Travels with Lizbeth - by Lars Eighner (Paperback)

About the Book

With his dog, Lizbeth, Lars Eighner was homeless on the streets of America. In his unique voice--wry, spare, comic--he created an unforgettable memoir that has been widely acclaimed and compared to Orwell's Down and Out in Paris and London and Kerouac's On the Road.

Book Synopsis

"Lars Eighner is the Thoreau of the Dumpsters. Comparisons to Defoe's Robinson Crusoe and Hamsun's Hunger leap to mind. A classic of down-and-out literature." --Phillip Lopate

When Travels with Lizbeth was first published in 1993, it was proclaimed an instant classic. Lars Eighner's account of his descent into homelessness and his adventures on the streets has moved, charmed, and amused generations of readers. As Lars wrote, "When I began writing this account I was living under a shower curtain in a stand of bamboo in a public park. I did not undertake to write about homelessness, but wrote what I knew, as an artist paints a still life, not because he is especially fond of fruit, but because the subject is readily at hand."

Containing the widely anthologized essay "On Dumpster Diving," Travels with Lizbeth is a beautifully written account of one man's experience of homelessness, a story of physical survival, and the triumph of the artistic spirit in the face of enormous adversity. In his unique voice--dry, disciplined, poignant, comic--Eighner celebrates the companionship of his dog, Lizbeth, and recounts their ongoing struggle to survive on the streets of Austin, Texas, and hitchhiking along the highways to Southern California and back.

Review Quotes

"The most eloquent description to date of what it is like to be homeless." --San Diego Union-Tribune

"Compelling...Mr. Eighner [is] a quirky guide into the homeless condition as he plunges on, through Miracle Miles, desert flea markets and dusty truck stops." --The Wall Street Journal

"If there's any justice in the world, [this book] should guarantee its author a roof over his head for the rest of his days." --The New York Times Book Review

About the Author

Lars Eighner was born in Corpus Christi, Texas, grew up in Houston, and lived primarily in Austin, Texas. He chronicled his (and his dog's) experiences with homelessness in his critically acclaimed memoir Travels with Lizbeth, which includes the often-cited essay "On Dumpster Diving." It was a New York Times Book Review Editor's Choice and the Times named the book one of the 50 Best Memoirs of the last 50 years. Eighner's other works include an essay collection, numerous story collections and the novel Pawn to Queen Four.