I got this copy from the author herself through paperback swap!

Good lord this woman has traveled quite a bit! It is amazing that she doesn't actually have *more* horror stories to tell! Some of the tales only become ones to mention because her tour group is so not used to traveling outside the USA. The book seems to be written for the less traveled as well. She writes about various toilets in the world as if this is new information, for example. All in all though, it is an enjoyable read that can be savored here and there or all in one sitting. Actually, this would make a great bathroom book!

I won this in a swap. Thanks for offering it!!!

Joyce Brooks is a group tour leader. This book is a bunch of short stories about her travels. Some of the travel is in the US and some to very exotic locations. There is also a sort of guide on how to be a group leader (which I have absolutely no aspirations for).

From toilets to gypsies and bad situations, Joyce survives it all.

This is not the best written book but as a travelogue there were some interesting trips.

Reading now!

Joyce Brooks is a well-travelled tour guide/travel leader from Texas. She worked for a bank, coming up with national and international trips for bank customers to go on with her. Usually she would take her husband though sometimes she travelled by herself, with a group of at least more than 20 other people, typically senior citizens.

The book is broken up in to sections with different themes (ex. medical problems, using the washroom, etc.) and then Brooks explains when she encountered different problems relating to the subject of the chapter. No story is longer than a couple of pages. For this reason, I found the book a little disjointed. I think I would have preferred to read about her stories by region rather than by story type. Brooks also did the majority of her travelling in the 80s and 90s, which unfortunately makes the book seem a bit dated even though it was written in 2002.

There are tips at the end of the book about starting your own tour group which are interesting to read, even though I have no interest in doing that. Obviously Brooks has a lot of patience as I know I wouldn't be able to handle some of the requests that she got!

This book is back with me :)

sent to my birthday partner. Enjoy :)

this got here safely!

Thank you for such a wonderful and thoughtful birthday gift.

This was one of those books best enjoyed in small doses. I enjoyed reading it, though it was a bit disjointed as some previos readers have mentioned. I haven't done any armchair traveling in awhile, and this book let me visit many places from the author's perspective.

Left in the window of a free paper box outside the station entrance. Hopefully it will warm up someone's commute on this snowy snowy morning.