Brian has a million vague life plans but zero sense of direction. So when he meets Rachel, a self-possessed woman who daydreams of bicycling across the States, he decides to follow her wherever she’ll take him. Brian and Rachel soon embark on a ride from northern Wisconsin to Somewhere West, infatuated with the promise of adventure and each other. But as the pair progress from the Northwoods into the bleak western plains, they begin to discover the messy realities of life on the road. Mile by mile, they contend with merciless winds and brutal heat, broken bikes and bodies, each other and themselves—and the looming question of what comes next.

“Brian Benson’s memoir about riding from the hinterlands of Wisconsin to Portland, Oregon on his bicycle is as poignant as it is gripping, as hilarious as it is wise. GOING SOMEWHERE is a tender, sexy, take-it-with-you-everywhere-you-go-until-you’ve-read-the-last-page beauty of a book.”

— Cheryl Strayed, bestselling author of Wild and Tiny Beautiful Things

“Vibrant and engrossing, with wonderful portraits of Western landscapes and scruffy small towns, Job-like ordeals of gusty headwinds and breakdowns, and piquant portraits of kindly, parental folks who offer the cyclists food and shelter.”

— Publishers Weekly

“Benson writes in a charming, “you-are-there” manner… He is a gifted writer, an observant human with an eye for the telling detail and how to tell of it.”

— Booklist

“Brian’s brutal self-analysis would be riveting even if he never left his parents’ bathroom. That his book involves a cross-country bike trip is really just a bonus.”

— Yuvi Zalkow, author of A Brilliant Novel in the Works