A Chip Shop in Poznan by Ben Aitken - Non Fiction - Paperback Travel Memoir

Details
Condition: New
Format: Paperback
ISBN: 9781785786266
Publisher: Icon Books
Age Range: Adult readers

Overview
A Chip Shop in Poznan: My Unlikely Year in Poland is Ben Aitken's candid, funny travel memoir about swapping Britain for a minimum-wage job in a Polish chip shop. Curious about what Polish migrants had left behind, Aitken flew to a city he barely knew and spent a year peeling potatoes, riding buses, and quietly falling for a country most travel writers overlook. The result is a warm, witty portrait of modern Poland told through unglamorous, ground-level experience rather than tourist cliché, ideal for readers who enjoy honest, humour-laced non-fiction.

About the Book
In 2016, long before Brexit forced the question of who belongs where, Ben Aitken decided to find out for himself what Polish emigrants to the UK had actually left behind. Rather than researching from an armchair, he bought a one-way ticket to Poznan, a city he confesses he'd barely heard of, and took a job in a fish and chip shop on the minimum wage. What follows is a memoir built from the ground up: shifts behind the fryer, bus journeys to small towns, conversations with nuns, football fans, and everyday Poles, all filtered through Aitken's self-deprecating, observational humour. The book resists the usual travel-writing tropes of grand landmarks and neat conclusions, instead finding insight in laundrettes, milk bars, and the quiet dignity of ordinary lives. Along the way, Aitken's curiosity about migration and belonging deepens into something more personal, and the year abroad reshapes his own sense of purpose, even nudging him toward an unlikely ambition to stand for the European Parliament. Praised by reviewers as one of the funniest travel books of its year, it combines proper reporting instincts with genuine warmth for a country too often ignored by British travel writers. It's a book about class, migration, and unfashionable places, told without condescension and with a great deal of wit.

• A genuinely funny, self-deprecating first-person travel memoir
• Ground-level, working-class perspective rarely found in travel writing
• Thoughtful reflection on migration, identity and Brexit-era Britain
• Praised as a Times bestseller and one of the funniest books of its year
• Compact paperback, perfect for commuting, holidays, or gifting
• Brand new condition — ideal for personal reading or as a gift

About the Author
Ben Aitken grew up in Portsmouth, spent time in a boyband, and worked as a carer before turning to writing. He is the author of several books, including Dear Bill Bryson: Footnotes from a Small Island, A Chip Shop in Poznan, The Gran Tour, and The Marmalade Diaries. He writes for The Guardian and The Times, and was named TCG Travel Journalist of the Year in 2024. His warm, funny, human-centred style has made him a trusted voice in contemporary British travel writing.

Why You'll Love This Memoir
Funny, honest, and unexpectedly moving, this is travel writing with heart rather than glamour. Perfect for readers curious about modern Europe, migration, and the everyday lives behind the headlines — a brilliant gift for memoir and humour fans alike.

Please Note: Dispatched in UK ISBN / UK edition, cover as shown.