I See By My Outfit [Paperback]

Peter S. Beagle (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: May 25, 2007

In 1963, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. articulated his dream, JFK was assassinated, and zip codes were first introduced to the US. The world was monumentally changing and changing fast. But in the eyes of future fantasy author Peter Beagle and his best friend Phil, it wasn't changing fast enough. For these two twenty-something beatnik Jews from the Bronx, change was something you chased after night and day across the country on the trembling seat of a motor scooter.

Product Details

• Paperback: 260 pages
• Publisher: Centro Books (May 25, 2007)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1933572078
• ISBN-13: 978-1933572079
• Product Dimensions: 7.6 x 5.3 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 9.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (9 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #848,508 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A classic motor scooter trip across America, January 17, 2009

By 

A. Sussell "night hawk" (OH) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: I See By My Outfit (Paperback)

I first read the original version when I was in high school in the early 1970's. It was a memorable book for me then. It remains an extremely well-written story about touring America. It a story about adventuring, discovering the country, opening yourself up to real adventure and the kindness of strangers, and the love of motor scooters as a means of transport. The author and his friend rode the classic Heinkel Tourist scooters. It inspired my own dream of doing a cross country motor scooter tour. A few years after I read it, I hitched alone across the 2/3 of the nation; it was a similar positive and challenging experience. Otherwise that dream stayed dormant for decades. Fast forward to a few years ago - I bought an early edition of the book on Amazon and reread it. Wonderful - the story hadn't lost anything with time; a classic story about the optimism of youth and the 1960's. Now at 52, I purchased a 2007 Vespa GTS three months ago and I'm learning how to ride as a total beginner (with much more caution that I would have had at 18!). The dream is still alive...the back roads of America await.

For a much more serious but equally interesting book about two-wheeled touring, I also recommend the 1970's classic "Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance".

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Sweet and charming, August 24, 2008

By 

P. T. Hill (Northern California) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: I See By My Outfit (Paperback)

This is one of the most charming books I've read in ages. Two fuzzy-faced little guys, two dorky motor scooters, one mission: New York to California in 1965. The way Peter S. Beagle writes, it's easy to see why everyone he and his friend Phil encounter wants to adopt them. He is kind, witty, and genuine. There's no attempt to be hip (how hip can you pretend to be on a motor scooter?) He not only observes the physical and emotional landscape, he also describes what he sees with such freshness that it took my breath away.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars makes me want to travel, April 11, 2008

By 

K. Snead "mignue" (Dedham, MA United States) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: I See By My Outfit (Paperback)

I See By My Outfit is an autobiographical story of a cross-country trip with a friend, completely unlike anything else Beagle has written. Don't expect unicorns. But this is still a great story, and definitely worth reading, even if you normally only stick to fantasy.