Book Review: Destination Truth: Memoirs of a Monster Hunter
by Josh Gates
“Wind is suddenly screaming into the cockpit of this aging Antonov biplane. Charts and a half-assed, handwritten flight plan whip by my face and through the cockpit door into the main cabin. In the rear of the plane our director of photography, Evan, who has been filming out the open door, is suddenly thrust forward toward the edge of open space, only to be yanked to a stop by his four-point harness. Documents eject past him into oblivion.”
Josh Gates brings his customary wry sense of humor and boyish charm to Memoirs of a Monster Hunter, which tells the story of the Syfy series Destination Truth. For those not familiar with the show, Josh and compatriots travel the world digging into stories of monsters, ghosts, and other things that go bump in the night. The book takes the same tone as the series as Josh looks back over their varied misadventures. The opening paragraph above aptly demonstrates the crew’s luck with modes of transportation. It also shows you should not read this book while sitting in an airport or on board a plane especially if you are a nervous flier. (Though that boarding pass does make an appropriate bookmark.)
I forgot about that fact and read it on a flight last week. Even with their horrid travel luck, I struggled not to howl with laughter at some parts and enjoyed remembering favorite investigations. Also included are travel tips and the exhortation that Americans need to step outside their comfort zones and travel more. And he’s not talking about tours where every stop is planned out. Book a hotel, or bed and breakfast somewhere, rent a car, and stop anywhere that looks interesting.*
Even if you aren’t a fan of the show, I’d recommend this book to anyone who enjoys or is interested in travel adventures. Plus you really can't beat Josh's sense of humor.
You can pick up a copy from Bookshop.org.
BIS Rating: 4 nightlights
BIS Rating system:
1 nightlight = put it down and didn't care to pick it back up
2 nightlights = finished the book
3 nightlights = enjoyed the book but probably wouldn't re-read it
4 nightlights = had a hard time putting the book down
5 nightlights = stayed up way too late to finish instead of going to bed
Destination Truth aired on Syfy before moving to the Travel Channel. You can find all five seasons on DVD, Vudu, iTunes and Amazon Prime Video. You can also find Josh on his new Discovery shows: Expedition Unknown, Expedition X, and Josh Gates Tonight.
*My sister and I have done this. A few years ago, we took a week long trip to Wales. We booked B&B’s in both the north and south of the country for several nights each to be used as a home base. Then we flew into London, rented a car, and saw everything that caught our interest. Yes, there were transportation hiccups along the way, but nowhere near as bad as on the show. I mean, the live fire range wasn’t active that day or anything.
(originally published 27 October 2011)