[ PW Home ] [ Bestsellers ] [ Subscribe ] [ Search ]
|
| |
 | |
 |
Weird Is as Weird D s?
Heather Vogel Frederick -- 6/5/00
 | Category
Closeup
TRAVEL |
For Michael Feldman, host of public radio's Whad'Ya Know? and co-author with Diana Cook of the forthcoming Wisconsin Curiosities (Globe Pequot), it's a toss-up when it comes to the oddest of the oddities in his native state. Vying for the prize are an agricultural display at the University of Wisconsin in Madison ("a hotbed of dairy research"), where visitors can peek through "portholes" into a cow's stomach ("It's dark in there," he deadpans), and the world's largest fiberglass muskellunge (better known to fishermen as a "muskie"), on display in Hayward. "It's the size of a football field, and inside, among other things, is a collection of hooks that have been removed from fishermen, complete with notation as to which parts of the fisherman were hooked," says Feldman, adding with barely disguised glee that there's also a display of "poor taxidermy."
Weird Americana such as this have always fascinated travelers; the upcoming season seems to be no exception. Readers can set a spell on America's Back Porch (Quartet Books) with British journalist Daniel Jeffreys, who in his travels stumbled across such intriguing spots as Capshaw, Ala., where prison guards relax after work by dancing with grizzly bears. Yet another Brit, Nick Middleton, whose Travels as a Brussels Scout garnered a starred PW review, is back with Ice Tea and Elvis: A Saunter through the Southern States (Ph nix).
Globe Pequot checks in with two more way-off-the-beaten-path titles. The first, Bob Phillips's Texas Country Reporter, is based on a weekly regional TV series of the same name, which travels the back roads of the Lone Star State in search of interesting people and places. Absolutely Positively Connecticut--an appropriate title from a Connecticut-based publisher--is by Diane Smith; it, too, is spun off from a TV series, one that explores the Nutmeg State. Rounding out this subcategory is Jack Ruby's Kitchen Sink (National Geographic Adventure Press), in which Tom Miller scours the Southwest for the truly offbeat.
Back To Travel Feature
Back To
---> |
Search | Bestsellers | News | Features | Children's Books | Bookselling
Interview | Industry Update | International | Classifieds | Authors On the Highway
About PW | Subscribe
|
Copyright 2000. Publishers Weekly. All rights reserved.
|
