Road to Little Dribbling (Bryson)

Discussion Questions
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Also, consider these LitLovers talking points to start a discussion for The Road to Little Dribbling—then take it from there...

1. In his 1995 Notes from a Small Island, Bryson referred to what he saw as a consideration for others that permeated British communal life. Now, in The Road to Little Dribbling, he sees the absence of consideration:

The Britain I came to [in 1977] was predicated on the idea of doing the right thing most of the time whether anyone knew you were doing it or not.... You might not leave a tip...but you wouldn't pretend to leave a decent tip and then stick in a small coin.

Talk about the above observation. Is Bryson correct? Is what he sees as Britain's current self-absorption endemic to other countries? Is it true for all age groups, or is it more prevalent in young people (thus it is always so)? Perhaps you disagree with him altogether.

2. The overriding theme of Bryson's book might be put this way: "in countless small ways the world around us grows gradually [lousier]." Is Bryson simply a cantankerous older man, who uses his fame and prestige to take umbrage at whatever annoys him? Or has he earned the right to be genuinely concerned about what he perceives as England's decline, its carelessness, and its misplaced values?

3. Bryson weaves a substantial amount of research with numerous facts into his tale. For instance, 600,000 riders populate the London Underground at any one time, "making it both a larger and more interesting place than Oslo." What other tidbits of information surprised you, made you think, or even laugh out loud? Consider his stops at Sutton Hoo where he contemplates Britain's long ago past; New Forest where he considers Arthur Conan Doyle's spiritualism; or Oxford where Roger Bannister ran the first sub-four-minute mile. Was all this of interest to you...or did it drag down the book's pace?

4. Bryson lists very specific reasons for continuing to live in England. Talk about his list...and make your own list, if not for Britain, than for the place you do live.

5. Do you find Bill Bryson funny? What are some of the funniest parts of his book? Where is the humor (perhaps) strained?

6. Have you read other Bill Bryson works, specifically his 1995 Notes on a Small Island, the prequel to this book, or A Walk in the Woods (1998) an account of his trek along America's Appalachian Trail? If so, how does this book compare to either of those?

(Questions by LitLovers. Feel free to use them, online or off, with attribution. Thanks.)

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