No Such Thing as a Free Ride? - Simon Sykes & Tom Sykes

-Subtitled: A Collection of Hitchhiking Tales - North American Edition from Goose Lane Editions.

What a fantastic idea this was- to collect stories, memoirs, observations, folklore and ideas about hitchhiking and compile them. Tom and Simon Sykes are father and son from England. Their first compilation was the British edition of No Such Thing as a Free Ride?

This book was broken down into wonderfully inventive categories on hitchhiking. Being broken down into articles of varying lengths allowed me to pick and choose what to read. First I devoured "You Had to Be There - Strange and Amusing Events", followed closely by "I Hadn't Thought this One Through - Misjudgements and Miscalculations".

But honestly every article is a great read. I was fascinated with people's experiences on the road. Some good, some bad, some downright scary, but all with a view as to how hitchhiking touched their lives.

There is a great appendix at the back with a listing of references to hitchhiking in websites, books, music and film.

And who contributed to this collection? A wonderfully diverse bunch of folks including author Piers Anthony and musician Randy Bachman to name a few.

Hitchhiking is a somewhat scary proposition nowadays from both sides - picking up and getting in. But who hasn't stuck out their thumb at least once? And has a story to tell about it? The Sykes are still collecting stories and essays. Got one you'd like to contribute? Contact them here.

And thanks to MiniBookExpo for the opportunity to read and review this book.