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4.07 AVERAGE
4.07 AVERAGE
I always regretted that I haven't read 'On the road' by Kerouac when I was young and now I am too old to enjoy it. After reading this book I regret no more! Steinbeck is my favorite American author and from now on, Charley is my fave lit dog <3.
I truly adore Steinbeck's love for life, focus on ordinary people, his interest in society, his way of showing us America of the 20s century.
“I have always lived violently, drunk hugely, eaten too much or not at all, slept around the clock or missed two nights of sleeping, worked too hard and too long in glory, or slobbed for a time in utter laziness. I've lifted, pulled, chopped, climbed, made love with joy and taken my hangovers as a consequence, not as a punishment.”
I truly adore Steinbeck's love for life, focus on ordinary people, his interest in society, his way of showing us America of the 20s century.
“I have always lived violently, drunk hugely, eaten too much or not at all, slept around the clock or missed two nights of sleeping, worked too hard and too long in glory, or slobbed for a time in utter laziness. I've lifted, pulled, chopped, climbed, made love with joy and taken my hangovers as a consequence, not as a punishment.”
slow-paced
fast-paced
I'm assigning this to my Honors American Literature kids this summer. The teacher before me assigned it, but I dropped it after my first year. This year I wanted to realign myself with the course theme "Our (shared) American Identity," and I think Travels with Charley is a good kickoff to exploring that theme. (I also allow them to listen to it rather than reading it). We'll open the year discussing if we have a shared American Identity, and if so, what it might be.
I enjoyed this more than I did six years ago when I first found it. I think there's a lot of discussion fodder as far as the identity of the America and its people.
I enjoyed this more than I did six years ago when I first found it. I think there's a lot of discussion fodder as far as the identity of the America and its people.
adventurous
funny
informative
lighthearted
reflective
relaxing
slow-paced
adventurous
funny
inspiring
lighthearted
relaxing
Full of wisdom and informative. Particularly enjoyed all the stories about Charley (with much humor and entertaining). Steinbeck's take on racism at the time resonates with today's social issues of not only race but also other aspects of social integration. In a way it is quite helpful when things are put into historic perspectives. Relevant.
I've read [b:The Grapes of Wrath|18114322|The Grapes of Wrath|John Steinbeck|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1375670575l/18114322._SY75_.jpg|2931549] and [b:Of Mice and Men|890|Of Mice and Men|John Steinbeck|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1511302904l/890._SX50_.jpg|40283]. Both are brilliant. This road trip memoir had been on my list for a long time. I even own a paperback of it. But I had been waiting for an audiobook of it to become available through Libby. It finally did--and read excellently well by Gary Sinise, no less.
There are parts of this that are really good. There are particular vignettes that stand out.
One is an account of Steinbeck's encounter at a trailer park with a somewhat over zealous actor, which Steinbeck draws in fine detail and with both compassion and subtle humor. Another is near the end, during his trip through the south and his stop in New Orleans, where a group of white racists led by a trio of women are protesting Ruby Bridges (though she's not named in the text) as she's escorted into an all-white elementary school. The depictions of racism in the south are powerful, even sixty years after the fact.
Outside of a handful of vignettes, the narrative marred by quite a lot of Steinbeck, who was 58 at the time, complaining about the modern world in the typical way that many old men do. I'm not trying to disparage the man. I'm only five years younger now than he was then. There are also quite a few conversations that simply aren't very interesting. Travels with Charley isn't Steinbeck's best work, but does capture the US through the eyes of one of its most talented writers at a moment of key transitions. I found these bits of historical reportage and observation the most valuable aspects of the book.
There's been some debate in the years since the book was published about how much of it was observed and how much invented. This particular debate doesn't interest me much. Steinbeck's most valuable observations are embedded in his fiction. And the line between fact and fiction isn't as clean as we often assume it to be. I only mention the controversy here to head off at the pass anyone who might attempt to surprise me with it in the comments.
There are parts of this that are really good. There are particular vignettes that stand out.
One is an account of Steinbeck's encounter at a trailer park with a somewhat over zealous actor, which Steinbeck draws in fine detail and with both compassion and subtle humor. Another is near the end, during his trip through the south and his stop in New Orleans, where a group of white racists led by a trio of women are protesting Ruby Bridges (though she's not named in the text) as she's escorted into an all-white elementary school. The depictions of racism in the south are powerful, even sixty years after the fact.
Outside of a handful of vignettes, the narrative marred by quite a lot of Steinbeck, who was 58 at the time, complaining about the modern world in the typical way that many old men do. I'm not trying to disparage the man. I'm only five years younger now than he was then. There are also quite a few conversations that simply aren't very interesting. Travels with Charley isn't Steinbeck's best work, but does capture the US through the eyes of one of its most talented writers at a moment of key transitions. I found these bits of historical reportage and observation the most valuable aspects of the book.
There's been some debate in the years since the book was published about how much of it was observed and how much invented. This particular debate doesn't interest me much. Steinbeck's most valuable observations are embedded in his fiction. And the line between fact and fiction isn't as clean as we often assume it to be. I only mention the controversy here to head off at the pass anyone who might attempt to surprise me with it in the comments.
adventurous
funny
informative
reflective
relaxing
medium-paced