Review of A Crossing: A Cyclist's Journey Home

A Crossing: A Cyclist's Journey Home
Average Rating: 4.0 Total Reviews: 24
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Simon Shuster - anyone home?

On: 2004-07-26

I am sorry, but this book was not very interesting, I never really came to care about Newhouse and his description of his trip was spotty. There are many better cycling/cross-country books and there are a few books out there that deal with mans search for meaning in life.

This book is poorly edited with examples such as the simile describing the Columbia as being as wide as the Mississippi, or perhaps spelling mistake on page 22 where the bike "fled" down the mountain instead of "flew". This was followed on the next page by "what was wet and cold and lush with ferns on the eastern side of the Cascades had turned to sand, heat, scrub pine here on the west", sorry but the writer and editor got that one mixed up - the story is moving west to east, and the eastern side is the dry side. A little further on, we meet John who tells us about an early baseball experience at the Met, the Metrodome in Minneapolis opened in 1982, in which Harmon Killebrew hit a home run. Harmon retire in 1975. On page 143 Newhouse says the sun threw my shadow probably a quarter of a mile over the handlebars.

How does this stuff get published?

No ring of truth

On: 2003-04-22

I must admit to being quite disappointed with this book. I found
it to feel like a less than honest story, in both the tone
and the details. I found myself doubting the story as the
details didnt seem to ring true. The story of the Wheel Wizard
using a hammer in the manner described to fix a wheel is
either fabricated, or belies the authors cluelessness concerning
bicycle repair and maintenance. The story of the war vet simply
felt anachronistic, like it was a forced story made up to fill
out an otherwise empty section of the book. These are just
two of too many examples where I found my self doubting
the story as told. It really doesnt matter if all the details
are true, because if they are true the book has failed even more
so to convey what is supposed to be a very personal experience
of journey and learning.

I was also surprised to find positive reviews of this book. For
anyone considering reading this book, if you havent yet read
Miles from nowhere, you would read that one instead. That book
is by far the better travel tale, and simply doesnt fail to
convey an honesty that A Crossing lacks.

A Crossing, A Cyclist's Journey Home by: Brian Newhouse

On: 2003-01-27

I am an avid Bicycling and Touring book reader. "A Crossing" by Brian Newhouse was a treasure. I read the book in less than 24 hours. It has everything a book like this needs. Insight into crossing the United States by bicycle, a positive attitude, fun, amusing, and one of the best writers I have had the priviledge to read. Thank You Amazon.com, for without you I wouldnt have found this wonderful book. Connie McAyeal

Not really about the bike ride

by: Anonymous On: 2000-12-21

If youre wondering what a cross-country bike ride might be like and whether you might like to do it, dont bother reading this book. There are many other books that more accurately describe the experience, or at least make it seem more appealing. (Barbara Savages book about her around-the-world journey is quiet entertaining) The author spends most of the book discussing his relationship with his emotionally distant Scandinavian father. Unfortunately, he doesnt really offer anything novel or insigntful on this topic. His musings on religion are equally annoying and sophmoric.

Cyclist's Book Should be Re-Cycled

by: Anonymous On: 2000-04-06

Im sorry, but this was just not worth the money. Not even close. The only interesting character in the entire book ditches him in the first two weeks. With such a wonderful experience, you would think that there might actually be a few more notable characters. Instead, the author splits his time between daydreaming about some obviously disturbed "girlfriend" and her equally bizarre friends and whining about his father that doesnt pay tribute to him. I was really expecting an episode with snake-handlers.

A Good Read

On: 1999-12-08

This book is a great combination of adventure and the authors own personal journey across America. It was a prompt for me to go out there and do a bit of cycle touring myself. I am hoping that he will write a second book to find out how his personal story ends.

It was hard to lay down. Wonderful book.

by: Anonymous On: 1999-10-10

My family lived neighbors to Brian for 5 years and he and our daughter have remained good friends since that time. To read about his bicycling experiences, as well as some of his personal struggles, make this a highly enjoyable book full of personal insight. Good for you Brian!

Funny and touching story of self discovery, faith and family

by: Anonymous On: 1999-09-16

I read Newhouses book when it first was published and enjoyed it a lot. Recently I gave a copy to my girlfriend, who also loved it. The occasion prompted me to pull my own copy off the shelf and give it another read. I was reminded once again of Newhouses incredibly honest, understated writing style that makes you feel just exactly what hes feeling. Ive rarely read a book so completely free of the authors pretensions and ego. This is a writer of real skill. I hope he publishes more books.

Tour de force on relationships, from laughing to crying

by: Anonymous On: 1999-06-09

It would be easy to recommend this book to men who have reserved Scandinavian fathers. Thats who you would share your copy with. But the message, in elegant and crisp language, is just as strong about relationships. Unfortunately, most men - at least in the Midwest - do not talk about relationships outside of their marriage. When I read this book, I felt the excitement and imagination in those age-old reasons why we care about people. I dont cycle, but the intensity of the cross-country trip was a meaningful backdrop to what happens when I cycle in and out of my friends lives.

Accissible, Insightful, funny, and aching with endurance

by: Anonymous On: 1999-05-24

Newhouse writes of the cross country journey with accessible english and features insights into some of the basic needs of spirituality, romance/love, and friendship. Occasionally the book is laugh out loud funny and at other times, the writing inspires calm, stilling reflection. FInally, the book allows folks to share in a ride of their life across dramatic geography of our country.

Well written & enjoyable story, but a weak cycling book.

by: Anonymous On: 1999-03-31

This fellow is a good writer and I enjoyed the book, but for the wrong reasons. I thought is was a book about cycling but that is just the excuse to tell Brians personal story. Dont expect to find much information about practical touring issues, there are other books that do that better. Still, Brian deals with many father/son, family religious issues many of us can relate to. If thats what your looking for you wont be disappointed. If your looking for lots of cycling experiences, look elsewhere.

For fathers and for sons, a must read.

by: Anonymous On: 1999-03-31

Brian touches heart strings here in a most remarkable manner. Are you a father? Boy the book for your son(s). Are you a son? Buy the book for your father. Father/son relationships in our country are often a troubled one. They need not be this way. No other book has spoken to me as Brians book. As a 22 year veteran of daily bike commuting, I have never crossed our continent by bike. I have read other cross country bike books, but this one tops it all. My copy is so dog eared it barks at my bike!

Too religious

by: Anonymous On: 1999-03-19

A good book but not really about cycling and the riders RIDE EXPERIENCE. Where was the adventure and the RIDE EXPERIENCE?

A long time since I've seen tears on my pages

by: Anonymous On: 1999-02-13

Im a 49-year-old male raised on an Illinois farm and thought Id long since passed the day when a book of remembrances could touch me so. Fathers out here, and elsewhere I suspect, have learned the art of showing love only lately ... and awkwardly. Brian Newhouse uses the physical act of crossing the nation via bike as a metaphor for his inward journey toward his fathers heart. I can hardly speak to how this book might seem to others, but I saw myself again and again in his struggles with faith, with love, and with himself. Its been a long time since Ive seen tears on a book in my hands.

A Heartening, Vivid Adventure

by: Anonymous On: 1999-01-27

Before I say anything else, I want to congratulate Brian Newhouse on his first book. For someone who hadnt considered himself a writer before putting this story to paper, it is a remarkable achievement. It would be for a writer of any experience. That he succeeded in conveying to this reader the fiber of his journey is a credit; such a book could have only been written from a place deep inside. A CROSSING rang with an honesty, a certain innocence, that disarmed me. The book pulled virtually every heartstring I possessed: Ill remember my gusts of laughter at gems like "The Rim Wizard of Fergus Falls"; punching my fist in the air when Brian caught that forever-in-coming first prairie tailwind and THROTTLED; the kinship I felt (having been on my own, though shorter, bike trips) when reading his aptly fragmented account of the Return, the bizarre nature of it all; and how, after turning the last page, this was the first book Id ever read that managed to tug a tear from me. Why? Because I felt as if I too had made the journey and had to leave it behind. Because the people in the book felt real (and are real). Because the story, carried on the shoulders of elegant prose, succeeds. And because, well, Im 28, have a father, and still dream of the poetry this country might write in me when I finally cross it on two wheels. But, reader, you neednt have ridden a bike to appreciate this book. After all, though theres plenty of miles covered between coasts, it is really a backdrop for a much larger voyage not measured in days or miles, only felt. Treat yourself, your family, and your friends to this wonderful read.

Not a cycling book

by: Anonymous On: 1999-01-05

Although I thought A Crossing was a well-written book, I found it disappointing when compared to other tales of cycling journeys. Im sure Brian (author) would be the first to explain that his book was not meant to be simply a road travel story, but it unfortunately left me wanting to know more about the people he met and the places he saw. He overlooks vast parts of his travels as he broods about his personal problems.

Admittedly, Brians personal struggles and resolutions were interesting, and on one level his physical journey works as a metaphor/backdrop for his mental journey. But thats not what I was looking for. Perhaps I was expecting the wrong thing, but then again the book is being marketed as a travel book.

The magic and beauty of being free and on the road was missing from this work. Brians preoccupation with his dilemmas made him seem almost insolent, like he had no interest in any of the people he ran into (other than the few he wrote about in more detail) or in their towns--and those were the very things I was interested in hearing about. It did not seem like he enjoyed his bike trip and he did not manage to pull me into the story. But again, perhaps my expectations were too high.

Inspiring jouney into America and personal discovery.

by: Anonymous On: 1998-11-11

A Crossing took me into familiar territory as I too once took off across America (not on a bicycle!) in search of myself. The book speaks volumes to those of us trying to get closer to a father or mother, to a relationship with another man or woman, to ourselves spiritually. In the great tradition of travel fiction (Travels with Charley, Blue Highways), A Crossing sets us on the miraculous road to personal discovery.

I laughed, I cried, I got tendenitis! Very REAL, honest, fun

On: 1998-11-10

I was curious about the book (skeptical?) as I knew the author, but quickly found out that this is the real deal. Hey, this guy can write!

A very poignant story, an adventure anyone can relate to...and if you have a father (!), youll find yourself shedding a few tears. If you are a person of faith, youll find the issues real.

From the perspective of a former (avid) cyclist, I was enthralled. Just enough cycling minutiae to keep me believing...and sore!

I weigh the effectiveness of most books I read on the emotions it invokes in me. Honestly, I laughed out loud and shed real tears.

Nicely written, good metaphors, well developed characters you end up caring about...wheres the sequel?!

Highly recommended.

-JA

The conflicts of life embodied at 10mph on a bike ...

by: Anonymous On: 1998-10-28

Brians journey is much like all of ours ... discovery of self, pushing the limits, while struggling to find our own place in the world ... I must wonder now if Brian came to terms with Jesus in the same way that we are left thinking he has come to terms with his father.

Rich, satisfying, joyful banquet for the soul

On: 1998-10-14

Right up front I need to tell you that Im Brians older male cousin who grew up near him on another farm just down the gravel road from the Newhouse turkey farm. If I need to make the point, a relatives review would be welcomed like a pulsating nose zit on prom night, so with that disclaimer aside, I feel entitled and distanced by time and baser style to offer my own observations. As I howled and slapped my way through A Crossing in one sensuous sitting, I had the extraordinarily delicious advantage of directly recalling the soft scent of Ivory soap wafting from his gentle family members around their bountiful dinner table, contrasting in my olfactory memory with the sharp odor of watered-down blood and feather remnants that were drying on the the killing floor of their turkey processing building, just as Brian describes.

Brians carefully drawn Rockwellian images of his life with his original family on their farm resonated deeply within my own experience in coming of age within our wholesome and intertwined nuclear families vis-a-vis the shadow and the sunshine of the neighboring religious communities in which we were nurtured. That there would be conflict with his father over genuine fervently held fundamentalist beliefs was inevitable. That father and son would struggle to bridge a chasm of the hearts each in their own way, makes for an engaging tale. If only the sleek to slogging bicycle trip spanning the entire North American continent were just a metaphor, but that gutsy parallel feat adds sinew and grit to undergird and propel a complicated simple story. Throw in a montage of engaging characters and challenges along the road less traveled by pedal power, while trying to get a fix on the poor young saps long-distance love life, and I offer every adult child and their parents, non-relatives included, a hilarious and sobering brisk glimpse into an artful attempt to live a rich life with extraordinary talent, passion, sensitivity and integrity.

A very warm and sincere account of a unique journey.

by: Anonymous On: 1998-10-08

This story touched me in a way that nothing else has for a very long time. Extremely honest and sincere, funny and heart-warming, I read it avariciously. Having traveled for years myself I found it inspired me to continue doing so. A great account of the pain,satisfaction and revelation that comes with journeys of this kind.

Disappointing; not so much about bicycle touring

by: Anonymous On: 1998-10-01

I found the book disappointing in that it was much less about his bicycle touring and more about his preoccupation with his father. I think the book would have worked out better if he included more of the experience of touring across the country and integrated that with his spiritual journey to understand his father.

struck a cord in my personal experience with my dad.

by: Anonymous On: 1998-08-26

I heard Brian being interviewed on NPR and found the subject so interesting that when I arrived home I ordered the book. The following weekend as I was sitting on our lake dock following Brians bike journey much to my surprise he writes that he had to stop at Scheels hardware in Minot No.Dak.. My husband was the manager that let him in the bike shop. Ross remembered him because one didnt see too many guys riding bikes in yellow spandex in those days. The checkout girl is my sister Nancy and Brian surely captured her spirit. Most of the details of his stay in Minot were very accurate with just a few mistakes.ie. Nancy would never have served him a beer and she drove a big old Chevy Caprice that had a trunk that was wired shut with a coat hanger. Your readers might find it interesting to know that Nancy did not marry that Brad. Rather she ended up marrying a real adventurer that she met over in Pakistan. She and the "new" Brad are now parents of 3 childern and living in a remote section of Pakistan. I am looking forward to her reading a copy of this great book that I am sending to her.

Engrossing physical/spiritual journey, with insight & humor

On: 1998-07-22

I read The Crossing in one sitting--its an easy and engrossing read, yet full of humor and insight. Its about being young and unsettled, searching for something true and profound--but it never bogs down in navel-gazing or verbosity. The writing is quick and lean, rich with self-effacing humor, which makes the insights go down easily. The book takes the form of a journal, and it reminds me of many trips Ive taken, but the author has written about his journey with a grace and fluidity that makes this the diary we all wish wed had the talent to write.