An Idiot Abroad: The Travel Diaries of Karl Pilkington Paperback – Illustrated, June 2, 2011

This book is the perfect cure for the doldrums! I found myself smiling as I was reading, and even laughing out loud at times. I even snorted at one point... A magnificent read, although I cannot decide whether Karl Pilkington is a comic genius or just a complete moron. Regardless, he truly does have the most amazing view of the world - which is ridiculous and so insightful at the same time. It's hard to tell what's ignorance and what's genius, he is very childlike in his views and yet there's an undeniable logic to his thinking sometimes - it's so basic that the mature brain sometimes overlooks such simplicity. Does this mean his mind is childlike or is he so complex that he's able to see such simplicities in a clearer light? I have no idea, but I do know that this book is laugh-out-loud funny and well worth this ridiculously low price!

I actually found myself highlighting bits to share with my son. Then I ended up offering to loan it to him. You can't get the humor from an email. Sometimes I feel sorry for Karl. Most of the time I catch myself saying, "You know, he's got a point." I mean, why are we protecting people who annoy diseased monkeys?Ok, this is no classic. It isn't going to win any literary awards. It's little more than book version of the television series. But it was worth every cent because it just made me laugh, out loud even. It's sweet and harmless and refreshingly not cynical. Plus, Karl is a natural curmudgeon like me. He admits he would have been better off living in a cave before the invention of the see through toaster. His devotion to his girlfriend is also a nice touch in a world of temporary "hook ups".To paraphrase what Ricky Gervais says on the commercials for the show: Read it. It's funny.

I have watched a few of the TV episodes before and loved them. I was very surprised to find that the book is exactly the same as the shows, it even included the dry but hilarious conversations between Ricky, Stephen and Karl. I think having watched part of the series gave me a better understanding of who Karl is as a person and his attitude, the book might start off a bit confusing without this background.I loved reading about Karl's always eventful trips away, and was ridiculously jealous of the places he got to visited. I thought he gave a comical and one-of-a-kind insight in to each of the places he visited, although I felt that Machu Picchu was a little rushed and didn't have the same level of detail that the others had.I loved reading about Karl's trip to each of the 7 Wonders, and this made me want to visit each of them myself even more. A great read for those who love to travel.

"An Idiot Abroad: The Travel Diaries of Karl Pilkington" is one of the funniest books I have ever read. It's an accompaniment to his fantastic television show "An Idiot Abroad" in which Ricky Gervais and Stephen Merchant get Karl to see the seven wonders of the world in a (sort of) travelogue format for Sky TV. Pilkington is caused massive amounts of grief by Gervais and Merchant who design itineraries and scenarios that Karl has no knowledge of and would never electively choose to participate in. These adventures are frequently punctuated with phone calls, voicemails, or texts from Ricky or Stephen ("Call me. Need to go over the rules of Mexican wrestling with you.")Although perpetually agitated by his tormentors, Karl has a worldview all his own and sometimes even though he hits all the wrong notes he still reveals great truths. The book is almost funnier than the series, and on several occasions I found myself laughing out loud while reading even though I knew the general outline of what was going to happen as I had seen the series previously.If you want a travel book that tells it like it really is or if you simply want to find out why hippos don't get eczema, buy "An Idiot Abroad"!

Karl gives us a view of the various lifestyles, that are lived all over the world, through the mind and eyes of someone that is average in every way. Not an intellectual, or a person that easily fits in with different societies, he still goes out there, to experience these lifestyles and societies, so that he can give us his unfiltered opinion of things that are different or foreign to him. The book is refreshing in itself, as you have no clue what to expect from it. And if you do expect something from it, you will probably find it is different from what you expected. It is a brilliant book, expressing an average man's thoughts about what most folks see as extraordinary things.