NONFICTION - July 7, 1996

OVER THE HILLS: A Midlife Escape Across America by Bicycle by David Lamb (Random House: $23, 254 pp) Times staff writer David Lamb was 54 years old when he decided to undertake a solitary bicycle trip across America. Most of his friends did not think he would accomplish it. With no training whatsoever, and no effort made to stop smoking or even eat healthily, it is amazing that Lamb was able to bicycle off his block, let alone all the way from Washington, D.C., to Los Angeles. However, bicycle he did, and “Over the Hills” is Lamb’s account of the trip along with contemplative, often humorous ruminations on travel, bicycles and America.

Using secondary roads wherever possible, Lamb often stayed the night in small towns situated relatively far from the interstate. This gave him a perspective on America that is completely hidden from urban populations. At a cafe in Pryor, Okla., there was a sign near the cash register soliciting donations for the Alton O’Bar family. When Lamb inquired what had happened, the waitress replied: “Vera died. Didn’t you hear?”

“Over the Hills” is not a book meant to surprise, enlighten or change many readers. Instead, it is a solitary literary travelogue that will appeal to bicyclists as well as people who have their own dreams of unconventional travel.