Bill Bryson (born
1951) is an
author of humorous books on
travel as well as no less humorous, though heavily-criticized books on the
English language. Born in
Des Moines, Iowa, He was educated at
Drake University[?] but dropped out in August
1973 while on holiday in
England and began working in a
mental asylum[?]. Here he met his English wife, who was a nurse in the asylum, and they settled in England in
1977, remaining there through most of the
1980s. Living in North
Yorkshire and mainly working as a
journalist, he eventually became chief
copy editor[?] of the business section of
The Times and then deputy national news editor of the business section of
The Independent. He left
journalism in 1987. He has returned to the
United States and lives in
Hanover, New Hampshire.
In 2003, in conjunction with World Book Day[?], voters in England chose Bryson's book Notes From a Small Island[?] as the book that best sums up England's identity and the state of the nation.
Bryson has written two works on the history of the English language, Mother Tongue and Made In America. However, these books have been criticized for their abundance of factual errors, urban myths, and folk etymologies. While Bryson is passionate about languages, he holds no degree in linguistics.
- The Lost Continent: Travels in Small-Town America
- Neither Here nor There: Travels in Europe (1993)
- Notes from a Small Island (1995) (travels in the United Kingdom, adapted for television by Carlton TV in 1998)
- A Walk in the Woods: Rediscovering America on the Appalachian Trail (1997)
- I'm a Stranger Here Myself: Notes on Returning to America After Twenty Years Away (US Edition) / Notes From a Big Country (UK Edition) (1998, columns about moving back to the USA)
- In a Sunburned Country (US edition) / Down Under (UK edition) (2000, travels in Australia)
- Bizarre World
- Mother Tongue: English and How it Got That Way (1989)
- Made in America: an Informal History of the English Language in the United States (1994)
- Troublesome Words (English language usage guide for writers)
Link to this page
