Carsick
John Waters Hitchhikes Across America
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4.0 • 128 Ratings
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- $11.99
Publisher Description
Carsick is the New York Times bestselling chronicle of a cross-country hitchhiking journey with America's most beloved weirdo.
John Waters is putting his life on the line. Armed with wit, a pencil-thin mustache, and a cardboard sign that reads "I'm Not Psycho," he hitchhikes across America from Baltimore to San Francisco, braving lonely roads and treacherous drivers. But who should we be more worried about, the delicate film director with genteel manners or the unsuspecting travelers transporting the Pope of Trash?
Before he leaves for this bizarre adventure, Waters fantasizes about the best and worst possible scenarios: a friendly drug dealer hands over piles of cash to finance films with no questions asked, a demolition-derby driver makes a filthy sexual request in the middle of a race, a gun-toting drunk terrorizes and holds him hostage, and a Kansas vice squad entraps and throws him in jail. So what really happens when this cult legend sticks out his thumb and faces the open road? His real-life rides include a gentle eighty-one-year-old farmer who is convinced Waters is a hobo, an indie band on tour, and the perverse filmmaker's unexpected hero: a young, sandy-haired Republican in a Corvette.
Laced with subversive humor and warm intelligence, Carsick is an unforgettable vacation with a wickedly funny companion—and a celebration of America's weird, astonishing, and generous citizenry.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
The illustrious director of Hairspray, Cry Baby, and Pink Flamingoes embarked on a cross-country hitchhiking journey in 2012. This, Waters's seventh book, is a travelogue of his experiences bumming rides all the way from his home in Baltimore to his apartment in San Francisco. Waters idiosyncratically cuts to the core of American diversity, finding the good (and bad) in any situation with biting wit. The unlikely friendship Waters forms with a young Republican politician is an unexpected twist, and a timely tale of bromance in the midst of hardship. If a dyed-in-the-wool conservative and the pope of Trash can have an adventure in Reno together, aren't all things still possible in this world? But for Waters aficionados, the best parts of this enchanting narrative aren't the ones that actually happened. Fans will delight in the two novellas, with Waters at his campiest and most ludicrous, that precede the nonfiction third act. Presenting the best- and worst-case scenarios for modern hitchhiking as only Waters can, the narratives range from encounters with a pleasant group of marijuana smugglers and Edith Massey, to a harrowing imprisonment in Kansas and traumatic fan meeting. Waters devotees take note: this is required reading.
Customer Reviews
2/3 Silly; 1/3 Excellent
Truth is more fun than fiction. I found John's two novellas that begin Carsick largely cute and silly, seldom funny. But the last 1/3 of Carsick where he writes of what really happened when he caught 21 rides from his home in Baltimore to his apartment in San Francisco is much more entertaining and trenchant. As one who has hitchhiked across the USA -- 7 times in the early 1970s -- his account brought back many of my hitchhiking memories and I was reminded once again of all the good and nice people out there who go about their daily lives and occasionally give a stranger a lift.
funny across country trip with hilarious waters
This book is extremely funny. Great obscure references such as a gay Eddie Haskell ro Richard Tyson from Two Moon Junction. Waters still has a great commentary about middle america, good campy fun!
Perfection!!
I absolutely adore John Waters and this book has solidified my feelings!! Brilliant!! Thanks for the great read John!! Was hard to put this book down!!