Does Your Meter Work?! [Paperback]

Jim Soliski (Author)

Editorial Reviews

Review

"...so glib that he even fooled me into buying his stuff...'' -- Bob Jenkins, St. Petersburg Times

There are tourists and travellers. And Soliski, a guy who finds a good yarn in the unlikeliest of places. -- Paul Waters, Montreal Gazette

Travel ought to be fun, and so should reading about it. Few travel writers have more fun than Jim Soliski. -- Randy Curwen, Chicago Tribune

About the Author

The author has a couple years experience at being 40. Earlier in life, writing was unsuitable because there was always another weekend tournament, another cover charge to pay, another fox telling him that she was washing her hair, in other words, he was too busy being twentysomething. Still, the thought of writing hectored him until one night, about a week into the book, after umpteen laps around his Filipino beach hut mumbling, "Write the first word and you can never go back. Will you see it through?," he began.

He has traveled and worked in nearly 50 different countries. This wanderlust resulted from a summer job at a cardiac rehab lab where he worked among a United Nations list of medical personnel. Listening to their stories and exchanges of far off lands so unlike his rural prairie beginnings gelled his belief that the most interesting people were those who had traveled.

He managed a BA in English Literature, never forgetting his luck by studying under such accomplished, sage professors. So many years later, a couple of them dove into Does Your Meter Work?! as if they had written it themselves. In Canada, he created, operated, then peddled off a fast-food restaurant that served 16 different toppings on baked potatoes, he imported goods from Asia, drove cab, and he's sold everything from plastic bags to real estate. In New Zealand, he partnered in a nuts and candies business. In England, and dead broke, he washed dishes, got fired from a bakery because "6 foot and 14 stone is too big," and sold space on an information service that had no hope of working. In Taiwan and VietNam, he taught English.

He speaks French rather well, enough Ukrainian to make his Baba laugh out loud, and adequate Mandarin and Spanish to get his face slapped. He likes to play fastball, hockey, golf, go hunting and fishing, take pictures, cook, and he constantly schemes his next trip.

Product Details

• Paperback: 216 pages
• Publisher: Western Publishing (April 16, 2004)
• ISBN-10: 0973480904
• ISBN-13: 978-0973480900
• Product Dimensions: 7.8 x 5 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 7.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #5,684,617 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Travel + Humor = Jim Soliski, June 15, 2006

By 

Cheryl Tardif "bestselling suspense author" (Edmonton, Canada) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Does Your Meter Work?! (Paperback)

Enjoy a humorous romp through Asia with travel writer Jim Soliski who 'tells it like it is'. He doesn't paint pictures of wondrous temples, sensational scenery and fascinating culture. Instead, he's the comical storyteller whose offbeat tales of cockfights, scuba lessons, jungle caves, parasailing, Hand Job Park, taxis and a plethora of other amusing if not quirky adventures will show you a side of traveling that most of us may never see (and probably don't want to, in some cases).

An adventurer at heart--for who else would travel a la carte with little money, backpacking across uncharted territory--Soliski has an obvious dedication, persistence and thick-armored heart that writers need nowadays, as is shown by the foreword in `Does Your Meter Work?. Here is a gritty look at what writers have to endure in order to become published. However, I must admit that I have yet to receive such biting rejection letters as he has. (I think I'll be happy with my collection of standard form-letter rejection letters that wallpaper my office!:)

As a fellow Edmontonian and author, I have worked with Jim in multi-author events. And there is one thing that is evident. He exudes passion when he speaks of his travels, and his humor is never far away. I am waiting for his next book and contemplating its title.

~ Cheryl Kaye Tardif
Author of Divine Intervention

4.0 out of 5 stars A fun read!, October 4, 2005

By 

Armchair Interviews (Minneapolis, MN) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Does Your Meter Work?! (Paperback)

Jim Soliski is a travel writer who believes going first class means thumbing your way around the country, sleeping in low-cost hotels and getting to know the locals.

Soliski had saved $11,000 from teaching English in Taiwan, and he was off to spend it in the Asian countries. With him, you travel on boats, taxis with human drivers or human energy, and every vehicle imaginable. Quoting Nathaniel Hawthorne, the author agrees ... "The soul needs air, a wide sweep and frequent change of it."

He believes in "ala carte" travel to places with no restrictions, distractions or interruptions on plans--because you usually don't have any.

So he takes a trip that became this Does Your Meter Work, about the taxi drivers whose fees are negotiable. The author has wonderful stories; some that show the good or bad side of each culture and its people. Mostly he has been treated kindly by strangers as he thumbs (hitchhikes) his way from country to country.

Doing what he did takes nerve, undying faith in human nature and his personal ability to survive and thrive with something different every day of his travel.

My favorite line described standing in line "like the in and out box of humanity" as everyone on a bus was searched to ensure they were not a terrorist. I loved his writing, descriptions and observations.

Armchair Interviews says: If you have traveled and want to say, "I was there," or a "Guess I'll avoid that area,"--or if you just love to read about adventures, this book is for you.

4.0 out of 5 stars Like a friend telling you how it was, September 26, 2004

By 

B. Fakhamzadeh "Travelhog" (Delft, Netherlands) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Does Your Meter Work?! (Paperback)

I know Jim through Travelhog.net. And listing so many (currently 31) of his stories on that site earned me a miniblimp of text in his book 'Does your meter work?!'.

I finally got round to reading the book, and I thuroughly enjoyed it. Soliski is not the greatest writer ever, and not all of his stories are that fantastic, but that's exactly why I found the book so very entertaining.
Reading Soliski's stories, it felt that what Soliski describes about himself, could have happened to me. Or, I assume, to any other 'real' backpacker. Soliski's stories ring true, honest, authentic.
The down to earth stories and style make the book into something that resembles listening to a friend, telling you how his trips abroad were. You're not always that interested, but you keep on listening, because you can't help yourself. You WANT to know.

Enjoyable to read. If you've backpacked extensively, or plan to, this is one book you really should get.