At the age of 58, John Steinbeck realized that he had spent much of his career writing about the United States . . . without seeing it. He felt it was time to explore America first hand, so he packed up a camper truck and made a three month trek around the outskirts of the country. Seeing the land and the people of America taught Steinbeck much, but not necessarily what he had expected. And, who's Charley? Charley is Steinbeck's companion, a French standard poodle.

I loved Of Mice and Men, and was disappointed to find nothing special in this travelogue. Steinbeck shared his days on the road with a subdued tone. Yes, there were some highs and lows, but for the most part his experiences and thoughts about them seemed to be a bit mundane. I was expecting more. (3/5)

Originally posted on: "Thoughts of Joy..." ( )

An enjoyable read. John Steinbeck travels round America with his poodle Charley. The thoughts of Charley often feature as Steinbeck interacts with the dog, people and places he meets on route. One should remember that the America of the 1960s (when the book was written) was of course different from the America of today. An well written and eleoquent book ( )

I bought this book in the middle of my road trip; it touches you right at the heart and brings back good memories. In a way all of us are travels. Me I took my one individual journey for finding what is America and discovered my one answer.
A good piece of art.. ( )

An enjoyable little ditty, the best bits are the ones when Steinbeck is drinking with others, bringing him closer to Bukowski, whose best bits are when he is drinking alone. ( )

I have a feeling that if I had read Travels with Charley back in high school instead of The Grapes of Wrath or even Of Mice and Men, I would have actually liked Steinbeck rather than merely appreciated him.Part of my Steinbeck indifference was obviously influenced by my teenage attitude. At 15 there were other things I'd much rather have been doing than reading novels about the great depression. Also, I had that "what does this have to do with me" attitude I saw so frequently while trying to teach my college freshmen literature from the Vietnam War. But the other half of the problem was that I was exposed to those two books by a teacher who taught these novels as The Greatest Literary Masterpieces Ever. Great Literary Masterpieces have themes and symbols and (like vegetables) are consumed for (intellectual) nutrition and not for enjoyment. The image of Steinbeck that I took away from that class one of a Very Important American Author, sitting behind a grand oak desk, pondering which Important Theme to tackle next.Reading Travels with Charley showed me that my imagination was grossly mistaken. In place of the grand desk was a pickup truck and trailer and a poodle named Charley. Steinbeck ponders road maps instead of Important Themes and I was pleased to note that while he has me licked in literary masterpieces, my directional sense is far superior to his. Also, Steinbeck is funny. Really funny. And he uses his wit and dry humor to provide a commentary on American life that is still accurate today.I have a new appreciation for Steinbeck now. He's still an Important American Author, but one that shares philosophy with his poodle in the same way that I sometimes serenade my cats with Meatloaf songs. Okay, maybe not the same thing, but the point is, the memoir humanizes Steinbeck and makes him assessable. It's a shame I didn't read this sooner. ( )