Across the Pond

You can't go far in Britain without seeing author Bill Bryson's name on the bestseller bookshelves, or hearing someone enthusiastically quote "Notes from a Small Island," or seeing him in the newspaper.

That suits me just fine, as I've been a Bryson fan for a decade. We pass audio versions of his books around my family, as they make great listening on driving trips, and I've read all of his early books, too. I greatly enjoyed seeing him speak at the National Press Club in Washington D.C. back in spring 2003, and am impressed by how he's made such a successful career for himself by writing about travel, words and science while calling two nations home. I have to admit it's a little strange to find him so celebrated over here, seeing as how he's American, but I guess he's lived in England for more than 20 years and it's actually heartwarming to see how eagerly he's been adopted by the reticent Brits.

Today's article in the Daily Telegraph makes me admire Bryson even more, because he's putting his time and energy where his mouth is. Even a casual reading of his travel books reveals Bryson's dismay at the homogenization of first America and now Britain. Small towns in America have been swallowed up and the same is happening in England, as globalization and convenience (usually in the form of souless chain stores and subdivisions) reach into rural villages.

The wonderful thing about this new public awareness campaign of Bryson's, though, is that he's starting small by encouraging Brits to stop littering. I think he's onto something here--if the new generation of Englishmen and Englishwomen learn to be respectful of the land that's seen so much history for millennia, then that may translate into a more holistic care for Great Britain.

I hope this is a lesson we can learn on both sides of the pond.