True Brits [Paperback]

 

 

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I was a bit wary of this one at first, as I thought the author might be a typical American who would spend all his time taking the mickey out of the Brits and their oh-so-funny ways. But I was pleasantly surprised and very impressed by his take on Britain past and present. Daeschner is often the first to poke fun at himself, realising that he's as ridiculous as anything he's writing about (particularly when he tries to match Scotland's Burry Man drink for drink!). He also shows a lot of empathy with the characters he meets, so that although he may find it difficult to understand them completely, at least he presents them fairly and without patronising them. In doing so, he's produced one of the best books I've read about Britain in a long time.

I bought this with the same hopeful flourish that caused me to openBryson's Notes From a Small Island. Like that book, True Brits fails todeliver on the cover's promise and is often offensive into thebargain.
Daeschner makes no bones about his standpoint as an ex-pat American,looking on with wide-eyed naiveté at the 'wacky' things we Brits get upto. It is a curiously American attitude to venerate willy nilly anythingthat smacks of ancient culture and I have no problem with that. Whatsmarts is that, like Bryson, despite having lived in Britain among theBritish for more years than anyone asked him to, former newsman Daeschnerdemonstrates a chilling lack of insight into the national mindset. Theintroduction alone is a litany of lazy stereotype as the authorsystematically drubs his former journalistic colleagues [stuck-up publicschoolboys], boss [a 'real' English character, whatever that is] andanyone else he's met since coming here, then bigs himself up as theall-American jock and presumes to tell the reader [who he seems to assumeis American like him] that even the Brits have no idea about these eventsand need to be patronised by him. This is simply not so, thank you, and Iwas so alienated after the intro I nearly didn't persevere. However, Islogged on through the endless series of over-long Sunday Supplement stylearticles that serve as chapters in the hope of finding somethinginteresting. What does come across is a seemingly genuine willingness tounderstand. He simply fails. He talks to a lot of people, has clearlytaken pains to research this, but for all his effort, Daeschner does notconvince me that he is a man alive with his subject. In fact, he takes agreat subject and kills it stone dead.
This would be disappointment enough were it not for Daeschner's lack ofverve with the pen. He does not write terribly well, is not witty, noreven faintly amusing. If you're looking for a light, funny read, lookelsewhere, this isn't it. The prose is curiously leaden, his descriptivepowers are wanting, and for 'humour' he lapses too frequently into clumsy,ink-wasting onomatopoeia, viz: 'wheeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee'. Or:'fizzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz'. Very tiring and if I read the word 'defacto' one more time I will defy my own principles and set light to thething.
Ironically I bought this because I am genuinely interested in finding outmore about Britain's customs. I'm a few quid down and none the wiser --but I am irritated at being styled 'wacky' by a wide-eyed hack from SaltLick, Arkansas [or somewhere with an equally 'wacky', 'zany', 'silly'name].
The best bit about the book is when some perspicacious wag at Lewes puts alighted firecracker in Daeschner's pocket, a telling event that the victimretells with a comforting lack of irony and mirth.
If you're British, give it a miss. If you're American, have never visitedthe UK and don't really want the popular stereotypes challenged, stickwith Bryson. He might be a niggardly old so-and-so but at least he's thehorse's mouth and not this desperate, overhyped imitation.

I have to disagree with the previous reviewer when they say that it is very well written, I don't think it is. It is really badly planned and very repetitive. Each chapter is broken down into about 3 mini chapters on the same subject and the content is very similar in each mini chapter, basically it is repeating exactly what happened in the previous bit but from a slightly different standpoint or character. The authors own comments and references are also very lame, every 'witty' remark he includes in brackets are very old hat. I had misgivings about it when i was reading the introduction as he repeated the names of the activities he was going on to describe in the book (such as bogsnorkelling and shin-kicking) so many times that I had got bored of hearing about them before it had started. It is written like a sixth form essay. I may sound harsh but I hate being so disappointed about a book when I have had been expected to be more interested and enlightened by the jacket and descriptions.
It is very ordinary.

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5.0 out of 5 stars Best book ever about Gurning
And Shin Kicking. And Bog Snorkelling. And Cheese Rolling. And any other number of Great British traditions. Read more

Published on 16 Aug 2005 by Tim O'Reilly

1.0 out of 5 stars Patronising drivel
As I'm interested in British customs I was looking forward to reading this but it turns out to be patronising drivel - an American saying 'Oooh aren't the Brits funny! Read more

Published on 8 Aug 2005 by Channer

5.0 out of 5 stars My favourite book of the new year
You can open this book up just about anywhere and find something funny and fascinating on each page. Read more

Published on 3 Feb 2005 by patflynn62

2.0 out of 5 stars Expecting a feast, received a snack
I was expecting side-splitting, informative, rich tales of eccentric British festivals and general craziness. To be honest I was a little disappointed. Read more

Published on 13 Jan 2005 by carts11

5.0 out of 5 stars Travel writing like it should be
Have to admit I was a bit sceptical about this one to begin with, thinking that the author was going to be a typical American taking the mickey out of Britain. Read more

Published on 22 Nov 2004 by tcarthy26

1.0 out of 5 stars dreadful
Looked great, sounded great from the blurb, but was possibly the worst book I have read this decade. Read more

Published on 4 Nov 2004 by kevpayne

5.0 out of 5 stars Makes you proud to be British
I thought this book was a fantastic even before I saw the glowing media reviews that it quite rightly deserved. Read more

Published on 21 May 2004 by Rachel Hill

5.0 out of 5 stars Hats off to JR Daeschner
Among all the lengthy, beard-stroking tracts about what it means to be British, English or Scottish in recent years, True Brits is like a breath of fresh air. Read more

Published on 10 May 2004 by Charlie Connelly

2.0 out of 5 stars mildly amusing
a midly amusing look at half a dozen odd,wacky pursuits.The problem isthat the American author then takes said wacky pursuits, which about 150Brits in total must take part in and... Read more

Published on 23 April 2004 by chris spring

5.0 out of 5 stars A lively , highly enjoyable read
Excellent. I wasn't really sure what to expect with this one, as I've never heard of the guy that writes it. Read more

Published on 5 April 2004 by andrew davies

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