false http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1170813429m/72458.jpg 72458 6 In the 1850s, a wealthy British philanthropist by the name of Lord Dufferin sailed his yacht into the Arctic Circle and wrote the bestselling travelogue <I>Letters from High Latitudes</I>. In the 1990s, British writer Tim Moore decided to follow Dufferin's steps--by boat, plane, and bike. This retracing of Dufferin's travels across Iceland, into Norway, and to Spitzbergen (prompted when Moore reads the Lord's 19th-century memoir) is told in a lively, self-deprecating style and starts out brimming with funny anecdotes and interesting tidbits, particularly about Iceland, a report-happy land where the government commissions studies about "the effects of centrifugal force at roundabouts" and where "53 percent of the Icelanders believe in elves."<p> While Moore continues to unleash an often funny ramble about his northern excursion, something happens mid-book around the time he learns he's lost a work-related lawsuit back in England: perhaps Moore's mind is disintegrating in the polar blasts or he's lost his will to sustain an audience, but the writer's style becomes more manic, his recorded observations are frequently peppered with the base and crude, and his obsession changes from the travels of Lord Dufferin to the fate of one of Dufferin's colleagues, Wilson. The same writing voice that keeps one amused through the first half of the book starts to annoy by the end, as Moore stops providing much relevant info, and instead goes on at great lengths about the price of hot dogs, his nights of drinking and frequent bouts of nausea. Too disgusting in parts to warrant a recommendation to those easily shocked, this jumbled travelogue is nevertheless an often entertaining look into Tim Moore's personal Arctic madness. <I>--Melissa Rossi</I> 1019512 1999 Frost on my Moustache: The Arctic Exploits of a Lord and a Loafer total:49|5:7|4:20|3:21|2:1|1:0| 49 180 73 8 4 0 false false Fri Nov 07 00:00:00 -0800 2008 Tue Feb 17 10:31:02 -0800 2009 Tue Feb 17 10:31:17 -0800 2009 more...]]> 5 0 false false Mon Sep 29 00:00:00 -0700 2008 Mon Sep 29 18:01:36 -0700 2008 Mon Sep 29 18:11:48 -0700 2008 1
Here is one passage where Moore describes his feelings on attempting to ...more...]]> 5 0 false false Thu Jan 01 00:00:00 -0800 2004 Sat May 19 12:32:23 -0700 2007 Sat May 19 12:38:31 -0700 2007 more...]]> 3 0 false false Sun Jul 01 00:00:00 -0700 2007 Tue May 15 12:51:57 -0700 2007 Wed Aug 08 10:36:23 -0700 2007 Tim Moore's first book and it shows; it's scatty in places, the reason he's off on the trip isn't really that clear and the prose is a bit wonky.

However, it's still a pretty good read and interesting to see where the genius of continental drifter, french revolutions and spanish steps...more...]]> 3 0 false false Thu Oct 18 15:39:27 -0700 2007 Sun Oct 21 08:35:27 -0700 2007
This book was much the same, with the exception of a few chapters - notably one HILARIOUS retelling of a boat voyage...]]> 3 0 false false Wed Jul 18 10:23:19 -0700 2007 Tue Jul 24 17:18:59 -0700 2007 3 0 false false Thu Aug 30 10:40:55 -0700 2007 Thu Aug 30 10:41:43 -0700 2007 4 0 false false Sat May 17 10:51:44 -0700 2008 Sat May 17 10:54:35 -0700 2008 0 0 false false Tue Nov 17 21:46:09 -0800 2009 Tue Nov 17 21:46:09 -0800 2009 0 0 false false Mon Nov 16 06:02:25 -0800 2009 Mon Nov 16 06:02:25 -0800 2009 3 0 false false Sat Jan 01 00:00:00 -0800 2000 Sat Oct 17 00:23:17 -0700 2009 Sat Oct 17 00:23:17 -0700 2009 0 0 false false Wed Oct 07 12:40:07 -0700 2009 Wed Oct 07 12:40:07 -0700 2009 3 0 false false Wed Oct 07 11:35:22 -0700 2009 Wed Oct 07 11:35:22 -0700 2009 0 0 false false Mon Aug 24 20:37:20 -0700 2009 Mon Aug 24 20:37:20 -0700 2009 0 0 false false Wed Aug 19 11:12:02 -0700 2009 Wed Aug 19 11:12:09 -0700 2009 5 0 false false Sat Jul 25 09:27:42 -0700 2009 Sat Jul 25 09:27:42 -0700 2009 0 0 false false Wed Jul 08 07:28:39 -0700 2009 Wed Jul 08 07:28:42 -0700 2009 5 0 false false Tue Jul 07 06:31:32 -0700 2009 Tue Jul 07 06:31:32 -0700 2009 0 0 false false Sun Jul 05 15:15:08 -0700 2009 Sun Jul 05 15:15:08 -0700 2009 0 0 false false Mon Jun 15 09:02:10 -0700 2009 Mon Jun 15 09:02:10 -0700 2009 http://www.goodreads.com/book_link/follow/8?book_id=72458