<![CDATA[The Life and Times of the Thunderbolt Kid: A Memoir]]>

false <![CDATA[The Life and Times of the Thunderbolt Kid: A Memoir]]> http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1255676005m/42882.jpg 10538 29 From one of the most beloved and bestselling authors in the English language, a vivid, nostalgic, and utterly hilarious memoir of growing up in the 1950s Bill Bryson was born in the middle of the American century—1951—in the middle of the United States—Des Moines, Iowa—in the middle of the largest generation in American history—the baby boomers. As one of the best and funniest writers alive, he is perfectly positioned to mine his memories of a totally all-American childhood for 24-carat memoir gold. Like millions of his generational peers, Bill Bryson grew up with a rich fantasy life as a superhero. In his case, he ran around his house and neighborhood with an old football jersey with a thunderbolt on it and a towel about his neck that served as his cape, leaping tall buildings in a single bound and vanquishing awful evildoers (and morons)—in his head—as "The Thunderbolt Kid." Using this persona as a springboard, Bill Bryson re-creates the life of his family and his native city in the 1950s in all its transcendent normality—a life at once completely familiar to us all and as far away and unreachable as another galaxy. It was, he reminds us, a happy time, when automobiles and televisions and appliances (not to mention nuclear weapons) grew larger and more numerous with each passing year, and DDT, cigarettes, and the fallout from atmospheric testing were considered harmless or even good for you. He brings us into the life of his loving but eccentric family, including affectionate portraits of his father, a gifted sportswriter for the local paper and dedicated practitioner of isometric exercises, and OF his mother, whose job as the home furnishing editor for the same paper left her little time for practicing the domestic arts at home. The many readers of Bill Bryson’s earlier classic, A Walk in the Woods, will greet the reappearance in these pages of the immortal Stephen Katz, seen hijacking literally boxcar loads of beer. He is joined in the Bryson gallery of immortal characters by the demonically clever Willoughby brothers, who apply their scientific skills and can-do attitude to gleefully destructive ends. Warm and laugh-out-loud funny, and full of his inimitable, pitch-perfect observations, The Life and Times of the Thunderbolt Kid is as wondrous a book as Bill Bryson has ever written. It will enchant anyone who has ever been young. 2252299 book 17 10 2006 The Life and Times of the Thunderbolt Kid: A Memoir total:5881|5:1483|4:2455|3:1522|2:353|1:68| 5881 22575 7907 1346 5 5 false false Thu Mar 01 00:00:00 -0800 2007 Thu Mar 29 22:18:53 -0700 2007 Thu Apr 19 14:41:08 -0700 2007 more...]]> 0 4 false false Thu Nov 29 21:16:01 -0800 2007 Thu Nov 29 21:27:55 -0800 2007
that was the critical turning point in the novel-reading for me, personally. the moment i realized bill bryson is a comedic wonderchild. the moment i was simultaneously overjoyed to have discovered him as a writer and depressed i wasted so much time tryin...more...]]> 4 4 false false Tue Nov 25 00:00:00 -0800 2008 Sun Apr 13 14:06:20 -0700 2008 Sat Nov 29 05:40:40 -0800 2008 more...]]> 5 3 false false Tue Jan 08 09:25:47 -0800 2008 Tue Jan 08 09:34:04 -0800 2008 more...]]> 3 3 false false Tue May 27 09:04:45 -0700 2008 Wed Jun 11 10:50:49 -0700 2008
The Thunderbolt Kid is wildly funny, a simple memoir of Bryson's childhood in Des Moines in the 1950s. Oddly enough, change comes slowly to Iowa and I could relate to much of his experience and sentiment ha...more...]]> 5 2 false false Thu Jan 10 00:00:00 -0800 2008 Sat Mar 29 11:38:31 -0700 2008 Sat Mar 29 11:39:42 -0700 2008
The Life and Times of the Thunderbolt Kid
By Bill Bryson

Reviewed by Tom Carrico

I am not usually one to enjoy a memoir. There always seems to be a certain smugness that someone must possess to have the audacity to think that their story is better t...more...]]> 3 2 false false Sat Mar 08 00:00:00 -0800 2008 Sat Mar 01 16:22:00 -0800 2008 Sat Mar 08 19:59:58 -0800 2008 Kavalier and Clay and Fortress of Solitude come to mind. Among these books the Thunderbold Kid falls flat.
The image Bryson paints of the fifties is truly magnificent. H...more...]]> 5 2 false false Sat Mar 01 07:54:14 -0800 2008 Sat Mar 01 07:54:14 -0800 2008 The Life and Times of the Thunderbolt Kid is a laugh-out-loud look at growin...more...]]> 5 2 false false Tue Aug 19 13:41:06 -0700 2008 Fri Aug 08 05:20:20 -0700 2008 Tue Aug 19 13:41:06 -0700 2008
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I felt good. I had a smile on my face. I really long for a simpler life and the picture Bryson painted of his childhood in Iowa had...more...]]> 4 2 false false Mon Oct 01 00:00:00 -0700 2007 Sun Oct 07 18:47:47 -0700 2007 Sun Oct 07 19:17:49 -0700 2007 50's in America is the age of dream. It's so funny, as ...more...]]> 4 2 false false Tue Apr 14 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Sun Mar 22 05:38:41 -0700 2009 Wed Apr 15 03:27:42 -0700 2009 1
One of my favorite parts is when Bill's mom convinces him t...more...]]> 3 2 false false Tue Jul 10 09:15:59 -0700 2007 Tue Jul 31 19:34:44 -0700 2007 more...]]> 4 2 false false Thu Mar 01 00:00:00 -0800 2007 Wed Sep 12 15:17:51 -0700 2007 Wed Sep 12 15:18:02 -0700 2007 more...]]> 5 1 false false Sun Feb 01 00:00:00 -0800 2009 Thu Feb 12 05:13:39 -0800 2009 Thu Feb 12 05:18:09 -0800 2009 more...]]> 4 1 false false Sat Jan 03 00:00:00 -0800 2009 Sat Jan 03 21:07:14 -0800 2009 Sat Jan 03 21:22:46 -0800 2009
That said, the book is good. Bryson's work is all about the narrative voice, and he's right...more...]]> 5 1 false false Thu Nov 01 00:00:00 -0700 2007 Mon Mar 17 10:44:09 -0700 2008 Wed Apr 30 14:00:00 -0700 2008 more...]]> 5 1 false false Fri Feb 01 00:00:00 -0800 2008 Wed Jan 02 12:11:03 -0800 2008 Wed Jan 02 12:11:08 -0800 2008
I love Bill Bryson, although some of his books are much stronger than others. Because he's Bryson, he automatically gets a star.

The Thunderbolt Kid is not one of his best works. It's an interesting read about growing up in t...more...]]> 4 1 false false Mon Oct 01 00:00:00 -0700 2007 Thu Nov 29 21:45:27 -0800 2007 Thu Nov 29 21:47:07 -0800 2007
This is the first Bill Bryson book I have read, but certainly not the last!

Bryson takes a hilarious trip down memory lane. He mixes in his childhood memories of Iowa, historical facts, and adds his own character, The Thunderbolt Kid. It�...more...]]> 3 1 false false Mon Oct 01 00:00:00 -0700 2007 Mon Oct 29 06:35:36 -0700 2007 Fri Nov 02 08:12:07 -0700 2007
I have a slight complaint and question about the audio version though. The author is narrating, and doesn't speak the clearest. And it's odd that he says certain words the British way (like al-yoo-MIN-eeum foil), give that he grew up like Beaver Cleaver (ok,...more...]]> http://www.goodreads.com/book_link/follow/8?book_id=42882