The Distance to the Moon: A Road Trip into the American Dream

by James Morgan

Book Overview

More than a book about cars, this title is a journey through the American heartland and a meditation on American identity. Morgan takes readers on an unforgettable road trip from Florida to Oregon as... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 157322135X
• Release Date: May 1999
• Publisher: Riverhead Books
• Length: 281 Pages
• Weight: 1.25 lbs.
• Dimensions: 9.3" x 1.1" x 6.3"

Customer Reviews

Better than I thought

I was initially worried that this book would be too much about the car and not enough about the road...or Florida for that matter. It seemed as if the book took FOREVER just to get out of Florida. I was also worried that this book would be too much of a male fantasy. Luckily that part turned out not to be true and made for enjoyable reading. But once the author got into Utah and places north and west of there things picked up. He met interesting people in bar and restaurants, saw a few oddities along the way. The author unwinded as the journey continued. He talked about his previous cars, his previous wife and his previous jobs. Strife between his current wife was obvious from the start and I wonder if this trip was an excuse to mull over the end of his marriage. One never finds out. The trip ended upruptly on the west coast. I thought it was a bit of a letdown; perhaps disillusionment seeped in and the author resided to his fate. He dropped off the Porsche in Portland and the love story with the car was over.

A look at how life has changed in with cars

I receieved this book as a Christmas gift from a fellow Porsche lover and read while I was heading home back home for the holidays. I am in my late 20's, so I have not reached my "mid-life crisis" yet, but I still enjoyed following the tales of Morgan and his thoughts about how the car has influenced our society. I enjoyed his talks while he was in Portland, Oregon. Hearing his own tales on how certain cars throughout his life played a major role in certain cross-roads kept me intrigued. I love Porsches, but I also love the idea of just hitting the road and seeing life outside my little world. As soon as I finished this book, I began "On The Road" by Jack Kerouac. So far, I see some similarites.

the distance to the moon!

The book was great! Well, mabey thats because im a total car buff.But yet the book was not totally based on cars or car facts,it was based on americas love of the automobile.I like the way it was written , and it included many nice car parts too!

A Wonderful Read!

Jim Morgan has done for the American dream at the turn of the millennium what Jack Kerouac (On The Road) did for it in the '50s and what John Steinbeck (Travels With Charley) did for it in the '60s. What's more, he's done it just a well. A wonderful read!

not exactly riding the rails...

None of that "Further" type busload traveling--this narrative.. & chassis has Style! Wish journalis had cited more sites like at Lowell, MA.. Lowell Celebrates Jack Kerouac Days, (Oct)... & James Dean's shrine in Indiana