Just As Well I'm Leaving : Around Europe With Hans Christian Andersen

by Michael Booth

A funny, moving travelogue following in the footsteps of Hans Christian Andersen. Without Hans Christian Andersen there would be no Alice in Wonderland, no Roald Dahl and maybe even no Harry Potter (and he has outsold them all), but few realise that the man who invented children's literature was also a pioneering travel writer. Having been dragged against his will to live in Denmark, Michael Booth discovered one of the great secrets of travel literature - Andersen's A Poet's Bazaar - a fascinating travelogue through a Europe on the cusp of revolution, by an author who, though a genius, was clearly a towering neurotic and proto-drama queen. He discovered, too, his chance to escape Denmark. In 1840 Andersen was also desperate to flee, writing as he 'It is just as well I am leaving, my soul is unwell!' In Germany he was enraptured both by steam travel and the fiery Franz Liszt. In sultry Naples this latent bisexual wrestled with his erotic demons before travelling to Athens (little more than a village), seeing the dervishes dance in Istanbul, and sailing home up the Danube, a journey fraught with danger, not least due to some inattentive leech salesmen. Booth follows him every step of the way, reflecting on Andersen's life, work and pathological self-obsession, encountering his own cast of characters, from an accommodating Hamburg prostitute to a bemused Danish Ambassador to the first ever female dervish, who whisks him off to meet her guru. In 2005 literature fans around the world will celebrate the 200th anniversary of Andersen's birth, making this funny, and occasionally moving, but mostly funny, book even more timely.

Genres: Travel, Nonfiction, Humor, Biography

320 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2005

About the author

Michael Booth is an English food and travel writer and journalist who writes regularly for a variety of newspapers and magazines including the Independent on Sunday, Condé Nast Traveller, Monocle and Time Out, among many other publications at home and abroad. He has a wife, Lissen, and two children, Asger and Emil.

In June 2010 Michael Booth won the Guild of Food Writers/Kate Whiteman Award for work in food and travel.

Reviews

[Becky · Rating 4 out of 5]

Following in the footsteps of Hans Christian Andersen Michael Booth leaves Denmark to recreate the travels depicted in A Poet's Bazaar (a book that seems to be a lost treasure of Travel literature). This is an enjoyable bit of travel writing, with a Bryson-esque style, and it also gives a great insight into the life of Hans Christian Andersen, certainly I never knew he was such a fascinating figure. Well worth a read.

[John · Rating 3 out of 5]

Slow going at first - I had my doubts that I'd make it through the book. However, once Booth finished giving background info, and got out of northern Europe, things became more interesting. Strikes a good balance between sympathy for, and frustration with, Andersen (a neurotic, freakish-looking fellow). I'd be willing to read more by the author.

[Gabrielle S · Rating 4 out of 5]

I wasn't sure about this at first because it did start off slowly and the author really didn't seem to like Denmark at all. However it improved quite a lot. I learned quite a lot about the life of Hans Christian Anderson who is one of those people who is famous for one thing but really accomplished quite a lot of other things too.

[Jan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Somewhat embarrassed as a Dane to admit, that I have actually never read Hans Christian Andersen in the original to any extent. Accordingly a double thanks to Michael Booth for both providing a funny, entertaining and enlightening account of his trip in the footsteps of Andersen AND inspiring me to selectively seek out the writings of the Danish icon.

[Karen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Made me laugh out loud, Michael Booth is very entertaining and informative.

[Kaylie · Rating 3 out of 5]

My 'reread reviews' have finally caught up with my 'new reviews', which means I'm allowed to pick new books to read, that aren't dictated by my book club! (I realise that permission to break this self-imposed rule is unnecessary and a little ridiculous: that's just the way my brain works.) I was excited to pick Michal Booth because, as well as being a present from another Michael, I absolutely loved his book Sushi and Beyond. I've read a number of his books since, trying to find that same level of delight in his writings about other places, cultures and foods. I've mostly been unsuccessful, which does make me wonder whether perhaps that one book was exactly that, a one-off. I was especially doubtful at the beginning of Just As Well I'm Leaving, because Michael Booth seemed pretty dour about not only his location, but the main topic of the book: Hans Christian Andersen.

Things did pick up once Booth started reading some of Andersen's stories, realising that there was more to be enjoyed in the originals than in whatever English translations he'd previously come across. Which did, of course, make me want to seek out a decent translation myself. As with Charlotte Street , the slightly whiny beginning gave way to a better middle and end, even if Just as Well I'm Leaving doesn't reach the height of Sushi and Beyond (which I need to reread, now, in case it's not the book but my memory that's responsible).

Having read a number of Michael Booth's books now, I'd say Just as Well I'm Leaving falls solidly in the middle of the pack. It's better than Eat, Pray, Eat and The Almost Nearly Perfect People, not as good as Sushi and Beyond, at about the same level as Doing Without Delia, albeit on rather a different subject matter. There's not much food in Just as Well I'm Leaving, which is perhaps the problem for me, as what I enjoyed most about Sushi and Beyond was the descriptions of Japanese chefs and restaurants. But I do like fairy tales, so Just as Well I'm Leaving managed to hold my interest, and I learned a great deal about Hans Christian Andersen that I wouldn't otherwise have known. It also got me thinking about travel, which I haven't done much of lately, so I can give it an extra half star for that.

[James F. · Rating 4 out of 5]

this book is great but a bit over detailed. However you will learn something about other cultures.

[Jenn Morgans · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is probably closer to 3 stars than 4, but I always enjoy Michael Booth’s writing, and I’ve so enjoyed everything I’ve learned about Andersen, so I’ve bumped it up a little.

[ORKUN · Rating 5 out of 5]

here is my review: http://orkuns.blogspot.com/2009/04/bo...

[Susan]

Following in the footsteps of Hans Christian Andersen's 1840 trip, Booth entertains with his own adventures and explains the connections of Andersen's life to his writings. Great idea, fine writing.