anemodragon's review against another edition

DID NOT FINISH: 55%

nice book got the gist didnt feel i needed to reach the end
reflective medium-paced

I really enjoyed reading how Steinbeck’s ideas and understandings kept changing throughout his journey. He set out to find America, and came away with confusion and uneasiness by acknowledging that the nation and its people aren’t a monolith. I also enjoyed reading about an internal struggle that wasn’t entirely related to the events he saw. By that I mean, his feelings of loneliness and fatigue. It’s difficult to put into words, but I did enjoy reading this.

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Simply beautiful, hugely inspirational. When the poetry takes the shape of a novel and a narrative takes the shape of a journey and even if Steinbeck was a bastard I’d still give anything to be in his shoes with Charley and see all the America he got to see.
challenging reflective medium-paced

I don't know but I expected more Charley and talk of Steinbecks travels rather than random thoughts.. Found myself bored for half of it.

My favorite book of all time.

An entertaining and enjoyable read of a time and places in America that were, and in many ways still are.

More than 90% into the book the phrase “I had seen so little of the whole” lands and shatters everything before it. I'm glad I took my time to read this in 20 minute increments despite wanting to go faster through it.
adventurous challenging dark emotional funny hopeful informative inspiring lighthearted mysterious reflective relaxing sad tense medium-paced

"Travels with Charley" proved to be the right book at the right time. Since we sold our house six months ago and started traveling full time in our 17-foot-van with our three cats (vs. one poodle), I've been thinking about this book. Mostly what I thought was, it's about damn time I read it. The timing will never be better.

Steinbeck is a delightful and prescient writer of the road (though the veracity of some of his encounters has since been cast into doubt) and he professionally lays his forefingers across the pulse of America despite his reservations about his ability: "I came out on this trip to try and learn something of America. Am I learning anything? If I am, I don’t know what it is."

The lessons are stark: we're schooled in everything of the human nature from kindness to obscene racism. In the end, he reflects, "This monster of a land, this mightiest of nations, this spawn of the future, turns out to be the macrocosm of microcosm me."
adventurous hopeful inspiring reflective medium-paced
adventurous challenging informative inspiring lighthearted reflective medium-paced