Travels With Charley: In Search of America

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Summary: review of Travels with Charley
Review: John Steinbeck sees the United States in another special angle or we may say in his personal angle. In John Steinbeck's book, Travels with Charley, he sees the America as a humanistic person more than a high-develop industrial country. So he focuses on the people instead of the constructions. He goes into the countryside, because in his eyes this is the root of America. In his travel, the customs and the ways the American live are the landscapes. He avoids or at least try to avoid the big cities. He would rather drive on a local than drive on a high way. In his trip the thing he tries to find or to see in the root of America.

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Summary: The Trip
Review: This is a beautiful litle book that John Steinbeck
wrote about his observations of America in 1960s, but
still so relevant nowadays. After he equipped his
truck with all the necessary accoutrements, he takes
his French poodle dog named Charlay and starts to
explore America. On the way, he gets the opportunity to
talk with all kinds of people, to experience happiness
and anger, and fall in love with Montana. This is a
terrific book to read.

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Summary: Not very exciting!
Review: ...With his French poodle dog Charley, John Steinbeck set out in his truck Rocinante to explore and experience America at the age of 58. He meets a lot of different people on his way across the nation. What follows is an account of the places he goes and the people he meets during he's three-month journey. In he's journey john was not happy with most of the big American cities for example Chicago and Texas as having problems of people not being very friendly compare to the American villages. He was also appalled by racism in new Orleans.
I like the description he gave of Maine and New England in general in 60's. It has not really changed, most of the things he talked about or saw are still around.
My view of the book is that it is not exciting at all, it is too plain!. It does not cause any curiosity to the reader.

Rating:
Summary: Not very exciting!
Review: ...
With his French poodle dog Charley, John Steinbeck set out in his truck Rocinante to explore and experience America at the age of 58. He meets a lot of different people on his way across the nation. What follows is an account of the places he goes and the people he meets during he's three-month journey. In he's journey john was not happy with most of the big American cities for example Chicago and Texas as having problems of people not being very friendly compare to the American villages. He was also appalled by racism in new Orleans.
I like the description he gave of Maine and New England in general in 60's. It has not really changed, most of the things he talked about or saw are still around.
My view of the book is that it is not exciting at all, it is too plain!. It does not cause any curiosity to the reader.

Rating:
Summary: Operation Windmills
Review: A guy - a dog - a camper truck named Rocinante(in case you don't know and I didn't--that is the name of Don Quixote's horse.) This is Steinbeck's account of a road trip around the U.S. He traveled via RV before thousands took it up when only a few traveled via camper trucks. It's a 1960 trip with humor, pathos, and keen observation in which Steinbeck sees America from the grass roots.

I loved Cannery Row and Sweet Thursday. I adored East of Eden and The Wayward Bus. I have been reading Steinbeck all of my life. I have seen every movie ever made based on any story he has penned( I mean penciled). This one is the winner for me. I loved his account of everything he saw, but I especially loved the parts about his traveling companion, a 12 year old large French poodle named Charley. Can't travel - read this and you will be making a journey of heart and soul. Like history - it's here. Love America - now you will even more.

I was a baby when Steinbeck married; I was a young teacher when he took this trip. I was a mother of two when his bright candle went out and yet this story is classic - it is contemporary and ageless. My husband and I took turns reading it and shared the laughs and joys. Thanks to Operation Windmills(Steinbeck's original title) I can hardly wait to hit the road again next year. Travels with Charley - a great read!

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Summary: Journey with Trusted Life
Review: Travel with Charley in Search of America

Travel with the Charley is my first book for reading. I never ever read John Steienbick's book before. I like this book vary much. He wrote this book forty years ago but it still look like he wrote it today. I believe Steinbeck's has a skill and experience of yesterday and make it seems like today. It was very exited to read about packing of his trip, custom made car that he called Rocinate. He was the man; his dog, his truck and three months travel across America. It was very funny and exciting about going out and discovers America with dog. He traveled across the state in large circle from New York to Main to Illinois to Washington, California, Texas and further south. As he traveled, he meets with the people along the way and describe them in vary short paragraph. His observation and opinion about every thing from antiques, small towns, American language, interstate system, hunters, trash and many others items and also he made clear statement about how different New England peoples from others. John Steinbeck's also noted subtle regional difference of American people and realize that American south is different than the rest of America. Overall Travel with Charley is an interesting book that present John Steinbeck's idea in a unique and effective way.

To see the Travel with Charley as just an interesting side of American is to miss the point. Mr. John Steinbeck's was present a number of important historical events in American life, while he was travelling toward the southern state during their trouble time of integration. He witnesses people and event during the time of integration school. He also recorded the rise of motor hotel beside of road and towns. He also appreciated with the modern interstate system and small roadside towns throughout the nation.

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Summary: A journey with a poodle
Review: When i first started to read Steinbeck's Travels with Charley, i thought that it was going to be an interesting book to read, considering that we where going to have quizzes on it, but as i went on to reading the book it was the worse book i have ever read in my life,the book was boring and long,and It also ramble on and on. i personally didn't see any plot or even a well plan of organization going on. As i continued to read the book i was completely loss and confused, he would talk a lot about he's french poodle dog that spoke french; i thought that he was very weird, i also thought that he had major issues. Also when ever he was traveling he would meet all sorts of people and conversate with them,and before you knew it he was conversating with someone else completely different. I would strongly emphize that i would not recommended this book to anyone, because this book would really discourage people from wanted to read anymore of his book. For me personally i would not read another book written by John Steinbeck, and maybe if i decided to give another of his book a chance i would be really cautious.

Rating:
Summary: Travels With Charley: In Search of America
Review: I found this book very boring and unintesting. I love reading books by Steinbeck but it seems that he gave up when he wrote this one. There was no excitement and it just seem tiring just looking at it. I would not recommend anyone to read this book.

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Summary: "Travels" Delights and Disturbs
Review: In 1960 John Steinbeck decided to reacquaint himself with America after being away because, in his own words, "I've lost the flavor and taste and sound of it. I'm going to learn about my own country." So he set out on a 3+ month journey with his dog to do just that. Along the way, he met people and made conversation, observed the state of the country, and let his mind wander as he made his journey. Then he returned to his mobile cabin at night and recorded the day's events. These journal entries became "Travels with Charley."

Overall, Steinbeck seems to paint a pretty picture. While driving through New England in the fall, he is taken with the brilliant foliage on display. He is much impressed with Wisconsin, and says about Montana, "I am in love. For other states I have admiration, respect, recognition, even some affection, but with Montana it is love." Later, Steinbeck also speaks glowingly of the California Redwoods.

Steinbeck also has nice things to say about the American people - sometimes. He notes that midwesterners are openly friendly, and again praises Montana, for its inhabitants "had time...to undertake the passing art of neighborliness." However, interspersed throughout his journey, Steinbeck encounters many things which are not so delightful. In fact, some were quite upsetting. He talks of waste - "American cities are like badger holes, ringed with trash" - and of miserable people - "(some people) can drain off energy and joy, can suck pleasure dry and get no sustenance from it. (They) spread a grayness in the air about them." (This was his opinion of a waitress Steinbeck had just met in Maine.) And the waitress wasn't the only one.

Along his journey, he met many close-minded, opinionated, bigoted and rascist Americans, and it made for depressing reading. I don't think Steinbeck was quite prepared for it. I believe he had an idealized vision of a great trip, but in reality, it wasn't, and it took a lot out of him. By the end Steinbeck was burned out and wanted nothing more than to get back home. After California he went straight through to Texas, and then to New Orleans, where he encountered rascism at its worst. That seemed to be the last straw for him. After that, he blew off the rest of the southeast US and went back to New York. He had had enough.

Jay Parini, who wrote the introduction, notes this ominous feeling. He states that the book is filled with "whimsical vignettes, charm, etc., but beneath its surface there is a sense of disenchantment that turns to anger." He goes on to say that Steinbeck "is never quite able to bring himself to say that he was often disgusted by what he saw." But there's no question that he was.

Still, this was a very good book. And it's not demoralizing from start to finish. There are many humors adventures as well - his discussions with border guards near Canada being the most memorable. But one can't help but feel that Steinbeck was sorry he'd gone. He had a pre-conceived notion of what America was, and when it didn't meet his expectations, he was crushed. "Travels with Charley" brilliantly captures what Steinbeck reluctantly learned - that you can't go home again.

Four stars.

Rating:
Summary: Good work needs to be Continuous in order to be Permanent!
Review: All I can say is that I didn't like this book for the reason of being so boring. I think he paid too much attention to Charley. Instead, he could of made the story more interesting. I couldn't focus much on the book, because I didn't have much interest in it. The story was going forward pretty well at the beginning but then it seemed to be stuck in a loop; everything repeated over & over.
I don't recommend anyone to start off with this book of John Stein beck's unless one wants to lose the good impression he or she had in mind on him.
The winning awards as Pulitzer Prize and National Book Award made him famous and known as a great writer, but personally, I don't think he put much effort in writing this particular book at all. Although I didn't find much interest in "Travels with Charley" but I still look forward to reading another book of his. I've heard that his other books such as "Grapes of wrath" is very interesting. I'll give it another try...