Product Description

If I'd really been serious about getting to grips with my mid-life crisis, then I'd have been better opting for a course of therapy than going off travelling. Or if I had to travel, I'd have been better opting for somewhere warm with a beach...In an attempt to get to grips with a BIG birthday, Steve sets out from Oxford to explore what makes the English...well, so English. His quirky humour is inspired by Tom Rolt, who took to the canals on a similar journey immortalised in the book 'Narrow Boat', kick-starting the revival of Britain's waterways. Prepare for a generous helping of mayhem, mishaps and the staple of every English summer: torrential rain. First published as 'Fruit Flies Like a Banana' this revised edition with new material is published to coincide with the 70-year anniversary of Tom Rolt's own classic trip.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #12243 in Books
• Published on: 2009-04-06
• Original language: English
• Binding: Paperback
• 320 pages

Review
'An enjoyable, moreish read, and one of the better British canal travelogues of recent years' --Waterways World

'A good summer read with good humour - ideal for anyone planning a canal holiday' --Leicester Mercury

Review
`Chronicling his experiences... Steve saw mayhem. Mishaps and a generous helping of torrential rain during... touring the canals of Britain.'

Review
`Cue barging jokes and tales.'

Customer Reviews

BEWARE: Republished title - different name
This book is a republished (so-called 'updated') edition of the author's previously released title, 'Fruit Flies Like A Banana'. Why can't the publishers and/or Amazon be honest about these things? Why the change of title? Why did the author sanction it? Why no mention of this important fact in the Amazon blurb?
Otherwise, this is an enjoyable read; well-written, mildly humorous and suitably opinionated. Worth a go, if you haven't already come across it in its original form.

Native narrowboat narrative
I had read Fruit Flies like a Banana, (see my review) and this is a rehashing of that book. My initial thought was that it would be merely a re-read, not exciting. However, perhaps partly because I had read that book quite sometime ago, this proved a compelling tome. It is tighter and more readable than the first and contains equally humorous and historical stories of the waterways. Steve is obviously well versed in the background of the modern waterway system. If you have ever been narrow boating I would recommend this book. It will give you more appreciation of your journey. Likewise lazy landlubbers will still find enjoyment here and it may even encourage you give canal boating a go. I did and it was brilliant.

READ IT !
Great read, informative, amusing, wistful, I couldn't put it down. Hadn't read fisrst version (fruit flies like a banana) so not disappointed