Pixie answers “Bryson asserts on page 86 that "Each year,...”

Angela asked this question about I'm a Stranger Here Myself: Notes on Returning to America After Twenty Years Away:

Bryson asserts on page 86 that "Each year, 40,000 Americans die from gunshot wounds, the great majority of them by accident." I'm no expert on statistics, but according to the basic Google search I just did, 62% of American gun deaths are suicides, 35% are homicides, and the remaining 3% are accidental. Last time I checked, 3% did not qualify as a "great majority." Why did this kind of error go to print unchecked?

Pixie I also think he is a bit tongue-in-cheek with his comments generally, not sarcastic but just making his points in a roundabout way that should not be …moreI also think he is a bit tongue-in-cheek with his comments generally, not sarcastic but just making his points in a roundabout way that should not be taken too literally. In the book's preface, he apologises and disclaims his writing due to the demand made on him by his publisher to produce a book rapidly.(less)

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I'm a Stranger Here Myself

by Bill Bryson

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