Most Popular Books by Bill Bryson

Twenty years after his trip around Britain to celebrate the green and kindly island that had become his adopted country, Bill Bryson makes a brand new journey around Britain to see what has changed. From Bognor Regis to Cape Wrath, by way of places that many people never get to at all, Bryson sets out to rediscover the beautiful, magnificently eccentric, endearingly unique country that he thought he knew but doesn''t altogether recognize anymore. Yet, despite Britain''s occasional failings and more or less eternal bewilderments, he is still pleased to call this rainy island home - and not just because of the cream teas, a noble history, and an extra day off at Christmas ...

After 10 years in England, Bill Bryson returned to the land of his youth, and drove almost 14,000 miles in search of a mythical small town called Amalgam, the kind of smiling village where the films of his youth were set.

In 1995, Bill Bryson went on a trip around Britain to celebrate the green and kindly island that had become his home. The hilarious book he wrote about that journey, ''Notes from a Small Island'', became one of the most loved books of recent decades, and was voted in a BBC poll as the book that best represents Britain. Now, Bill Bryson sets out on a brand-new journey, on a route he dubs the Bryson Line, from Bognor Regis on the south coast to Cape Wrath on the northernmost tip of Scotland. Once again, he will guide us through all that''s best and worst about Britain today - while doing that incredibly rare thing of making us laugh out loud in public.

In this selection from The Body, his compulsively readable and bestselling owner’s manual to the human body, Bill Bryson introduces us to the mysterious, and often devastating, world of disease. Written with extraordinary insight and filled with remarkable facts, When Things Go Wrong deepens our understanding of the maladies that afflict us--what they are and how they work. A Vintage Short.

“Bryson is as amusing as ever….As a celebration of 350 years of modern science, [Seeing Further] it is a worthy tribute.” —The Economist In Seeing Further, New York Times bestseller Bill Bryson takes readers on a guided tour through the great discoveries, feuds, and personalities of modern science. Already a major bestseller in the UK, Seeing Further tells the fascinating story of science and the Royal Society with Bill Bryson’s trademark wit and intelligence, and contributions from a host of well known scientists and science fiction writers, including Richard Dawkins, Neal Stephenson, James Gleick, and Margret Atwood. It is a delightful literary treat from the acclaimed author who previous explored the current state of scientific knowledge in his phenomenally popular book, A Short History of Nearly Everything.

Adapted from Mother Tongue this stunningly illustrated book by Bill Bryson tells the story of English, from the first words ever spoken to the very first dictionaries. Perfect for ages 8 to 80! Every day, you do something incredible, and I bet you barely ever think about it: you speak. But have you ever wondered why the English language turned out like it did? If so, this is the book for you. It will also answer some VERY important questions . . . ? Why do we have the Vikings to thank for words like glitter and sky? ? Why did goodbye used to be god be with you? ? Why did LOL originally mean little old ladies? ? And why did no one know what majestic meant until Shakespeare came along? In this epic journey through words, rhymes - and even a few jokes - Bill Bryson will teach you how the English language came to be (clue: lots of invasions) and what makes it a rich and beautiful thing (lots of Shakespeare). Get ready . . . because the story of the English language is an EXTRAORDINARY one.

Shakespeare''s life, despite the scrutiny of generations of biographers and scholars, still remains a mystery with conflicting myths and theories. This short biography was written for the Eminent Lives series, which seeks to pair great subjects with writers known for their strong sensibilities and sharp, lively points of view.

Soon to be a major motion picture starring Robert Redford and Nick Nolte. The Appalachian Trail trail stretches from Georgia to Maine and covers some of the most breathtaking terrain in America-majestic mountains, silent forests, sparking lakes. If you''re going to take a hike, it''s probably the place to go. And Bill Bryson is surely the most entertaining guide you''ll find. He introduces us to the history and ecology of the trail and to some of the other hardy (or just foolhardy) folks he meets along the way-and a couple of bears. Already a classic, "A Walk in the Woods " will make you long for the great outdoors (or at least a comfortable chair to sit and read in).

Australia has more things that can kill you than anywhere else. Nevertheless, Bill Bryson journeyed to the country and promptly fell in love with it. The people are cheerful, their cities are clean, the beer is cold and the sun nearly always shines.

William Shakespeare, the most celebrated poet in the English language, left behind nearly a million words of text, but his biography has long been a thicket of wild supposition arranged around scant facts. With a steady hand and his trademark wit, Bill Bryson sorts through this colorful muddle to reveal the man himself. Bryson documents the efforts of earlier scholars, from today''s most respected academics to eccentrics like Delia Bacon, an American who developed a firm but unsubstantiated conviction that her namesake Francis Bacon was the true author of Shakespeare''s plays - she spent months in silence at Bacon''s home, ''absorbing atmospheres'' that bolstered her theory. With shades of his famous travelogues, Bryson records episodes in his research, including a visit to a bunker-like basement room in Washington, D.C., where the world''s largest collection of First Folios is housed. Bryson celebrates Shakespeare as a writer of unimaginable talent and enormous inventiveness, a coiner of phrases (''vanish into thin air'', ''foregone conclusion'', ''one fell swoop'') that even today have a home at the tips of our tongues. His Shakespeare is like no-one else''s - the beneficiary of Bryson''s genial nature, his engaging scepticism, and a gift for storytelling unrivalled in our time.

" Je suis né à Des Moines. Ce sont des choses qui arrivent. Quand on naît à Des Moines, ou bien on accepte la situation sans discuter, on se met en ménage avec une fille du coin nommée Bobbi, on se trouve du travail à l''usine Firestone et on vit là jusqu''à la fin des temps ; ou bien on passe son adolescence à se plaindre à longueur de journée que c''est un trou et qu''on n''a qu''une envie, en partir, et puis on se met en ménage avec une fille du coin nommée Bobbi, on se trouve du travail à l''usine Firestone et on vit là jusqu''à la fin des temps. Avec ce livre Bill Bryson replonge tout au fond de l''Amérique profonde, celle de son enfance, dont il va sillonner une quarantaine d''États au volant d''une vieille Buick prêtée par sa mère. De ce voyage il rapportera un portrait à hurler de rire... et bien plus sérieux qu''il n''y paraît.

Explains the exact meanings and offers advice on the proper usage of a variety of commonly misused words

Combined in one block-buster of an omnibus now are Bryson''s Down Under, an account of his memorable walk across Australia, and the irresistibly funny A Walk in the Woods, that tells of his lengthy stroll in the Appalachian mountains of America, with his old friend Stephen Katz. Bill Bryson traversed the length and breadth of Australia to bring us Down Under. A household name, synonymous with laugh-out-loud humour, sniggering, and outbursts of chortling, Down Under is what''s commonly known as the perennial classic. In the very same volume is a story of his walk down the longest continuous footpath in the world. The Appalachian Trail stretches along the East Coast of the United States, from Georgia to Maine, through some of the most arresting and celebrated landscapes in America - the Smoky Mountains, Shenandoah National Park, the Berkshire Hills of Massachusetts and the Great North Woods of Maine. Read them both, now, together.

A book of blunders to show fact is funnier than fiction.

Bring fun into a night with friends playing Music trivia. hundreds of questions based on the top 100 hits of each year from 1970 to 1989. Questions are in the form of Name the song, Name the singer & finish the lyrics.