2. About the author - Bill Bryson

Title: The Accidental Tourist

 

Author: Bill Bryson

 

William McGuire Bryson is an American–British writer. He has written several books on travel, the English language, science, and other non-fiction topics.

William (famously known as Bill) Bryson was born on \(8\)th December \(1951\) in Iowa, USA. His parents, Bill Bryson Sr. and Agnes Mary, were sports journalist and home furnishing editor (respectively) at the Des Moines Register, a newspaper press in Iowa. He had an older brother, Michael, and a sister, Mary Jane Elizabeth.

Though Bryson was American in origin, he had spent a larger part of his adult life in England. The single most life-changing decision of his life must have been him taking a break from studies to pursue travelling. Bryson attended Drake University, Iowa, for two years. However, he dropped out from the university and went on a four-month backpacking trip around Europe. The trip, and the one he took the next year, shaped his writings and influenced his personal and public life.

A year later, when Bryson was about \(23\) years old, he returned to Europe with his high school friend Matt Angerer. The latter had become the character behind Stephen Katz in several of Bryson's works. The trip he took with his friend became the main plot behind his travel book "A Walk in the Woods" (\(1998\)).

Eventually, Bryson decided to stay in England after landing a job in a psychiatric hospital. He also met his future wife, Cynthia Billen, a nurse at the hospital. They got married in \(1975\).

The couple moved to Iowa for two years so that Bryson could complete his education. They returned to England in \(1977\) to settle down for good. Except for the childhood and the years between \(1995\) and \(2003\), Bryson had spent almost his entire life in England. After receiving his British citizenship in \(2015\), he has become a dual citizenship holder, and he currently resides in England.

Bryson's bestselling books include "The Road to Little Dribbling" (\(2015\)), "Notes from a Small Island" (\(1996\)), "A Walk in the Woods" (\(1998\)), "One Summer and The Life and Times of the Thunderbolt Kid" (\(2006\)), and "Notes from a Big Country" (\(1998\)). 

In a national poll conducted in \(2003\) during the World Book Day, "Notes from a Small Island" was voted the book that best represents England.

"A Short History of Nearly Everything" (\(2003\)), his popular science book became the bestselling non-fiction book of its decade in the U.K.

Bryson's recent work, "The Body: A Guide for Occupants", was published in \(2019\).

Apart from being a writer, Bryson was chancellor of Durham University from \(2005\) to \(2011\). He is an Honorary Fellow of the Royal Society.

Bryson's life is an inspiration to many of us, especially to the youth of the day. While he made a bold decision to drop out of his college to pursue travelling, he also ended up going back to the university to complete his education. His bold decision to pursue passion and his commitment to education has helped shape the individual he has become today.