
Going Somewhere
A Bicycle Journey Across America
Brian Benson(Author)
Plume (Publisher)
Published on 24. June 2014
Book
Paperback/Softback
288 pages
978-0-14-218064-8 (ISBN)
Description
"Let's hope Benson has more travels in mind. He is a gifted writer, an observant human with an eye for the telling detail and how to tell it."-Booklist
Brian has a million vague life plans but zero sense of direction. So when he meets Rachel, a self-possessed woman who daydreams of bicycling across the States, he decides to follow her wherever she'll take him. Brian and Rachel soon embark on a ride from northern Wisconsin to Somewhere West, infatuated with the promise of adventure and each other. But as the pair progress from the Northwoods into the bleak western plains, they begin to discover the messy realities of life on the road. Mile by mile, they contend with merciless winds and brutal heat, broken bikes and bodies, each other and themselves-and the looming question of what comes next. Told in a voice "as hilarious as it is wise" (Cheryl Strayed), Going Somewhere is a candid tale of the struggle to move forward.
Brian has a million vague life plans but zero sense of direction. So when he meets Rachel, a self-possessed woman who daydreams of bicycling across the States, he decides to follow her wherever she'll take him. Brian and Rachel soon embark on a ride from northern Wisconsin to Somewhere West, infatuated with the promise of adventure and each other. But as the pair progress from the Northwoods into the bleak western plains, they begin to discover the messy realities of life on the road. Mile by mile, they contend with merciless winds and brutal heat, broken bikes and bodies, each other and themselves-and the looming question of what comes next. Told in a voice "as hilarious as it is wise" (Cheryl Strayed), Going Somewhere is a candid tale of the struggle to move forward.
Reviews / Votes
"Brian Benson's memoir about riding from the hinterlands of Wisconsin to Portland, Oregon on his bicycle is as poignant as it is gripping, as hilarious as it is wise. Going Somewhere is a tender, sexy, take-it-with-you-everywhere-you-go-until-you've-read-the-last-page beauty of a book."-Cheryl Strayed, New York Times bestselling author of Wild: From Lost to Found on the Pacific Crest Trail"Irresistible. . . . Let's hope Benson has more travels in mind. He is a gifted writer, an observant human with an eye for the telling detail and how to tell it."-Booklist
"Charming... His travelogue is vibrant and engrossing, with wonderful portraits of Western landscapes and scruffy small towns, Job-like ordeals of gusty headwinds and breakdowns, and piquant portraits of kindly, parental folks who offer the cyclists food and shelter and another of a menacing drifter on a dark road."-Publisher's Weekly
More details
Language
English
Place of publication
New York
United States
Publishing group
Penguin Putnam Inc
Product notice
Paperback (trade)
Dimensions
Height: 203 mm
Width: 135 mm
Thickness: 17 mm
Weight
374 gr
ISBN-13
978-0-14-218064-8 (9780142180648)
Copyright in bibliographic data and cover images is held by Nielsen Book Services Limited or by the publishers or by their respective licensors: all rights reserved.
Schweitzer Classification
Other editions
Additional editions

E-Book
06/2014
Plume
€7.99
Available for download
Person
Brian Benson grew up in the Northwoods of Wisconsin. He now lives in Portland, Oregon, where he teaches writing at the Attic Institute.