Neither here nor there by Bill Bryson

Neither here nor there travels in Europe is written by Bill Bryson in 1991. In it, he talks about his travels in Europe, from the northernmost point - Norway, to Turkey, one of the nearest european countries to Asia.

His trip begins with Hemmerfest in Norway, where Bryson stays for months, in order to see the Northen Light.

Unlike the other Bill Bryson's travelogues, Neither here nor there contains lots of flash backs: he retraces his journey he had had twenty years ago in Europe.

I've always thought that the first chapter of a book is what decides its succes. Neither here nor there caught my attention on the first page: it starts of with a misadventure Bill Bryson had in the beginning of the trip to Hemmerfest: he overslept and couldnt get on the plane due to a mistake of his name on the reservation: Bernt Bjornson... he encounters numerous misadventures before finally arriving in Norway. This made me want to know what would happen to him next and drawn me more and more into the story.

The best part about the book, is Bill Bryson's writing style. He adds humour into the whole story and describes the surroundings, the people, the events... everything that's in front of him with such a special way that it keeps me amazed through out the whole book. He can make the most boring, ordinary experiences sound interesting; and the awkward situations Bryson often finds himself in are discribed in such a humourous and vivid way that you can immediately picture the situation and will be laughing till your stomach aches and have tears in your eyes.

I am normally not a big fan of non-fiction, but this book just kept me reading on and on.
Anyone who wants to have a good laugh, while learning about other countries, should definitely read this book!