Re: [at-l] Bill Bryson, the NPS & Smokie balds.

["Jerry Goller" <transient@backpacker.com>]

Odd....I'm southern and I thought it was one of the funniest books I've ever read. I guess it helps that the people he writes  about sound alot like my family and the people I've grown up with. The only person he met on the trail he spoke poorly of was Mary Ellen and the other hikers he mentioned at the same time appeared to not be too taken with her either. Now I will say he didn't find yankees nearly as amusing, but then he didn't do all that much hiking up north and didn't have that much to say about them one way or the other. It didn't seem like he cut himself a lot of slack either, for that matter. The two characters he poked the most fun at was himself and Katz. It also painted a much more realistic picture of what the trail is like,if you happened to be a completely  inexpericenced backpacker, than most any other book about the AT I've read. But then, I have a notoriously warped sence of humor. Must be spending too much time out by myself. 

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