A humourous take on round the world travel (Long Way Round - Ewan McGregor, Charley Boorman)

Member Name: bertles86

Product:	Long Way Round - Ewan McGregor, Charley Boorman
Date:	09/08/09 (9 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Humour, anecdotes

Disadvantages: Writing style at times weak

Long Way Round is a first collaboration by best friends Ewan McGregor (of Trainspotting fame) and Charley Boorman. It is their series of stories, jokes and mishaps when riding two long range BMW motorbikes around the world from London to New York (and back to London although obviously not on their bikes!).

The book offers a series of great anecdotes from all sorts of different cultures - from Ukrainian mafia to Mongolia herders living in wattle and daub huts on plains. Boorman has a wicked and black sense of humour, while McGregor is the more sincere of the two, this shows through from the off. At times the book, or rather the authors themselves get very emotional - a direct result from the trials and tribulations of the task they have set themselves. But this is all part of the story and it is wonderful to read when they pick themselves up again and again, no matter what goes wrong with their bikes, bodies or the terrain they keep on going with one specific goal in their sights - home.

The book is roughly split into large chapters covering each leg of their journey, but to me each different day seem to change so much with their emotions and the terrain that it does not really need chapters at all - you just pick it up and read if for a dozen pages, put it down, and the next time you pick it up, it'll be a totally different book. As with many travel books, it is interspersed with some wonderful photos to accompany their descriptive writing.

Now do not expect too much from the quality of their writing, as they actors and not writers. They both offer up as much description as their limited writing abilities will allow but rely heavily on their senses of humour in the text. This okay as you can see that they just want to get their ideas across roughly and let you create the scene in your own head without being force fed exactly what it looks like - they are allowing your imagination to run wild when reading their book.

All in all a good first outing for this pairing, and a very worthwhile venture which they undertook, meeting some fascinating people along the way.

Summary: Overall a solid travel book, but not the best out there.