Traveling Light [Paperback]

Bill Barich (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: January 8, 1985

Here is a travel book with a difference: ten chronological chapters from a year of wandering, from the Pacific Northwest to Tuscany and back again to the trout-laden streams of California. Join Barich as he travels the globe, from the trout streams of Northern California to the auction ring at Saratoga, where millions of dollars may be gaveled away for a yearling thoroughbred; from seedy London pubs to a run-down Florentine palazzo during a glorious Italian spring. Learn the science of English beer brewing, the art of fly tying, how to generate hydroelectric power, the proper analysis of the Daily Racing Form, and the best way to eat artichokes.

Freshness, wit and Barich's distinctive voice create a luminous travelogue crackling with an inimitable curiosity and an elegance of style that marks every step of this remarkable journey. (6 X 9, 240 pages)

--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Editorial Reviews

Review

Barich is a wonderful writer. His angle of vision is his own, his prose is a delight. -- Larry McMurtry

I had a fine time with TRAVELING LIGHT. Barich is a splendid prose stylist. . . . I will continue to look forward to anything he writes. -- Jim Harrison

Witty, knowledgeable, good writing . . . start Barich now and keep reading him. -- Tom McGuane --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From the Back Cover

Here is a travel book with a difference: ten chronological chapters from a year of wandering, from the Pacific Northwest to Tuscany and back again to the trout-laden streams of California. Join Barich as he travels the globe, from the trout streams of Northern California to the auction ring at Saratoga, where millions of dollars may be gaveled away for a yearling thoroughbred; from seedy London pubs to a run-down Florentine palazzo during a glorious Italian spring. Learn the science of English beer brewing, the art of fly tying, how to generate hydroelectric power, the proper analysis of the Daily Racing Form, and the best way to eat artichokes.Freshness, wit and Barich's distinctive voice create a luminous travelogue crackling with an inimitable curiosity and an elegance of style that marks every step of this remarkable journey. (6 X 9, 240 pages)

--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 24 pages
• Publisher: Penguin (Non-Classics) (January 8, 1985)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 014007418X
• ISBN-13: 978-0140074185
• Product Dimensions: 7.7 x 5 x 0.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 6.4 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #7,573,869 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Discover books, learn about writers, read author blogs, and more.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Good Read, but Not Fulfilling, March 22, 2008

By 

David Alden (Petaluma, CA United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Traveling Light: A Year of Wandering, from California to England and Tuscany and BAck Again (Paperback)

If not for the subtitle, I would likely have never read this book. On the other hand, if I had read it, I would have likely given it 5 stars. Confused? So am I.

The subtitle reads "A Year of Wandering, from California to England and Tuscany and Back Again." Although not noted in the subtitle, the author's year also included a journey to Oregon. I was raised in California, lived for many years in Washington and Oregon, have now returned to California close to where the author trod, and have enjoyed stays in both England and Tuscany. The subtitle spoke to me. I wanted to know what the author had learned while experiencing many of the places that I knew.

Instead, what I read was a series of snapshots. Lovely pictures of the places he had visited, pictures that reminded me of the reasons I loved the same places. I particularly recommend the chapters on the London pub and the Florence racetrack. But there was no sense of discovery, no sense of lessons learned in the author's wandering.

Perhaps the error was mine. Perhaps I read something into the subtitle that neither the author nor publisher meant. But I can't give 5 stars to a book that failed to meet my primary expectation for it.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A "reader friendly" combination travelogue and travel guide, March 16, 2001

By 

Midwest Book Review (Oregon, WI USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Traveling Light: A Year of Wandering, from California to England and Tuscany and Back Again (Paperback)

Bill Barich's Traveling Light is a "reader friendly" combination travelogue and travel guide providing ten chronological chapters from a year of wandering from the Pacific Northwest to Tuscany and back to California. Barich travels around the world and adds wit and wry observation to a fine armchair read.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars he's got that right, December 28, 2000

By 

Erika E. Holderith (los angeles, ca United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Traveling Light: A Year of Wandering, from California to England and Tuscany and Back Again (Paperback)

*THIS REVIEW IS FOR 'A FINE PLACE TO DAYDREAM' A Fine Place to Daydream: Racehorses, Romance, and the Irish


ever since reading barrich's 'laughing in the hills' a few decades ago, i have considered barrich one of the finest articulators of the race track experience. in this latest book, with the chapter titled 'revenge at golden gate' he continues to express the essence of a horse player's experience at the track with wit and insight.