Perspective

Bill Bryson is a famous author who has written a number of books including A Short History of Nearly Everything, A Walk in the Woods, Made in America, and I'm a Stranger Here Myself. This work, The Life and Times of the Thunderbolt Kid, is subtitled as a memoir. In the work, Bryson reflects on his early childhood, growing up in Des Moines, Iowa. As a memoir, the book comes from Bryson's subjective view. He relates the stories of his childhood through his own eyes and thoughts. The reader sees the 1950s through Bryson along with his imaginative understandings of the world that he lives in.

While the adult Bryson is present, much of the book features the opinions and thoughts of a child. There are several instances that Bryson, looking back, is clearly a little ashamed of or wishes that he could have changed. However, by including...