Sunday, September 25, 2005
Travels with Charley by John Steinbeck
My Mom is a book lover (guess I come by it honestly.) Several years ago she gave me the collected works of John Steinbeck for Christmas. At the time I had read only one of his books (Cannery Row.) Since then, I've read several from the collection. My friend Kirk (who I'm finding out is quite the literary cohort) recommended that I read Travels with Charley.
After achieving great success, Steinbeck moved from California to New York. He felt that he had lost contact with the great country that he wrote about. So, as an aging writer, he decided that he needed to reconnect with America. So how do you do that? You buy a custom fitted truck with a camper on the back, load up your gentleman French poodle, and drive around the country.
Travels with Charley is a travel log/journal/commentary. Steinbeck recounts the people, places, oddities, and attitudes that he encounters. Parts of it are hilarious (stupid turkeys), parts are interesting (the hotel in Chicago), parts are introspective (shooting in the desert), and some are historical (racism in the South.) Best of all, you get a very unique perspective on what America was like in the early 1960's. Reading it is like riding in the cab of the truck with him. The only disappointing part of the book is the ending. He gets about three states from home and basically drives the rest of the way without stopping. However, this leads to a great quote...
After achieving great success, Steinbeck moved from California to New York. He felt that he had lost contact with the great country that he wrote about. So, as an aging writer, he decided that he needed to reconnect with America. So how do you do that? You buy a custom fitted truck with a camper on the back, load up your gentleman French poodle, and drive around the country.
Travels with Charley is a travel log/journal/commentary. Steinbeck recounts the people, places, oddities, and attitudes that he encounters. Parts of it are hilarious (stupid turkeys), parts are interesting (the hotel in Chicago), parts are introspective (shooting in the desert), and some are historical (racism in the South.) Best of all, you get a very unique perspective on what America was like in the early 1960's. Reading it is like riding in the cab of the truck with him. The only disappointing part of the book is the ending. He gets about three states from home and basically drives the rest of the way without stopping. However, this leads to a great quote...
"Who has not known a journey to be over and dead before the traveler returns? The reverse is also true: many a trip continues long after movements in time and space have ceased."Rating: 3 Stars
