Book Jacket

 

rank 2505
word count 17546
date submitted 30.05.2011
date updated 30.05.2011
genres: Non-fiction, Biography, Travel, Com...
classification: universal
incomplete

WHEELS ABROAD

Paul Taylor

Oh no! Not another travel book starring the author - well, yes, but a laidback account of mainly European trips with his wheelchair-bound father...

 

Paris and Lourdes, Madrid and Barcelona, Dublin and Wales, Scotland and Scarborough, Italy and Amsterdam - fun and games of a middle-aged man and his father, struggling with a wheelchair through numerous art galleries, cafes, bars, museums, and more bars. The father - a World War Two veteran, re-converted Catholic, whisky-addicted, dyed-in-the-wool Socialist, a self-educated culture lover, and all with a terminal illness. The son - ex-Cambridge, atheistic, pretentious and pedantic, heavy smoker and drinker, and barely able to push the wheelchair. What larks indeed! An illuminating journey of discovery of a father-son relationship (perhaps, of any father-son relationship) leavened by eight examples of pedagogy, three jokes, two footnotes, twenty-one art galleries, one accident, eight countries, four cathedrals, one flat tyre, and a large number of liver-wrecking libations.

 
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tags

art, culture, disability, europe, humour, travel, wheelchair

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4 comments

 

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stephen racket wrote 343 days ago

I love traveling and was enticed by the amusing pitches. Read the first chapter and thought it was beautifully written, with nice touches of humour, though witnessing prejudice can't have been much fun. I suspect fears of nuns and the Sound of Music are probably quite common phobias. I think tackiness accompanies many of the world's religious attractions. The road leading to the Vatican is pretty horrendous (or was in 1997 when I visited). On my WL for further reading and generously starred. Looking forward to reading about Barcelona when uploaded. (I visited that stunning city in 1992). Good luck with this.

natwant wrote 345 days ago

Very good, would definately recommend
Natalie

emmarosen wrote 350 days ago

Fascinating memoirs, beautifully and humorously written. It shows such a lovely relationship and your own personal takes on your destinations. It truly makes you think more about the real challenges to a diabled traveller. I'll buy this book!
Emma

paul taylor wrote 360 days ago

Further chapters to be added when I work out how to upload them properly...

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