American Nomads
Richard Grant (2003)

THE A5 BOOK REVIEW

American Nomads is a book that explores the wandering life.  British journalist Richard Grant spent fifteen years roaming around the wide-open spaces in the western United States, drawn to a segment of society that was doing the same thing.  He meets truckers, flea market traders, RV-living retirees and hitchhikers, all united by this lifestyle and the freedom that comes by being on the road.  Grant also weaves in some well-researched history of those who explored this area before, with vivid accounts of the lives of American Indians, frontiersman, and fur trappers.  Finally, the book also is a memoir for Grant, a journey of discovery for himself that is filled with some hilarious stories and an insightful examination into what is like to truly hit the road.  
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OTHER A5 RECOMMENDED TRAVEL BOOKS - RICHARD GRANT

Richard Grant is a freelance English travel writer who now lives in Mississippi, best known for his writing on exploration and culture.  He has published a number of books including two travelogues: ​God's Middle Finger (2008) recounting his travels in a dangerous part of Mexico and Crazy River: Exploration and Folly in East Africa (2011).  Click here to learn more about Richard Grant and his work.

GREAT QUOTES:

“Looking back at my own American wanderings, they seem to flow together as one: memories strung out on a single cord of highway, fourteen years long and headed no where in particular.  I like to think I have tasted freedom, but I also recognize the signs and snares of addiction.  After a while, wandering creates its own momentum, its own set of cravings, phobias and justifications.  I like to think of it as an adventure, a perpetual seeking out of new horizons and adventures, but like so many endeavors of this kind, it also has been an act of flight - away from a point in space and time, away from routines and responsibilities, away from a state of mind."
- Richard Grant, American Nomads

INTERESTING LINKS:

  • Listen to book critic David Kipen's NPR review on American Nomads.
  • Richard Grant later turned the book into a documentary film for the BBC.  Find out more by visiting his website, or by seeing the preview below. 

AMERICAN NOMADS - THE DOCUMENTARY