
Roads
Driving America's Great Highways
Failed to add items
Add to Cart failed.
Add to Wish List failed.
Remove from wishlist failed.
Adding to library failed
Follow podcast failed
Unfollow podcast failed
$0.99/mo for the first 3 months

Buy for $19.78
No default payment method selected.
We are sorry. We are not allowed to sell this product with the selected payment method
-
Narrated by:
-
George Guidall
-
By:
-
Larry McMurtry
About this listen
"From earliest boyhood the American road has been a part of my life - central to it, I would even say. The ranch house in which I spent my first seven years sits only a mile from highway 281, the long road that traverses the central plains, all the way from Manitoba to the Mexican border..." - Larry McMurtry
Author of the Pulitzer Prize-winning novel Lonesome Dove, Larry McMurtry sets out in Roads on an automotive odyssey exploring America's highways and the culture that has grown up on either side of them. "My method, to the extent that I have one, is modeled on rereading; I want to reread some of the roads as I might a book," he writes. Crisscrossing America in search of the present, the past and himself, McMurtry's route is also his destination.
©2000 by Larry McMurtry(P)2001 Random House, Inc.
Listeners also enjoyed...
-
The Last Picture Show
- Thalia Trilogy, Book 1
- By: Larry McMurtry
- Narrated by: John Randolph Jones
- Length: 8 hrs and 10 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
An almost-true story about a small town in Texas that ought to exist if it doesn’t, with characters like Sam the Lion, the delectable Jacy, and Ruth Popper, the coach’s wife. Set in a small, dusty, Texas town, The Last Picture Show introduced the characters of Jacy, Duane, and Sonny: teenagers stumbling toward adulthood, discovering the beguiling mysteries of sex and the even more baffling mysteries of love.
-
-
Not very good
- By Randall on 07-02-17
By: Larry McMurtry
-
Telegraph Days
- By: Larry McMurtry
- Narrated by: Annie Potts
- Length: 9 hrs and 28 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Not since the publication of his own beloved classic Lonesome Dove has there been a novel like this one, another big, brilliant, unputdownable saga of the West from Larry McMurtry. Telegraph Days is at once a major work of literature and a completely absorbing read, not just great fiction, but fiction on a great scale.
-
-
Enjoyable
- By Karen A. Reiland on 09-01-07
By: Larry McMurtry
-
Streets Of Laredo
- By: Larry McMurtry
- Narrated by: Daniel Von Bargen
- Length: 21 hrs and 39 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
The final book of Larry McMurtry's Lonesome Dove tetralogy is an exhilarating tale of legend and heroism. Captain Woodrow Call, August McCrae's old partner, is now a bounty hunter hired to track down a brutal young Mexican bandit. Riding with Call are an Eastern city slicker, a witless deputy, and one of the last members of the Hat Creek outfit, Pea Eye Parker, now married to Lorena -- once Gus McCrae's sweetheart. This long chase leads them across the last wild streches of the West....
-
-
Terrible McMurtry Book - Depressing & Painful
- By Dennis on 01-28-11
By: Larry McMurtry
-
Sin Killer
- Volume 1 of The Berrybender Narratives
- By: Larry McMurtry
- Narrated by: Alfred Molina
- Length: 7 hrs and 36 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Against the immense backdrop of the American West, Larry McMurtry tracks the Berrybender's as they make their way up the great river, surviving attacks, discomfort, savage weather, and natural disaster. Sin Killer is an adventure story as big as the West itself, full of incident, and suspense, as well as a charming love story between a headstrong and aristocratic young Englishwoman and the stubborn, shy, and very American Jim Snow.
-
-
Unemotional characters are brutally honest
- By GSDNH on 05-27-03
By: Larry McMurtry
-
Buffalo Girls
- By: Larry McMurtry
- Narrated by: Betty Buckley
- Length: 9 hrs and 52 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
As he describes the insatiable curiosity of Calamity's Indian friend No Ears, Annie Oakley's shooting match with Lord Windhouveren, and other highlights of the tour, Larry McMurtry turns the story of a band of hardy, irrepressible survivors into an unforgettable portrait of love, fellowship, dreams, and heartbreak.
-
-
Come sit by the fire and listen to a story...
- By Cookie on 11-17-11
By: Larry McMurtry
-
Zeke And Ned
- By: Larry McMurtry, Diana Ossana - from an idea by
- Narrated by: Barrett Whitener
- Length: 15 hrs and 22 mins
- Abridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
As a child, Zeke Proctor walked the Trail of Tears from Georgia to west of Arkansas, acquiring a fierce loyalty to the Cherokee way. Though a family man and a respected member of the Cherokee Senate, Zeke the man is an adventurous charmer. Ned Christie is tall and charismatic, with waist-length hair and a handsomeness that appeals to women all over the Going Snake District. Ned's long and determined resistance to the relentless pressure of white law makes him a hero to the Cherokee people.
-
-
Dumb and dumber
- By Richard on 12-08-08
By: Larry McMurtry, and others
-
The Last Picture Show
- Thalia Trilogy, Book 1
- By: Larry McMurtry
- Narrated by: John Randolph Jones
- Length: 8 hrs and 10 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
An almost-true story about a small town in Texas that ought to exist if it doesn’t, with characters like Sam the Lion, the delectable Jacy, and Ruth Popper, the coach’s wife. Set in a small, dusty, Texas town, The Last Picture Show introduced the characters of Jacy, Duane, and Sonny: teenagers stumbling toward adulthood, discovering the beguiling mysteries of sex and the even more baffling mysteries of love.
-
-
Not very good
- By Randall on 07-02-17
By: Larry McMurtry
-
Telegraph Days
- By: Larry McMurtry
- Narrated by: Annie Potts
- Length: 9 hrs and 28 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Not since the publication of his own beloved classic Lonesome Dove has there been a novel like this one, another big, brilliant, unputdownable saga of the West from Larry McMurtry. Telegraph Days is at once a major work of literature and a completely absorbing read, not just great fiction, but fiction on a great scale.
-
-
Enjoyable
- By Karen A. Reiland on 09-01-07
By: Larry McMurtry
-
Streets Of Laredo
- By: Larry McMurtry
- Narrated by: Daniel Von Bargen
- Length: 21 hrs and 39 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
The final book of Larry McMurtry's Lonesome Dove tetralogy is an exhilarating tale of legend and heroism. Captain Woodrow Call, August McCrae's old partner, is now a bounty hunter hired to track down a brutal young Mexican bandit. Riding with Call are an Eastern city slicker, a witless deputy, and one of the last members of the Hat Creek outfit, Pea Eye Parker, now married to Lorena -- once Gus McCrae's sweetheart. This long chase leads them across the last wild streches of the West....
-
-
Terrible McMurtry Book - Depressing & Painful
- By Dennis on 01-28-11
By: Larry McMurtry
-
Sin Killer
- Volume 1 of The Berrybender Narratives
- By: Larry McMurtry
- Narrated by: Alfred Molina
- Length: 7 hrs and 36 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Against the immense backdrop of the American West, Larry McMurtry tracks the Berrybender's as they make their way up the great river, surviving attacks, discomfort, savage weather, and natural disaster. Sin Killer is an adventure story as big as the West itself, full of incident, and suspense, as well as a charming love story between a headstrong and aristocratic young Englishwoman and the stubborn, shy, and very American Jim Snow.
-
-
Unemotional characters are brutally honest
- By GSDNH on 05-27-03
By: Larry McMurtry
-
Buffalo Girls
- By: Larry McMurtry
- Narrated by: Betty Buckley
- Length: 9 hrs and 52 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
As he describes the insatiable curiosity of Calamity's Indian friend No Ears, Annie Oakley's shooting match with Lord Windhouveren, and other highlights of the tour, Larry McMurtry turns the story of a band of hardy, irrepressible survivors into an unforgettable portrait of love, fellowship, dreams, and heartbreak.
-
-
Come sit by the fire and listen to a story...
- By Cookie on 11-17-11
By: Larry McMurtry
-
Zeke And Ned
- By: Larry McMurtry, Diana Ossana - from an idea by
- Narrated by: Barrett Whitener
- Length: 15 hrs and 22 mins
- Abridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
As a child, Zeke Proctor walked the Trail of Tears from Georgia to west of Arkansas, acquiring a fierce loyalty to the Cherokee way. Though a family man and a respected member of the Cherokee Senate, Zeke the man is an adventurous charmer. Ned Christie is tall and charismatic, with waist-length hair and a handsomeness that appeals to women all over the Going Snake District. Ned's long and determined resistance to the relentless pressure of white law makes him a hero to the Cherokee people.
-
-
Dumb and dumber
- By Richard on 12-08-08
By: Larry McMurtry, and others
-
Custer
- By: Larry McMurtry
- Narrated by: Henry Strozier
- Length: 2 hrs and 55 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Pulitzer Prize winner Larry McMurtry crafts works synonymous with the grandeur and beauty of the American West. Here McMurtry turns his attention to George A. Custer, a complex man who has captivated historians for over a century. From graduating last in his class at West Point to leading the ill-fated 7th Cavalry in the attack at Little Bighorn, Custer forged a legacy - still very much alive today - as one of the West's most enduring historical figures.
-
-
A story that needed to be told!
- By Mike on 12-06-12
By: Larry McMurtry
-
Boone's Lick
- By: Larry McMurtry
- Narrated by: Will Patton
- Length: 6 hrs and 34 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Boone's Lick is high adventure, a perfect Western tale and a moving love story - it is vintage Larry McMurtry, combining his brilliant character portraits, his unerring sense of the West and his unrivalled eye for the telling detail.
-
-
No Lonesome Dove
- By James on 04-03-03
By: Larry McMurtry
-
Horseman, Pass By
- By: Larry McMurtry
- Narrated by: Kerin McCue
- Length: 7 hrs and 33 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Cattleman Homer Bannon is a walking advertisement for traditional, old-frontier morals—in contrast to his stepson, Hud. Homer’s grandson Lonnie is torn between emotions for his father and grandfather as he struggles to define his own identity.
-
-
Early book by McMurtry and it shows it.
- By lee on 02-19-11
By: Larry McMurtry
-
Dances with Wolves
- By: Michael Blake
- Narrated by: George Guidall
- Length: 9 hrs and 10 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Ordered to hold an abandoned army post, John Dunbar found himself alone, beyond the edge of civilization. Thievery and survival soon forced him into the Indian camp, where he began a dangerous adventure that changed his life forever. Set in 1863, the novel follows Lieutenant John Dunbar on a magical journey from the ravages of the Civil War to the far reaches of the imperiled American frontier, a frontier he naively wants to see "before it is gone".
-
-
Even better than the movie. Excellent narration.
- By JSP on 12-28-19
By: Michael Blake
-
Travels with Charley in Search of America
- By: John Steinbeck
- Narrated by: Gary Sinise
- Length: 7 hrs and 58 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
In September 1960, John Steinbeck and his poodle, Charley, embarked on a journey across America, from small towns to growing cities to glorious wilderness oases. Travels with Charley is animated by Steinbeck’s attention to the specific details of the natural world and his sense of how the lives of people are intimately connected to the rhythms of nature—to weather, geography, the cycles of the seasons. His keen ear for the transactions among people is evident, too, as he records the interests and obsessions that preoccupy the Americans he encounters along the way.
-
-
Gary Sinise is fantastic!
- By C. Wilson on 01-11-17
By: John Steinbeck
-
The Son
- By: Philipp Meyer
- Narrated by: Will Patton, Kate Mulgrew, Scott Shepherd, and others
- Length: 17 hrs and 48 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Part epic of Texas, part classic coming-of-age story, part unflinching examination of the bloody price of power, The Son is a gripping and utterly transporting novel that maps the legacy of violence in the American west with rare emotional acuity, even as it presents an intimate portrait of one family across two centuries. Eli McCullough is just twelve-years-old when a marauding band of Comanche storm his Texas homestead and brutally murder his mother and sister, taking him as a captive.
-
-
Five Stars for the Lone Star, The Son, & Meyer
- By Mel on 06-04-13
By: Philipp Meyer
-
Tularosa
- By: Michael McGarrity
- Narrated by: George Guidall
- Length: 8 hrs and 16 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
In a wicked conspiracy reaching across the Mexican border, Tularosa pits a jaded ex-cop against tight-lipped Army personnel, hired thugs, and smooth-talking outlaws. Forced into retirement by a crippling gunshot wound, Santa Fe policeman Kevin Kerney seeks solitude on a small New Mexico ranch far from the nearest neighbor. But when his godson disappears without a trace into the harsh, high-security desert of the White Sands Missile Range, Kerney emerges to search for the young soldier.
-
-
Would like to hear the entire series!
- By Spinner on 10-14-12
-
Slowly Down the Ganges
- By: Eric Newby
- Narrated by: James Bryce
- Length: 14 hrs and 22 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
On his 44th birthday, Eric Newby sets out on an incredible journey: to travel the 1,200-mile length of India's holy river. In a misguided attempt to keep him out of trouble, Wanda, his lifelong travel companion and wife, is to be his fellow boatwoman. Their plan is to begin in the great plain of Hardwar and finish in the Bay of Bengal, but the journey almost immediately becomes markedly slower and more treacherous than either had imagined - running aground 63 times in the first six days.
-
-
A delightful classic!
- By Amzshopper on 01-27-20
By: Eric Newby
-
Ghost Rider
- Travels on the Healing Road
- By: Neil Peart
- Narrated by: Brian Sutherland
- Length: 15 hrs and 54 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
In less than a year, Neil Peart lost both his 19-year-old daughter, Selena, and his wife, Jackie. Faced with overwhelming sadness and isolated from the world in his home on the lake, Peart was left without direction. That lack of direction lead him on a 55,000 mile journey by motorcycle across much of North America, down through Mexico to Belize, and back again.
-
-
Not happy, but fascinating
- By Jim In Texas! on 09-25-14
By: Neil Peart
-
In a Sunburned Country
- By: Bill Bryson
- Narrated by: Bill Bryson
- Length: 11 hrs and 54 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Every time Bill Bryson walks out the door, memorable travel literature threatens to break out. His previous excursion on the Appalachian Trail resulted in the best seller A Walk in the Woods. Now, we follow him "Down Under" to Australia with this delectably funny, fact-filled, and adventurous performance that combines humor, wonder, and unflagging curiosity. More from Bill Bryson.
-
-
Laugh out loud funny
- By Larry on 06-09-03
By: Bill Bryson
-
The Blessing Way
- By: Tony Hillerman
- Narrated by: George Guidall
- Length: 6 hrs and 28 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Homicide is always an abomination, but there is something exceptionally disturbing about the victim discovered in a high, lonely place: a corpse with a mouth full of sand, abandoned at a crime scene seemingly devoid of tracks or useful clues. Though it goes against his better judgment, Navajo tribal police lieutenant Joe Leaphorn cannot help but suspect the hand of a supernatural killer.
-
-
A 'Blessing' Indeed!
- By Carole T. on 03-15-16
By: Tony Hillerman
-
His Majesty's Airship
- The Life and Tragic Death of the World's Largest Flying Machine
- By: S. C. Gwynne
- Narrated by: Nicholas Boulton
- Length: 9 hrs and 5 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
The tragic fate of the British airship R101—which went down in a spectacular fireball in 1930, killing more people than died in the Hindenburg disaster seven years later—has been largely forgotten. In His Majesty’s Airship, S.C. Gwynne resurrects it in vivid detail, telling the epic story of great ambition gone terribly wrong.
-
-
O, The Humanity
- By Glenn G Poole II on 06-11-23
By: S. C. Gwynne
Critic reviews
"He has a reporter's eye, an affectionate ear for everyday speech, and, yes, a Dickensian storyteller's facility when it comes to churning out words." (The New York Times Book Review)
People who viewed this also viewed...
-
Custer
- By: Larry McMurtry
- Narrated by: Henry Strozier
- Length: 2 hrs and 55 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Pulitzer Prize winner Larry McMurtry crafts works synonymous with the grandeur and beauty of the American West. Here McMurtry turns his attention to George A. Custer, a complex man who has captivated historians for over a century. From graduating last in his class at West Point to leading the ill-fated 7th Cavalry in the attack at Little Bighorn, Custer forged a legacy - still very much alive today - as one of the West's most enduring historical figures.
-
-
A story that needed to be told!
- By Mike on 12-06-12
By: Larry McMurtry
-
All My Friends are Going to be Strangers
- By: Larry McMurtry
- Narrated by: John Randolph Jones
- Length: 8 hrs and 39 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Danny Deck - Emma's friend from Terms of Endearment - is a promising young writer losing touch with his talent and drifting from Texas to California because "that's where all the writers are." Set in the early 60s, this is a very funny (and raunchy) satire of life in Texas and California and a true and American portrait of an artist as a young man.
-
-
Favorite audio book ever
- By melanie christner on 06-01-16
By: Larry McMurtry
-
Telegraph Days
- By: Larry McMurtry
- Narrated by: Annie Potts
- Length: 9 hrs and 28 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Not since the publication of his own beloved classic Lonesome Dove has there been a novel like this one, another big, brilliant, unputdownable saga of the West from Larry McMurtry. Telegraph Days is at once a major work of literature and a completely absorbing read, not just great fiction, but fiction on a great scale.
-
-
Enjoyable
- By Karen A. Reiland on 09-01-07
By: Larry McMurtry
-
Terms of Endearment
- By: Larry McMurtry
- Narrated by: Barbara Rosenblat
- Length: 15 hrs and 6 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
A widow with a small army of suitors, Aurora Greenway loves the limelight. She’s got three grandchildren whom she adores (in small doses) and her son-in-law Flap, whom she’s not really crazy about. And there’s her daughter Emma. In some ways, Emma is all there ever was. Now, there’s little time left to say the things that need to be said.
-
-
So Much Better Than The Movie
- By Julia on 02-10-16
By: Larry McMurtry
-
Streets Of Laredo
- By: Larry McMurtry
- Narrated by: Daniel Von Bargen
- Length: 21 hrs and 39 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
The final book of Larry McMurtry's Lonesome Dove tetralogy is an exhilarating tale of legend and heroism. Captain Woodrow Call, August McCrae's old partner, is now a bounty hunter hired to track down a brutal young Mexican bandit. Riding with Call are an Eastern city slicker, a witless deputy, and one of the last members of the Hat Creek outfit, Pea Eye Parker, now married to Lorena -- once Gus McCrae's sweetheart. This long chase leads them across the last wild streches of the West....
-
-
Terrible McMurtry Book - Depressing & Painful
- By Dennis on 01-28-11
By: Larry McMurtry
-
Horseman, Pass By
- By: Larry McMurtry
- Narrated by: Kerin McCue
- Length: 7 hrs and 33 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Cattleman Homer Bannon is a walking advertisement for traditional, old-frontier morals—in contrast to his stepson, Hud. Homer’s grandson Lonnie is torn between emotions for his father and grandfather as he struggles to define his own identity.
-
-
Early book by McMurtry and it shows it.
- By lee on 02-19-11
By: Larry McMurtry
-
Custer
- By: Larry McMurtry
- Narrated by: Henry Strozier
- Length: 2 hrs and 55 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Pulitzer Prize winner Larry McMurtry crafts works synonymous with the grandeur and beauty of the American West. Here McMurtry turns his attention to George A. Custer, a complex man who has captivated historians for over a century. From graduating last in his class at West Point to leading the ill-fated 7th Cavalry in the attack at Little Bighorn, Custer forged a legacy - still very much alive today - as one of the West's most enduring historical figures.
-
-
A story that needed to be told!
- By Mike on 12-06-12
By: Larry McMurtry
-
All My Friends are Going to be Strangers
- By: Larry McMurtry
- Narrated by: John Randolph Jones
- Length: 8 hrs and 39 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Danny Deck - Emma's friend from Terms of Endearment - is a promising young writer losing touch with his talent and drifting from Texas to California because "that's where all the writers are." Set in the early 60s, this is a very funny (and raunchy) satire of life in Texas and California and a true and American portrait of an artist as a young man.
-
-
Favorite audio book ever
- By melanie christner on 06-01-16
By: Larry McMurtry
-
Telegraph Days
- By: Larry McMurtry
- Narrated by: Annie Potts
- Length: 9 hrs and 28 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Not since the publication of his own beloved classic Lonesome Dove has there been a novel like this one, another big, brilliant, unputdownable saga of the West from Larry McMurtry. Telegraph Days is at once a major work of literature and a completely absorbing read, not just great fiction, but fiction on a great scale.
-
-
Enjoyable
- By Karen A. Reiland on 09-01-07
By: Larry McMurtry
-
Terms of Endearment
- By: Larry McMurtry
- Narrated by: Barbara Rosenblat
- Length: 15 hrs and 6 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
A widow with a small army of suitors, Aurora Greenway loves the limelight. She’s got three grandchildren whom she adores (in small doses) and her son-in-law Flap, whom she’s not really crazy about. And there’s her daughter Emma. In some ways, Emma is all there ever was. Now, there’s little time left to say the things that need to be said.
-
-
So Much Better Than The Movie
- By Julia on 02-10-16
By: Larry McMurtry
-
Streets Of Laredo
- By: Larry McMurtry
- Narrated by: Daniel Von Bargen
- Length: 21 hrs and 39 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
The final book of Larry McMurtry's Lonesome Dove tetralogy is an exhilarating tale of legend and heroism. Captain Woodrow Call, August McCrae's old partner, is now a bounty hunter hired to track down a brutal young Mexican bandit. Riding with Call are an Eastern city slicker, a witless deputy, and one of the last members of the Hat Creek outfit, Pea Eye Parker, now married to Lorena -- once Gus McCrae's sweetheart. This long chase leads them across the last wild streches of the West....
-
-
Terrible McMurtry Book - Depressing & Painful
- By Dennis on 01-28-11
By: Larry McMurtry
-
Horseman, Pass By
- By: Larry McMurtry
- Narrated by: Kerin McCue
- Length: 7 hrs and 33 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Cattleman Homer Bannon is a walking advertisement for traditional, old-frontier morals—in contrast to his stepson, Hud. Homer’s grandson Lonnie is torn between emotions for his father and grandfather as he struggles to define his own identity.
-
-
Early book by McMurtry and it shows it.
- By lee on 02-19-11
By: Larry McMurtry
What listeners say about Roads
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Doug
- 09-13-18
Still worth it!
A few gems, but overall a bit of a miss. Still, it feeds the wanderlust.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
1 person found this helpful
-
Overall
- Todd
- 08-15-03
Gave it a shot...could put it down...
I'm a lover of Charles Kuralt, traveling and the American Road...hence a book about the roads in America seemed to be right up my ally. I will say I gave the book an honest chance, but I couldn't make it past the first hour. The author, who writes extremely well, seemed to complain about more things than he complimented. The narrator, a cross between the "Grumpy Old Man" from Saturday Night Live, and Andy Rooney, left me wondering if anything positive would come out of his mouth. I let the player roll on. Amongst many comments of which roads he liked and which he didn't (and if you live on the east coast, forget it, he states 10 minutes into the book he hates I95 and refuses to drive it), the author rolls down from Minnesota to Texas, pointing out rest stops, too many trucks, sunsets in Kansas, and the Mexican border.
Charles Kuralt's writings are much more heartwarming, granted they are more about the people of the places he visits, but this book just seemed cold and harsh, like the interstates he was writing about. Maybe you will find something else deeper in it.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
18 people found this helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Mel
- 05-07-12
Larry Sees America
Whether its cattle drives or Buick drives, Larry McMurty has a unique perspective on the land and people he meets along the way. George Guidall is not my favorite narrator but he probably "is" Larry in this case.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
3 people found this helpful
-
Overall
- Jonathan
- 05-07-05
like riding around with your grumpy grandfather
OK - this is the long boring narration of an old guy drivng around the country in his car doing nothing but complaining and he manages to do so all without ever leaving his vehicle. Sound impossible? well its not. This guy goes on and on about the most boring stuff and does nothing but complain and whine. This isn't how it used to be in the old days... this sucks...I could do that much better... etc. He drives straight for two days sleeping at nights in a motel right off the freeway never straying from the interstate to find the real America. Sounds interesting if you are into complete boredom. If you want to listen to some good travel writers stick to Bryson or Least-Heat Moon. Put this book on your skip list and save yourself the bore of a lifetime......
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
8 people found this helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Amazon Customer
- 08-29-24
Super well narrated
Loved it - a hidden gem in my view. Modern day road trip with bits of history lessons thrown in.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Mark
- 02-20-13
Best real travel book I've heard
I know many of the places that he is described and they made me want to revisit them. I especially wanted to get the book about the old cowboy and found it on Amazon and have read it very good read and the book itself on travel was exceptionally well-written.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
1 person found this helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- melissa bartles
- 07-29-22
much more interesting than expected
A book about just driving around??? How could I forget the quality of McMurtry's insights and his ability to communicate them???
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall
-
Story
- marsha
- 07-02-16
travel monologue
i loved listening to this stream of consciousness history, cultural, literary, geographical monologue. I would take a drive with him any time.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
1 person found this helpful