Appropriate sub-title: 'hemorrhoidal old man, stuck on non-stop Greyhound bus with a broken toilet, shares his view of small-town America as he rides cross-country.'I'm actually surprised that the publisher sub-titled this "Travels in Small Town America", since the author rarely gets out of his car and actually talks to anyone in the small towns he travels through. It seems he's too busy disparaging the towns as he drives by to offer any real insight into the people who've created lives there.I've had the pleasure of driving across America several times in my life and never cease to be impressed with its beauty and the kindness of the people you find in its small towns. That kindness is one of the things I love most about living in my adopted small town in Colorado. Mr. Bryson's book is so lacking in detail and authenticity, one wonders if he ever got out of the car, or just sat in the back seat reading the latest issue of The New Yorker.