Neither Here nor There: Travels in Europe was published by Secker & Warburg in 1991 and retraces Bryson’s 1972 backpacking trip through Europe: Norway, Sweden, Denmark, Germany, the Netherlands, Belgium, France, Switzerland, Italy, and elsewhere. The book compares the Europe of his youth — cheap, exotic, and full of adventure — with the Europe of 1990: prosperous, standardized, and occasionally disappointing.
The comedy depends on Bryson’s willingness to be both enthusiast and curmudgeon: he loves European architecture, food, and public transport, and he detests European rudeness, bureaucracy, and public restrooms. The balance between admiration and exasperation gives the book its characteristic Bryson tone.
The Two Europes
The book captures a Europe in transition: the Berlin Wall had just fallen, the EU was forming, and the old patchwork of currencies, border controls, and national eccentricities was beginning to standardise. Bryson’s 1990 Europe is the last generation to experience the pre-Schengen Continent — the passport stamps, the currency exchanges, the dramatic differences between countries separated by a single river.
Collecting Neither Here nor There
First edition (Secker & Warburg, London, 1991): Boards with dust jacket.
Approximate market values:
- Fine in dust jacket: $75–$200
- Very good: $30–$75
Projected values (2026–2036): Moderate appreciation. Early Bryson first editions are increasingly scarce.