Round Ireland with a Fridge - Softcover

Hawks, Tony

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0312274920 ISBN 13: 9780312274924

Publisher: St. Martin's Griffin, 2001

Synopsis

Have you ever made a drunken bet? Worse, still, have you eveer tried to win one? In attempting to hitchhike round Ireland wich a fridge, Tony Hawks did both, and his foolhardiness led him to one of the best experiences of his life. Joined by his trusty traveling companion-cum-domestic appliance, he made his way from Dublin to Donegal, from Sligo through Mayo, Galway, Clare, Kerry, Cork, Wexford, Wicklow--and back again to Dublin. In their month of madness, Tony and his fridge met a real prince, a bogus king, and the fridge got christened. They surfed together, entered a bachelor festival, and one of them had sex without the other knowing. And unexpectedly, the fridge itself became a momentary focus for the people of Ireland.

An international bestseller, Round Ireland with a Fridge is a classic travel adventure in the tradition of Bill Bryson with a dash of Dave Barry.

About this title

Review:

On his only prior visit to Ireland, songwriter/comic Tony Hawks had seen a man hitchhiking with a refrigerator. For years, he was wont to tell the tale during late-night drinking matches, and after one particularly heavy-duty night of partying, he awoke to find a bet scrawled pillow-side: a friend wagered 100 pounds that Hawks wouldn't travel Ireland for a month with a refrigerator at his side.

Out of this stupid premise, a ridiculously amusing book was born. Quickly discovered by the Irish media, the thumbing Englishman finds that he and his box fridge are elevated to celebrity status, and there's no dearth of rides, places to stay or goofy people to meet, from kings to spoons players to locals who take his fridge surfing. As insightful about the strange inner workings of Hawk's mind as it is about charming peculiarities of Irishmen--it's doubtful that Hawks would have been similarly embraced by Germans, Italians, or the French--Round Ireland with a Fridge is an entirely silly, heart-warming tale told in a rollicking funny and refreshing style. --Melissa Rossi

Review:

"Round Ireland with a Fridge is a sort of alternative Michael Palin tome and a far better read thatn you would expect. It is part autobiography, part travelogue, and part Guinness-addled ramblings." --The Irish Times

"One ridiculous and sumbline example of the high-concept travel book is the British comedian Tony Hawk's Round Ireland with a Fridge....The whole book is driven by the sheer lunacy of the original proposition, and the sweet bottom line is that anything that brings people together and shows them this good a time isn't stupid at all." --The New York Times Book Review

"A rambling but ultimately warmhearted diary-like account that combines elements of Let's Go Ireland, Cheers, and Seinfeld...Hawks has produced a witty, silly, tribute to the hospitality and generosity that the Emerald Isle is famous for." --The Post and Courier (Charleston, S.C.)

About this edition

• Publisher: St. Martin's Griffin
• Publication date: 2001
• ISBN 10: 0312274920
• ISBN 13: 9780312274924
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 264