High, Wide, and Handsome

An American Journey (Julian's Journeys)

By: Julian Bishop

Narrated by: Julian Bishop

British-born US resident Julian Bishop is at an inflection point. His children have left home, and he and his wife must figure out what they want to do next. They travel coast to coast across the USA and explore whether they truly want to be American.

High, Wide, and Handsome is an extremely witty travel book that seeks to understand American culture. It explores why the USA has been so successful since independence and also identifies some issues that should be addressed.

In a world where America’s political leaders are widely ridiculed, the book acts as an antidote to the narrative that everything American is broken. It is an essential listen for anybody interested in America.

©2020 Julian Bishop (P)2021 Julian Bishop

Very interesting and funny!

Very much enjoyed this book! A remarkable journey through American history, culture and geography. It toes a fine line between whitty humor and dense factual content. If you like books by authors like Bill Bryson you will certainly enjoy this one.

Good, Entertaining and Informative

This is a great read (or listen) . . . I enjoyed hearing an Englishman’s perspectives on America as he traveled. He also provides some great background to the country and the sites.

Great audiobook about America

I loved this audiobook about America. It is professionally narrated by the enthusiastic author. It is funny and insightful. I learned so much about the development of American culture and I enjoyed hearing about many of the wonders of America along the route throughout the book.

I have to say that I disagree with another reviewer’s perspective on the audiobook. As hard as I tried, I could not work out from the audiobook what the author’s political affiliations were. I admired, and welcomed, the way he remained neutral on almost all matters. And sympathy for a domestic terror group? I can only guess it refers to the Black Lives Matter movement. This is decidedly not a terror organization, but a legitimate example of a large group of people expressing their first amendment rights. The reviewer is welcome to his opinions, but please do not think that the author or his daughter is a terrorist sympathizer. I think this is another example of the divide in American society, which I now understand from this book has been in American society since independence.

Phenomenal

Entertaining and excellently written. Highly recommended for anyone who enjoys travel writing and cultural commentary. I'll listen to this one again.

Inspirational, educational and funny

If ever there was a book to inspire you to check off your bucket list, this is it. The British author talks about the wonder of world travel and points out the quirky differences between the US and the UK; it’s funny and clever. The story takes place on the cusp of the pandemic so anyone can relate. I have lived on both sides of the pond so I could totally relate and I learned so many surprising new things, too. Bishop’s British accent was a plus and kept me entertained and what a title: High, Wide and Handsome—so much fun!

It had potential but....

This book had potential but the authors insistence on injecting his own political views made it unbearable. The part that bothered me most was his acceptance of “daughter #2” with her disrespectful attitude and behavior including her sympathy for a domestic terror group. The author is also goes out of his way to let you know his political views and what he thinks of politicians who hold different views than his.
I’ve read or listened to hundreds of books and rarely feel the need to leave a review. I probably wouldn’t have for this one had he not have ended it by praising his daughter’s solidarity with a terror organization.

Don’t buy unless you are an extreme lefty. I consider myself politically neutral, but I couldn’t even make it through a chapter.

Narrow minded single sided view of our country. I couldn’t even make it through a single chapter. I tried fast forwarding and gave up. I don’t consider my self a left or right, but an American who can put myself in others shoes to see both sides and make informed decisions. Don’t buy unless you are an extreme left.