The bike salmon, shoaling and Bike Snob NYCs new book on cycling enlightenment

I’ve only ever met one “celebrity” in my life. The guy from Maroon 5. If I ever mention this to someone I normally shrug nonchalantly. However, if I met the author behind the popular Bike Snob NYC blog, things would be a little different.

Embarrassingly different.

You see, I’m a bit of a fan boy of his dry humour. The likes of which you mostly find in British comedy.

As such, I’d probably gush out far too much praise and come across as quite creepy.

Fortunately, the odds of bumping into each other are slim and thus I can deliver a more dignified review of his new book via my blog now.

“Omg!! It’s so unbelievably awesome!! Most hilarious thing I’ve read in my life!!”

I’m pretty sure that was dignified.

The Enlightened Cyclist is one of the best introductions to cycling culture you can read. Which is quite a statement, considering the sheer number of books released recently vying for the attention of cyclists.

It starts off with a brilliant description of a short bike ride around New York. The experience will have all cyclists nodding along, as we recognise everything described. For example, the race by car drivers to overtake you, only to catch up with them at the next set of red lights. The beauty of the authors writing, is in capturing these often mundane daily cycling experience and turning them into writing that will have you sniggering to yourself every few pages. I believe anyone that has the ability to do that, is worthy of your attention.

However, the authors hilarious writing is only half of what I’m enjoying so much about this book. The light hearted writing is also interweaved with interesting insights into how things got to where they are today. There’s plenty in The Enlightened Cyclist that makes you stop and think for a moment. An example of this, is the personal story of the authors experiences of 9/11. Also, an interesting take on why drivers have such anger for cyclists.

Whilst I’m thoroughly enjoying the book (I’m 70% of the way through by my book estimation skills), not everything is gripping me and I have found myself skipping a paragraph here and there. However, I’m an impatient reader and I generally read to unwind at the end of the day, so my concentration levels are not the best.

If you are looking for a light hearted read on the sheer hilarity of cycle commuting and the culture around it then I’d recommend picking up a copy when it lands in the UK. You can also pre-order from Amazon now.

Once you’ve read it – leave a comment with any parts of the book that stood out for you below! (Think of it as a mini book club).

If you are the type of person who likes to read things then I’d also recommend our list of cycling books for the kindle and 10 books for a cyclist at Christmas.