Travel writer Bill Bryson, who has brought us his amusing take on such diverse locales as the Appalachian Trail and Australia, now turns his attention to the United States. This book was originally written as a series of articles that were published weekly in an English newspaper. Bryson is by turns funny and acerbic. He waxes rhapsodic about a New England fall, complains about bureaucracy and other irritations of American life, and tries, with dismal results, to recreate for his children some of his own childhood experiences. I asked club members to react to Bryson's reflections and comments. We then segued into our own reminiscences of returning to the United States after travels abroad.

I, the moderator, felt that I'm a Stranger Here Myself was more enjoyable read in little bits and pieces than all at once. One member said, "It reminds me of Andy Rooney." Another agreed, "Yes, but not as curmudgeonly." The three of us who had read Bryson's In a Sunburned Country felt that this book was not as good. Nevertheless, members rated it a 3.