American Nomads: Travels With Lost Conquistadors, Mountain Men, Cowboys, Indians, Hoboes, Truckers, and Bullriders

by Richard Grant

Release Date: 09 January, 2004

Edition: Hardcover

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Fun and thought-provoking

Loved the book and looking forward to reading it again, after my wife finishes it. An easy, quick, fun read. But plenty to think about. Like The Course of Empire (Bernard DeVoto) this weaves together several "wanderer" stories with a thesis that makes sense. In this case: some people just gotta keep movin' and the Western U.S. is a good place to do it. However, in our society there is a fine line between the nomadic life and self-destruction. Each person has to find his or her own balance. Some go over the line and stay there.

For me this helps explain what makes "wanderer" and explorer stories intriguing: Undaunted Courage and the Lewis & Clark journals, mountain men stories (A Life Wild and Perilous - Utley; Rendezvous Reader - Maguire, Wild and Barclay; John Colter - Harris), stories of lone guys against the Alaska wilderness (One Man's Wilderness - Keith, Proenneke; Reading the River - Hildebrand; Reader's Companion to Alaska - Ryan, ed.), and RVing adventures (all of Sharlene Minshall's very fun books). Also "on the road" stories like Blue Highways (William Least Heat Moon), Travels with Charlie (Steinbeck), Out West (Duncan) and One Year Off (Elliot Cohen, about traveling around the world with his wife and little kids). And last, but not least, Laura Ingalls Wilder's Little House series (read aloud to my niece - Pa is my hero!). They appeal to the nomad in us. I found the author's personal story interesting and not distracting. The ending is a very important part of the book, tying the personal story and the various vignettes together.

With that said, Mr. Grant does worry too much about being cool. Maybe this reflects his Esquire magazine readership. Or just his age. There is much more to tell about RV nomads that he wants to tell. When he says that full-time RVers are the dominant nomadic tribe in the U.S. now, he squirms and has a certified "cool" guy scoff at the idea. He can't talk about retirees without focusing on Viagra. I hope that at some point he will mellow and be able to explore the dominant nomadic tribe with a more sympathetic eye and ear. But whatever he chooses to write next, I will look forward to reading it.

hit the road for a wild and fascinating ride

I loved this book. If you've ever hit the road or had the urge to do it. If you've ever stuck out your thumb to discover the dizzying range of people and places in the great American West or had the urge to do it. If you liked Krakauer's "Into The Wild," GET THIS BOOK. It kicks ass. With an outsider's perceptive eye, Grant weaves his personal Western travels together with fascinating historical accounts and introduces us to a gritty, crazy patchwork of unique American characters that bring the complexity, inspiration, and delusion of America's Western dreams to life. Like Merle Haggard sings: White Line Fever. Catch it.