow photographer and her arsenal of unusual beau...more
Never before have I found myself hurrying to the computer so many times to hit "google" and find out if the purportedly "nonfiction" book I was reading was telling the truth. It was. Every time. Even the chapter about the fellow who has found a way to make money by sucking prairie dogs out of their holes in Cortez, Colorado with a huge vacuum machine.
Bill Geist has the enviable job of traveling the US looking for the most stimulating people and the most interesting small towns. The bovine photo...more
Bill Geist has the enviable job of traveling the US looking for the most stimulating people and the most interesting small towns. The bovine photo...more
Ein sehr amüsantes Buch über die Kuriositäten amerikanischer Kleinstädte fernab des Touristenrummels. Ich habe mir das Buch letztes Jahr zur Einstimmung auf einen USA-Urlaub gekauft und es hat wirklich sehr viel Spaß gemacht, es zu lesen. Einen meiner Meinung nach sehr passenden Einblick gibt die Zusammenfassung auf der Rückseite des Buches: "New York, Chicago, L.A. - wer kennt sie nicht, die Millionenstädte der USA. Aber wussten Sie, dass Whalan in Minnesota jährlich eine >>Standstill-Parade<<...more
This...is an original. Well, most of the chapters anyway. I found myself skipping a few, because I just wasn't interested in cow chips or some place that sells "moon" burgers. However, there were some real gems of information in this book. When my husband and I hiked the Grand Canyon back in 2005, we past a mule train heading to the rim. I remember squeezing against the switchback to let the mules by and wondering what they were doing down there without passengers. This book, of all books, answe...more
Jun 08, 2008
Kelly
rated it
4 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Recommends it for:
people who come from small places and have a sense of humor
I picked this book up for precisely two reasons: 1. Chapter 10--Bombsville: McAlester, Oklahoma and 2. Chapter 28--The Napa Valley of Cow Chips: Beaver, Oklahoma.
But there were other things about it that made it worth reading, as it turns out. Who knew a town of 62 could completely reinvent the parade? The explanation of the importance of barbecue was also pretty good, particularly as BBQ is massively important out here in North Carolina. And I just think it's weird, having grown up with Texas B...more
But there were other things about it that made it worth reading, as it turns out. Who knew a town of 62 could completely reinvent the parade? The explanation of the importance of barbecue was also pretty good, particularly as BBQ is massively important out here in North Carolina. And I just think it's weird, having grown up with Texas B...more
Aug 07, 2012
Dawn (& Ron)
rated it
4 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Recommends it for:
Humor travelogue, Americana
Read by Ron in 2009.
Geist, a commentator for CBS Sunday Morning, mentioned this during one of his segments on the show and I thought why not give it a try. I was able to learn of unique, interesting things about America and its people, that made me laugh, wonder, shake my head and some that I just had to mention to Dawn, and some even to co-workers.
If you like Bill Bryson, and learning of those odd, off-beat, unknown tales of Americana, then this quick and entertaining read will work for you.
Geist, a commentator for CBS Sunday Morning, mentioned this during one of his segments on the show and I thought why not give it a try. I was able to learn of unique, interesting things about America and its people, that made me laugh, wonder, shake my head and some that I just had to mention to Dawn, and some even to co-workers.
If you like Bill Bryson, and learning of those odd, off-beat, unknown tales of Americana, then this quick and entertaining read will work for you.
I really enjoyed listening to this audiobook in the car. I could do it in chunks since each chapter was for a different place, and it was really great to hear about all the eccentric celebrations, landmarks and characters Bill Geist encountered over the years. It was fun and fresh, especially since I love listening/reading about small-town America. My only gripe was the narrator was a bit too obnoxious, but I got over that fairly quickly.
Most of the stories contained within are from Geist's television segments from the "CBS Sunday Morning" program. That doesn't make them any less entertaining. This is an easy read with some good humor and decent insight into small town American, its inhabitants and its quirks. Not to sound too much like a soundbite, but this book will make you laugh, think, and even long for a simpler style of life.
Bill Geist is a small town Central Illinois boy so I am biased in my glowing opinion of him. I enjoyed this book. It wasn't amazing, but had some great stories about the unique and interesting aspect of small town life/festivities. Geist has a fabulous way of writing about small town America without talking down or putting it down. There is no judgment here. Fun read, but it wasn't so great that I just couldn't put it down.
Small towns are often thought of as charming and quaint. Bill Geist has the knack for finding the strange and the weird. This audio book is highly entertaining as well as informative. You will discover that it is possible to make a good living photographing cows – if you can highlight their good points. In one town, you may get a visit from the police for having illegal porch furniture. Always good to know the laws of your town. If you don’t like just standing to watch a parade, you may want to...more
This is a perfect audiobook for commuting. Short segments highlight some of the odd allure of small town middle-America.
There is a town so small that their parade stands still and the viewers walk around it.
A ninety-plus year old guy delivers his newspaper over a six hundred square mile route with a single engine airplane.
Cow chip throwing contests that are finger licking good.
An entrepreneur has started a business with a sewer vac truck, sucking prairie dogs from their holes.
Bill Geist could go...more
There is a town so small that their parade stands still and the viewers walk around it.
A ninety-plus year old guy delivers his newspaper over a six hundred square mile route with a single engine airplane.
Cow chip throwing contests that are finger licking good.
An entrepreneur has started a business with a sewer vac truck, sucking prairie dogs from their holes.
Bill Geist could go...more
i enjoy watching bill on the sunday morning show. he never fails to give me a laugh or two. his book accomplished the same result. his quick wit and breezy style comes through in short stories of his travels around the country. quirky is the kindest word i can use to describe the people and places he has chosen to present to the reader.
it is a fun and easy read....enjoy....it will add a smile to your day.
it is a fun and easy read....enjoy....it will add a smile to your day.
This book makes an excellent audio book for traveling. As you are driving through small towns, you hear about the many peculiarities that the author has found hidden in small towns across the country. As someone fro a small town herself, these stories hit close to home and were surprisingly funny.
Sep 07, 2012
Jennifer
rated it
3 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
non-fiction,
read-in-2012
Way Off The Road is a series of short ancedotes by Bil Geist about his travels all over the country to tiny communities and odd places. It's an interesting travel logue with some fun characters, interesting places and a few funny moments. It's not a cohesive book and jumps around a lot. The top-10 lists scattered throughout were annoying and rarely funny - they felt forced as did much of the humor. If you like travel stories, are planning a road-trip to small towns or just want a bit of light re...more
If you are a regular viewer of CBS Sunday Morning, this book is a review of some of Bill Geist's most amusing segments. I found it very interesting that Bill is not afraid to curse and make jokes about stereotypes. Any guy who paid three legal prostitutes to wash his RV is ok by me.
A charming little book. I got a few chickles here and there. It had some pretty interesting and inspirational stories. Many seem to illustrate the point that with ingenuity and perseverence you can make your life as successful as you want it to be.
At a different time, like when crackpots and cranks were just those people one chuckled over, I would have probably really enjoyed this book. Now that they have their own political party, I find the characters Bill Geist meets more disturbing than funny.
I'm doing this solely by memory a couple of years after reading this, and, quite frankly, I can't come up with a single detail from the book. I don't remember it as being an unpleasant read, however, and Mr. Geist is typically pretty humorous.
Bill Geist is known for his dry and witty sense of humor. This particular book explores some of the odd and hysterical characters found in small-town America, and even features some of Colorado’s eccentricities.
Enjoyable and funny book. While the author seeks out the humor in America's small towns, he laughs with rather than at the characters and the towns. This is a great read for those of us addicted to road trips.
Really bizarre and funny ! Bill Geist is a very witty guy. I especially like his descriptions of some of the meals that he and his TV crew ate on the road. If you just want something light and fun to read, this is it !
One of the first books I read on my Kindle was this book. I did not see the cover at the time, but, now that I see it, I'd have to say that this book falls into the category of Cover-More-Clever-Than-the-Book.
I listened to this book on CD--an excellent narrator. These stories are charming, and some made me laugh out loud. I enjoyed hearing about all sorts of "celebrations" throughout the US.
This one is going on vacation with us for a re-read. I found myself finding my husband and telling him he had to listen to this part and then both of us laughing out loud. You know, I really think I want to see that figure-eight bus racing in Orlando.
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Feb 02, 2009 02:48pm