Customer Reviews: Read 39 more reviews...
 Tour de Farce September 12, 2008
didn't really get on with this at all - the central problem was a dislike of Mr Moore - a bit of a moaning cheat, he was rude and miserable to everyone he met, cut corners and thought he'd have a go a using drugs. A few "funny" moments but Bryson on two wheel it is not!
 Always pleasing November 26, 2007
Tim Moore has produced a book that makes you laugh out loud yet again.
This one is slightly different as you suspect Moore had started to lose his mind before he even began his journey - the Tour de France route without even a modicum of serious training??? His stories of past tour riders demonstrates a genuine interest in his subject but his insane antics when attempting to emulate them suggests a man with very little reserves in the sanity store....
This book is, as always, a highly enjoyable (and individualistic) addition to the travel books of recent years. Forget Bryson, read Moore!
A good read but not as funny as many claim October 9, 2007
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
I bought this book and started reading with anticipation. It is generally quite interesting, and does contain many amusing incidents, but I would certainly not describe the book as "laugh out loud funny". There is no doubting Moore's achievement in following much of the Tour route, and he does have a perceptive eye for the idiosyncracies of the French. I would class this as a holiday read, it doesn't overly tax the brain, it's funny in places, but could never be described as great literature. I would recommend it to read, and have no regrets about having bought it, but you will make your own mind up whether it deserves the hilarious plaudits it has been given.
Great for Tour de France fans February 18, 2007
3 out of 3 found this review helpful
I have been lucky enough to follow a few Tours in my life usually on my own and on a motorbike with very little luggage and this book reminds me of the emotions I went through on those journeys. There was none of the pain obviously, but the scenery and constant weather watching brings it all back. The villages he describes come alive for one day in the year just because this amazing event is passing through. Until you've been up Ventoux, it's hard to imagine how anyone could cycle up it after being in the saddle all day but the author's references to the late Tom Simpson was also poignant reminding us of how he died 40 years ago on that mountain. This book is funny, descriptive and a great read for anyone who is in awe of cycling as I am and for someone who has never really ridden a bike before, I think he did rather well. Who cares if he cheated? All he did was face the stark realisation that the men who compete in the Tour de France are totally dedicated sportsmen with a passion most of us will never know.
Amusing in places, but wordy writing style January 1, 2007
2 out of 7 found this review helpful
I'm afraid I didn't find this book particularly funny and came to dislike Moore's wordy, over-descriptive writing style; like one reviewer said, it tends to hide the meaning or intent of what he is trying to say. And were his experiences as really as entertaining as he makes out, or has he taken artistic license a bit too far?
I thought the most interesting bits were the anecdotes about past Tours, including Paul Kimmage's experiences, though these became less frequent in the latter half of the book.
Another star is lost because he didn't ride the whole route, as the book's title implies.
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