The Road Headed West

July 1, 2015

McCarron, finishing up an internship in New York City, knew he wasn't ready to return to his native England. Inspired by the accounts of Lewis and Clark, he made an epic journey across America: bicycling from New York to Seattle. He meets other cyclists along the way, and they ride together, then split off (amicably) and sometimes reunite a state or two down the line. He also runs into the worst America has to offer (the boneheaded combination of alcohol and guns). When not dodging bad drivers, tornadoes, or bears, McCarron takes in the sights, builds his confidence, and matures. Upon reaching Seattle he continues to Vancouver, turns around, and ends up in Tijuana, thus crossing the United States east to west and then north to south, all on two wheels. VERDICT Generally there is nothing more tedious than a man in his 20s trekking anywhere: it usually deviates into endless accounts of drunkenness, anonymous sex, and things breaking on an hourly basis. Not so in this account. McCarron is thoughtful and insightful and makes every effort to experience America. Don't even think twice about buying this book. Buy it now.--Lee Arnold, Historical Soc. of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia

Copyright 2015 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

June 1, 2015
With about 4,000, a bike, and a map of the U.S., Irishman McCarron, a recent film grad, left his job and family, friends, and girlfriend Claire to bike across North America, seeking to discover what exactly was in the center of this big countrywhether there is an average American but, mainly, to have an adventure. Following a path and an idea traversed before by Lewis and Clark, Kerouac, and, more recently, Brian Benson in Going Somewhere (2014), McCarron adds his name to the list, detailing the bumps and grinds of a cross-country bike trip, east to west, his bike trailer topped off with books and a mandolin and with only the open road and the open hearts of those he meets as company. That he is chased by a gun-toting drunk, faces a tornado, and is often hungry and tired are part of the genially related aspects of his happy staving-off of the respectable life (job, home, and, perhaps, love). Complemented by Diana Heaney's jaunty, simple black-and-white sketches, McCarron's engaging odyssey reveals that travel only teaches you how much you don't know. For wanderlusters of all ages.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2015, American Library Association.)