Rating: 
Summary: Probably the best travel book I've ever read!
Review: Old Glory tells the tale of Raban's solo journey by boat down the Mississippi from Minneapolis to New Orleans. Along the way, he visits the great cities and backwater towns that dot this legendary American wonder. Raban demonstrates that the Mississippi is, in myriad ways, much more than a river. He records the life-altering relationships between people and place and brings us the history and experience of this ultimate American artery. I have crossed the Mississippi by bridge and plane countless times and, with a cursory glance, acknowledged it as a major American marker. Raban, however, brings a soul to the Mississippi that, at once, uncovers a latent reverence, inspires a profound understanding, and rekindles a vicarious sense of spirit and adventure in the American citizen for "our" river and it's lore. This is an excellent book that deserves, and will certainly earn, your attention.
Rating:
Summary: Bringing the Mississippi River to life........
Review: Old Glory tells the tale of Raban's solo journey by boat down the Mississippi from Minneapolis to New Orleans. Along the way, he visits the great cities and backwater towns that dot this legendary American wonder. Raban demonstrates that the Mississippi is, in myriad ways, much more than a river. He records the life-altering relationships between people and place and brings us the history and experience of this ultimate American artery. I have crossed the Mississippi by bridge and plane countless times and, with a cursory glance, acknowledged it as a major American marker. Raban, however, brings a soul to the Mississippi that, at once, uncovers a latent reverence, inspires a profound understanding, and rekindles a vicarious sense of spirit and adventure in the American citizen for "our" river and it's lore. This is an excellent book that deserves, and will certainly earn, your attention.
Rating: 
Summary: Arrogance on the river!
Review: The author showed nothing but disdain and arrogance throughout this book. His attitude of superiority for virtually everyone he met on his voyage was very disappointing. The observations he made of the river and the people living along it are hard to take seriously since it was all so colored by his patronizing manner. He also showed little respect and almost no gratitude for his hosts' openness and kindness in bringing him into their homes. They simply became more fodder for him to mercilessly mock. I learned little from this book and enjoyed it less. He seemed to enjoy: making fun of the people from Minnesota; ridiculing Buffalo, Iowa; derided St. Louis as a garbage dump and the arch as a "practical joke", and continued his litany of contempt and scorn down through Baton Rouge right to the end at Morgan City. I'm just not sure what the point of his trip was.
Rating:
Summary: I've Read It At Least a Half a Dozen Times
Review: This is my favorite book on the American landscape, and I've read plenty. It's interesting to see the polarization in the reviews here -- some folks find the book a joy, others think it's negative and disspiriting. "Old Glory" is not a feel-good National Geographic travelogue, but it's not a negative book either. Mr. Raban treats the landscape and the people he encounters with the affection of the melancholic. He hopes for the best, but knows that he won't always find it. Raban captures the bittersweet essence of the Mississippi Valley, the lonely and lost quality of American life, and the strangeness of all once-vibrant human landscapes bypassed by "progress." I am a real lover of the Mississippi, and I consider this the best book ever written about it, including even Twain's "Life on the Mississippi."
Rating:
Summary: I've Read It At Least a Half a Dozen Times
Review: This is my favorite book on the American landscape, and I've read plenty. It's interesting to see the polarization in the reviews here -- some folks find the book a joy, others think it's negative and disspiriting. "Old Glory" is not a feel-good National Geographic travelogue, but it's not a negative book either. Mr. Raban treats the landscape and the people he encounters with the affection of the melancholic. He hopes for the best, but knows that he won't always find it. Raban captures the bittersweet essence of the Mississippi Valley, the lonely and lost quality of American life, and the strangeness of all once-vibrant human landscapes bypassed by "progress." I am a real lover of the Mississippi, and I consider this the best book ever written about it, including even Twain's "Life on the Mississippi."
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