Daeschner, J.R. 1970(?)–

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Daeschner, J.R. 1970(?)–

PERSONAL: Born c. 1970, in CO; married. Education: University graduate; graduate studies in Latin America.

ADDRESSES: Home—London, England. Agent—Lizzy Kremer, David Higham Associates, 5-8 Lower John St., Golden Square, London W1F 9HA, England.

CAREER: Freelance journalist and author.

AWARDS, HONORS: Fulbright scholarship.

WRITINGS:

True Brits: A Tour of Twenty-first-Century Britain in All Its Shin-Kicking, Bog-Snorkeling, and Cheese-Rolling Glory, Arrow/Random Group (London, England), 2004, published as True Brits: A Tour of Twenty-first-Century Britain in All Its Bog-Snorkeling, Gurning, and Cheese-Rolling Glory, Overlook Press (New York, NY), 2005.

Contributor of articles to newspapers, including New York Times, International Herald Tribune, and London Times.

SIDELIGHTS: An American freelance journalist living in England, J.R. Daeschner dissects odd cultural traditions and fetishes of his adopted country in True Brits: A Tour of Twenty-first-Century Britain in All Its Bog-Snorkeling, Gurning, and Cheese-Rolling Glory. A resident in England for a decade, Daeschner was inspired to design his unorthodox tour after hearing of a shin-kicking contest in the village of Chipping Campden in the Cotswolds. From there it was not a large leap to participate in a bog-and-mud-snorkeling contest in the Welsh village of Llanwrtyd Wells, or a cheese-rolling contest in Gloucestershire involving villagers leaping off a cliff, or to the hugely politically incorrect Padstow Darkie Day celebration, in which villagers blacken their faces and play minstrel songs.

Critics on both sides of the Atlantic responded warmly to Daeschner's book. Writing in London's Observer, Stephanie Merritt found True Brits an "immensely funny guide to British customs." Similarly, Richard Dickey, writing in Library Journal, called the work "an insightful travel narrative" and "a fun collection." For a Kirkus Reviews critic, the book is an "atmospheric, modestly entertaining travelogue," while for a Publishers Weekly reviewer True Brits is "a lighthearted romp."

BIOGRAPHICAL AND CRITICAL SOURCES:

PERIODICALS

Cornish Guardian, April 15, 2004, "'Local Yokels' in New Book," review of True Brits: A Tour of Twenty-first-Century Britain in All Its Shin-Kicking, Bog-Snorkeling, and Cheese-Rolling Glory.

Kirkus Reviews, February 1, 2005, review of True Brits: A Tour of Twenty-first-Century Britain in All Its Bog-Snorkeling, Gurning, and Cheese-Rolling Glory, p. 161.

Library Journal, March 1, 2005, Richard Dickey, review of True Brits, p. 102.

Observer (London, England), April 11, 2004, Stephanie Merritt, "Bill Bryson Meets Tony Hawks," review of True Brits.

Publishers Weekly, January 31, 2005, review of True Brits, p. 57.

Time, June 4, 2004, Michael Brunton, "Oddball Olympics Bog Snorkeling, Anyone?," review of True Brits.

Western Mail (Cardiff, Wales), March 31, 2004, Claire Hill, "Bog Event Makes Book."