Read partly like a spoof or madcap 1970s movie; partly like a lovely story about the writer’s time in Ireland. Very hard for me to follow & align the two.
Wouldn’t say it was bad writing or anything - just not so much the book for me.

I only read the first four chapters or so as I picked it up thinking it was a science fiction novel and not an autobiographical account. All I remember was there were all these Irishmen biking around the countryside in the fog and a flippant American narrator.

I discovered both Moby Dick (my new favourite book) and Ray Bradbury (added to my favourite authors) this year. So this book is my two worlds colliding! I'd hoped to get insights into how the Moby Dick movie's screenplay was written and why certain scenes were added - and I got what I came for. But I wish more of the book was dedicated to that. Most of the book is the author's love letter to Ireland and the friendships he made there. Alot of the anecdotes were wholesome and sweet, reminiscent of Dandelion Wine's style. This book wasn't what I was expecting but still a nice feel-good read.

As a teenager, my favorite writer was Bradbury- he was able to evoke emotions, wonderment, and subtle scares like no one else. At some point, I started reading latter day Bradbury and the magic was gone. This book is latter day Bradbury: great writing, but the stories are just boring or feel pointless. There is a sense that Bradbury thinks he has written something scintillating but, alas, it’s not true. To be fair, some of this book approached 4 star territory, but most of it was laborious. It was kind of like watching a firework show where they kept shooting off the same one. Not so good.