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Poorcraft: Wish You Were Here
It's time to hit the road on a shoestring budget! Penny and Mil from the original Poorcraft have turned tourist, and are here to help even the most novice globetrotter fulfill all their sightseeing dreams. From renting a room to packing your bag, from finding the best food to living abroad full time, Wish You Were Here has it all. You don't have to be wealthy to see the world. And we're here to prove it!
134 pages, Paperback
First published July 27, 2015
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Displaying 1 - 15 of 15 reviews
April 14, 2015
Poorcraft: Wish You Were Here is the cheap travel follow up to Trotman's previous book about frugal living.
It isn't great. The story works a lot better in this one than the previous one, but the actual information that is offered is pretty scarce. Poorcraft: The Funnybook Fundamentals of Living Well on Less was loaded with external resources with more detailed information, recipes, and information that felt more well-researched and less folksy. Poorcraft: Wish You Were Here had the kind of information I'd expect from a fellow hosteler who's been traveling for a little while. It could just be that because I travel similarly to the writer of the book most of the information seemed really basic, but the sources were also pretty disappointing. Wikipedia was one of the resources, along with Kayak.com and couchsurfing.com, which I think are all pretty resources. I did not count them (I kind of wish I had), but I don't think that more than 10 sources overall.
Regardless, it was a cute read and not totally without valuable information. For instance, I learned about the wallet twist (where you avoid pickpockets by putting your wallet deep enough in your pocket that you can twist it closed from the inside) and there were some good (very common sense, but still good) packing tips as well.
In summary, I would not buy it, but if someone has it sitting on a table somewhere, it's fun to page through.
It isn't great. The story works a lot better in this one than the previous one, but the actual information that is offered is pretty scarce. Poorcraft: The Funnybook Fundamentals of Living Well on Less was loaded with external resources with more detailed information, recipes, and information that felt more well-researched and less folksy. Poorcraft: Wish You Were Here had the kind of information I'd expect from a fellow hosteler who's been traveling for a little while. It could just be that because I travel similarly to the writer of the book most of the information seemed really basic, but the sources were also pretty disappointing. Wikipedia was one of the resources, along with Kayak.com and couchsurfing.com, which I think are all pretty resources. I did not count them (I kind of wish I had), but I don't think that more than 10 sources overall.
Regardless, it was a cute read and not totally without valuable information. For instance, I learned about the wallet twist (where you avoid pickpockets by putting your wallet deep enough in your pocket that you can twist it closed from the inside) and there were some good (very common sense, but still good) packing tips as well.
In summary, I would not buy it, but if someone has it sitting on a table somewhere, it's fun to page through.
February 11, 2018
A lot of good general travel advice, but neither as broad nor as deep as the first Poorcraft book.
The story is better. Maybe that's the flip-side of having less useful information. There is less need cram all that information into the storyline.
The story is better. Maybe that's the flip-side of having less useful information. There is less need cram all that information into the storyline.
April 24, 2015
As someone who has not done much budget traveling, I found this book to be informative and interesting. I'm not sure quite how practical some of the advice is - the author uses a trip to a tropical locale as the example trip, and discusses things such as carrying everything in a "personal item" as opposed to a carry-on. This is not likely to be practical when traveling someplace with a cooler climate. She also gives a sarong as a multi-purpose item of clothing, which is only true if you are a)thin and b)female (or, at least, comfortable in a skirt/dress).
However, the author provided some very useful information about staying in non-hotel spaces, such as hostels, that I find very useful, and has provided resources in the book for more information you can review online. He also provided some useful ways to conceptualize the amount of foreign currency you have and are spending.
All in all, a useful book for people like me, who are new to budget traveling, though perhaps a little basic for those already experienced in that subject.
However, the author provided some very useful information about staying in non-hotel spaces, such as hostels, that I find very useful, and has provided resources in the book for more information you can review online. He also provided some useful ways to conceptualize the amount of foreign currency you have and are spending.
All in all, a useful book for people like me, who are new to budget traveling, though perhaps a little basic for those already experienced in that subject.
March 22, 2022
Fun, Insightful, but dated
As someone who is about to take his first airline flight in nearly a decade, I enjoyed reading this.
But will I follow Penny's advice? Probably not. The travel field has changed dramatically since this was published, so the chapters on things like hostels seriously lacking in the world during (and probably after) Covid.
In these times, we need different tools to plan a trip.
As someone who is about to take his first airline flight in nearly a decade, I enjoyed reading this.
But will I follow Penny's advice? Probably not. The travel field has changed dramatically since this was published, so the chapters on things like hostels seriously lacking in the world during (and probably after) Covid.
In these times, we need different tools to plan a trip.
June 20, 2022
Rick Steves-type travel advice for post-millenials and Gen Z, all with a stowaway dog and a trip to the beach! Good info about saving money on transportation, accomodations, activities, food, and souvenirs. Don't know whether the personalities of Penny and Mil will appeal to younger readers; I found them a little tedious by the end despite the plethora of good advice for saving money and staying safe.
July 11, 2018
An educational comic about how to travel the world on the cheap (-er / -ish).
Cool material, and Estrada definitely has the requisite bona-fides. (Wasn't he running a shoestring cartoonist commune in Mexico for a year or two? I feel like I remember that from ages ago.)
Cool material, and Estrada definitely has the requisite bona-fides. (Wasn't he running a shoestring cartoonist commune in Mexico for a year or two? I feel like I remember that from ages ago.)
August 21, 2019
Definitely preferred it to the first! Books about special occasion budgeting are able to avoid the specter of systematic poverty, mostly .
September 16, 2020
A fun TRAVEL book!!! Who knew??
March 1, 2023
This is a cute, easy to understand guide to low cost travel. Perfect for a newbie traveller, this sums up pretty well what you need to watch our for when travelling and how to save money.
March 6, 2017
I didn't care for this one. It's really only good for young singles that was to travel super cheap. It's recommended that you pack only a backpack, book a hotel when you get there, and use public transit only. Yes, you do pay more for extra bags, hotels that advertise, and taking a shuttle or taxi from the airport. Sometimes it's just easier. I would rather not land in a foreign country where I don't speak the language, and hope I'll find a place to stay.
November 24, 2015
(Double review for Poorcraft: The Funny Book and Poorcraft: Wish You Were Here)
I have loved almost every book I've gotten by kick-starting, and I loved the idea of a comic book serious about being frugal without losing the beauty in your life -- both an original, for everyday living, and one for traveling, but reading this book is like scrolling through pages of fingernails on a chalkboard for me. I don't specifically like the art, or the presentation, or the characters, or how they treat each other. Mleh. I guess they couldn't all be perfect gold. But I'm still glad if these things I already knew (and that weren't very specifically aligned for my life) help someone else.
Edits on the traveling one as I reskim -- I think my problem with these is that the narrator comes across incredibly patronizing, and her only comparison friend is made to look like a hapless, can't do anything right antagonist-victim the whole time.
I have loved almost every book I've gotten by kick-starting, and I loved the idea of a comic book serious about being frugal without losing the beauty in your life -- both an original, for everyday living, and one for traveling, but reading this book is like scrolling through pages of fingernails on a chalkboard for me. I don't specifically like the art, or the presentation, or the characters, or how they treat each other. Mleh. I guess they couldn't all be perfect gold. But I'm still glad if these things I already knew (and that weren't very specifically aligned for my life) help someone else.
Edits on the traveling one as I reskim -- I think my problem with these is that the narrator comes across incredibly patronizing, and her only comparison friend is made to look like a hapless, can't do anything right antagonist-victim the whole time.
October 5, 2016
Funnily enough, I grabbed a bunch of graphic novels to plow through on my vacation in Moab, and this graphic novel about budget travel made it into the pile. A solid sequel to the excellent Poorcraft: The Funnybook Fundamentals of Living Well on Less, I liked the ongoing storyline in this book and found the basic budget travel tips covered enough to help the beginner backpacker. If you're more of an intermediate/advanced cheap traveller, you'd probably not really learn anything new from this book, but it's a fun and well-drawn series.
Aside: too short to add to my 2016 reading challenge.
Aside: too short to add to my 2016 reading challenge.
April 11, 2015
This turned out to be mostly stuff that I already knew from doing research for my previous travels, or learned the hard way on said travels (shout out to the dudes who came on the bus in Cappedocia and tricked us into their travel agency. Y'all were creepy.) It would be very useful for first-time travelers, though! And it was an easy and amusing read.
April 10, 2015
Solid advice (including a few new to me resources!) I love the friendly way this series presents the information. Only negative is travel envy (probably no big trips until 2016, sigh)
April 15, 2015
Fun read! I enjoyed all the useful tips for traveling. Unfortunately not as detailed as the original.
Displaying 1 - 15 of 15 reviews