From one of the world's most beloved writers and New York Times bestselling author of A Walk in the Woods and The Body, a vivid, nostalgic, and utterly hilarious memoir of growing up in the 1950s.
Bill Bryson was born in the middle of the American century—1951—in the middle of the United States—Des Moines, Iowa—in the middle of the largest generation in American history—the baby

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The author who captured the experience of starting a new life in Tuscany expands her horizons to immerse herself--and her readers--in the sights, aromas, and treasures of twelve new special places. This book is a celebration of the allure of travel, of serendipitous pleasures found in unlikely locales, of memory woven into the present, and of a joyous sense of quest. She rents houses among ordinary residents, shops at neighborhood markets, wanders...

Some see travel as a form of light-hearted escapism while others believe it has the power to open one's mind, forcing one to confront their demons and discover their true self. Andrew McCarthy details his excursions around the world. He ponders his personal life, his acting career, and his impulse to leave home, all building toward one of the most significant moments of his life: His wedding day.