You Can Get Arrested for That - book review

You Can Get Arrested for That, 2 Guys, 25 Dumb Laws, 1 Absurd American Crime Spree by Rich Smith is one of those books that makes you want to hit yourself in the forehead and say, "Why didn't I think of that?" We've all see lists of stupid laws such as "It's illegal to fish in Chicago while wearing pajamas" or "It's against the law to fall asleep in a cheese factory in South Dakota", shaken our heads and wondered how such laws came about or why they're still on the books. But how many of us have thought of a way to make a buck or two while breaking these laws and writing about it? And getting a vacation to boot?

Englishmen Rich Smith and his buddy Luke Bateman (well they're actually from Cornwall) set out on trip across America with the sole purpose of breaking 20 to 30 laws selected from those described on the web site Dumblaws.com. Along the way they find that it isn't as easy as it might appear (finding a tub to cart across a Longmeadow, Massachusetts town green, for example, or a kite to fly on the National Mall in Washington, DC) but manage to break enough laws that they consider the venture worthy of a small, easily read book. Pulitzer Prize material this isn't. But it is a fun read if for no other reason than to chuckle at how the English speak English and what things they think are funny in America.