Going into Town: A Love Letter to New York

I brought this graphic novel by The New Yorker's Roz Chast with me on a recent trip to the Big Apple. It was a brilliant idea. Not just for mood reading but because of how Chast breaks down all of the secrets of the City That Never Sleeps. 

Chast originally wrote this book as a manual for her daughter who was moving into Manhattan as a student at NYU. The cartoonist broke down the ins-and-outs of the subway system, how to catch a cab, and the grid lay-out of the city. I don't know how much this book helped her daughter, by Chast's book really helped me understand how to use NYC mass transit. 

There's also sections on finding a place to dine and shop, how to get an apartment, and tourism in hopes of not looking like a tourist. 

Yes, this is a love letter to Gotham. But it's also an insightful guide that does more in 176 pages than some travel guides do in multi-volume examinations of New York. 

A must for anyone travelling to the Five Burroughs. You need to get over the graphic novel format as you will miss out on one of the most valuable travel tools crafted in a long time. In fact, it's one of the best books of 2017 in my opinion!

Worth Consuming!

Rating: 10 out of 10 stars.

Around the World

This graphic novel is about 3 world travelers who were inspired in some way by Jules Verne’s Around the World in 80 Days. One adventurer, Nellie Bly, meets Verne in France and is racing to beat the 80-day goal while writing for a global publication. Another tourist rides his bicycle across the globe while a seasoned sailor travels the world in a restored yacht. But neither of them have a deadline.

A very informative biography of globetrotter from the turn of the century. This type of book is what makes reading and learning fun- not just for kids, but enjoyable for the young at heart of all ages.

I highly recommend.

WORTH CONSUMING!

Rating: 10 out of 10 stars.

A Curious Man: The Strange and Brilliant Life of Robert "Believe It or Not!" Ripley by Neal Thompson

I remember watching the 80s ABC version of Ripley’s starring Jack Palance when I was a kid. The host scared the hell outta me and so did the opening sequence. I remember seeing Rip’s face on the opening credits and thinking “Just who was they guy?” I also fell in love with the Beleive it or Not odditoriums and the comic strip, reading my grandpa’s old Ripley paperbacks before starting my own collection.

  All of those fond memories of BION are collected in the biography of the Marco Polo of the 20th Century. A fascinating read about a man who loved to play as hard as he worked. From his outsider upbringing to becoming a ladies man, it’s amazing to see just how much a workaholic Ripley was.

  There are some pictures in the middle of the book, but I would’ve loved to have read a few of his comic strips. (Only one is even reprinted legibly in the book towards the end.) One needed aspect of the book are little BION snippets about the many cast of characters Ripley encounters both home and abroad. And talking about broads, Ripley had his share of ’em. I was surprised how many ladies fawned over a guy who collected shrunken heads, tribal masks and erotic photos of amputees.

  Essentially, Robert Ripley is an oddball. But he loved the planet he lived on and the odder, the better. A must read for fans of shows like “Oddities” and “World’s Dumbest” and other shows that explore the strange, goofy, or just plain spooky.

  Believe it or not, this book is Worth Consuming.

Rating: 9 out of 10 stars.