Steinbeck, John "Travels with Charley"

Steinbeck, John "Travels with Charley. In Search of America" - 1962

I have always loved the books by John Steinbeck. Until I read "Cannery Row". But that didn't keep me from reading more books by him and when our 1961 Club came up and I found there was one book by him, I chose that immediately. Unfortunately, I had just finished it when I found out that this book was published in 1962 (although it was probably written in 1961). Well, I couldn't finish another one in a day or two, so this will have to do with my contribution to this challenge (but I will read another one later and put a link here).

But I am more than happy that I read this book because it brought back John Steinbeck to me and the way I have always loved his literature.

While I am not a big fan of campervans or camping as such, I enjoyed following the author and his dog Charley through the United States. I doubt I will ever get there but in a way, I have the feeling I have now. He says himself towards the end that "… I have not intended to present, nor think I have presented, any kind of cross-section so that a reader can say, 'He thinks he has presented a true picture …' I  don't. I've only told what a few people said to me and what I saw. I don't know whether they were typical or whether any conclusion can be drawn." I think that is the best anyone can try to do and I am glad we could accompany him on this trip.

He also mentions "I like weather rather than climate." That is one great quote and I couldn't agree more.

I thoroughly enjoyed this.

And if you think there are better books about travels through the USA, please, let me know.

Book Description:

"To hear the speech of the real America, to smell the grass and the trees, to see the colors and the light—these were John Steinbeck's goals as he set out, at the age of fifty-eight, to rediscover the country he had been writing about for so many years.

With Charley, his French poodle, Steinbeck drives the interstates and the country roads, dines with truckers, encounters bears at Yellowstone and old friends in San Francisco. Along the way he reflects on the American character, racial hostility, the particular form of American loneliness he finds almost everywhere, and the unexpected kindness of strangers."

John Steinbeck received the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1962 "for his realistic and imaginative writings, combining as they do sympathetic humour and keen social perception".

I contribute to this page: Read the Nobels and you can find all my blogs about Nobel Prize winning authors and their books here.

Book Quotes

"And if anyone objects that they are not worth all that effort, I will cite Cioran (not a classic, at least not yet, but a contemporary thinker who is only now being translated into Italian): 'While the hemlock was being prepared, Socrates was learning a melody on the flute. What good will that be to you?, he was asked. At least I will earn this melody before I die.'" Italo Calvino in "Why Read the Classics?" (IT: Perché leggere i classici?)

Italo Calvino has some of the best quotes about reading. And this one could be relating to a lot of things (like learning a melody) but it certainly is valid for reading.

"That Moment as You’re Reading a Book When You Realize… 'Hey I’ve already been doing that.' That’s when you know you’re on the right track." Johnny Hamilton

Happens a lot. And it reminds me of a quote by Kathleen Kelley (Meg Ryan) in You've Got Mail: "So much of what I see reminds me of something I read in a book, when shouldn't it be the other way around?" I'm not sure about that, I like it both ways.

"Writers. Unsungs Gods for they are the creators of worlds." N.N.

They sure are. I just would like to know who said this first. If you know, please, tell me.

Find more book quotes here.

Wordless Wednesday ~ Dawn Redwood

Top 5 Tuesday ~ Religion

  

Top Five Tuesday was originally created by Shanah @ Bionic Book Worm, but is now hosted by Meeghan @ Meeghan Reads. To participate, link your post back to Meeghan’s blog or leave a comment on her weekly post. I found this on Davida's Page @ The Chocolate Lady.

Meeghan had to take some time out, but luckily, she's back and has given us new topics.

And here is a list of all the topics for the rest of the year.

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This week’s topic is Religion.

I have read quite a few books about religion, all kinds of religion. So, I tried to list some books about different ones.

Brooks, Geraldine "People of the Book" - 2008

Buddha "The Dhammapada" (Sanskrit: धम्मपद) - ca. 300 BC 

Harari, Yuval Noah "Sapiens. A Brief History of Mankind" (Hebr.: Ḳizur Toldot Ha-Enoshut/קיצור תולדות האנושות) - 2014

Mahfouz, Naguib "Children of Gebelawi" (aka Children of our Alley; arab: اولاد حارتنا Awlād ḥāritnā) - 1959

Schaik, Carel van & Michel, Kai "The Good Book of Human Nature: An Evolutionary Reading of the Bible" - 2016

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📖 Happy Reading! 📖

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Top Ten Tuesday ~ Me

"Top Ten Tuesday" is an original feature/weekly meme created on the blog "The Broke and the Bookish". It was created because they are particularly fond of lists. It is now hosted by Jana from That Artsy Reader Girl.

Since I am just as fond of them as they are, I jump at the chance to share my lists with them! Have a look at their page, there are lots of other bloggers who share their lists here.

This week's topic is Me. (Example titles: Well Traveled could describe you if you like to travel, Hotshot Doc could describe you if you’re an awesome doctor, Falling into Place could describe a life where things are starting to work out, An Infinite Love Story could describe your relationship, It Could Have Been Her could describe a thing you’re happy you avoided or a path you could have taken but didn’t. You can explain your choices or not, and they can be as specific or as abstract as you’d like.)

I have found several books with topics or titles dear to my heart, that would describe me. First I thought, I'll sort them by importance but I found that too hard, so I stuck with my usual order: alphabetical

Reading and Lists

Adams, Sara Nisha "The Reading List" - 2021

I'm a book blogger, so I love reading. And I also love lists, as this challenge shows us.

Daughter

Gordimer, Nadine "Burger's Daughter" - 1979 
Of course I'm a daughter. You are either a son or a daughter of somebody. My parents passed away more than ten years ago but I will always be their daughter.

Mother

Gorky, Maxim (Максима Горького) "Mother" (RUS: Мать/Matj) - 1906/07
I am the mother of two sons and I would like to be seen as the mother in this book, a mother who doesn't just care about her own children but also about their friends and other young people who are our future.

A Needle and a Thread

Hislop, Victoria "The Thread" - 2011

I have always loved arts and crafts, I've been sewing clothes for the whole family, knitted jumpers and other essentials, but I even enjoyed crafting with paper even more.

Music

Seth, Vikram "An Equal Music" - 1999
Who doesn't like music???

Wife
Shalev, Zeruya "Husband and Wife" (Hebr: בעל ואישה) - 2000
I've been married for almost 43 years, so I definitely am a wife.

Travels
Smiley, Jane "The All-true Travels and Adventures of Lidie Newton" - 1998

Travelling was always a great passion of mine.

Kitchen/Cooking

Takahashi, Yuta "The Chibineko Kitchen" (J: ちびねこ亭の思い出ごはん 黒猫と初恋サンドイッチ/Chibinekoteino omoidegohan kuronekoto hatsukoisandoitchi) - 2020

Even though hubby loves cooking, you will also find me in the kitchen often.

Books
Tung, Debbie "Book Love" - 2005
Of course, I absolutely love books. Our house is full of novels and non-fiction books.

Green
Ulitzkaya, Lyudmila "Imago" or "The Big Green Tent" (RUS: Зеленый шатер = Zelenyi shater) - 2010
Green is my favourite colour and most of my clothes have some sort of green, there is green in all our rooms and if I could have had it, our car would have been green.

📚Happy Reading 📚

Krasznahorkai, László "Satantango"

Krasznahorkai, László "Satantango" (Hungarian: Sátántangó) - 1985

Whoever knows me, is aware that I love Nobel Prize laureates and that I try to read at least one book of every new recipient (plus a few more of some former ones).

This year, it was a Hungarian author that I had never heard of. But that is often the case. This was his first novel for which he received a lot of praise. Qutie a few of his books (including this one) were also turned into films.

But, as I said, for me he was completely new, probably for most Westerners. I had no idea what I was going to read. The story tells us about an almost abandoned village somewhere in the middle of nowhere. People have lost all hope that anything good will still come to them.

We get to know them one by one. First you have the feeling that these are short stories that have nothing to do with each other. But, gradually, the pieces fit togethers and we get to know the whole dilemna.

The story reads almost like dystopia. But you have to make yourself clear that this was the reality for many people behind the Iron curtain. And that there are still people there who want them to go back to that. They should read this book and see where all this leads.

Book Description:

"In the darkening embers of a Communist utopia, life in a desolate Hungarian town has come to a virtual standstill. Flies buzz, spiders weave, water drips and animals root desultorily in the barnyard of a collective farm. But when the charismatic Irimias – long-thought dead – returns to the commune, the villagers fall under his spell. The Devil has arrived in their midst."

László Krasznahorkai received the Nobel Prize for Literature in 2025 "for his compelling and visionary oeuvre that, in the midst of apocalyptic terror, reaffirms the power of art".

I contribute to this page: Read the Nobels and you can find all my blogs about Nobel Prize winning authors and their books here.

The 1961 Club

This book challenge takes place twice a year and concentrates on one year and one year only. I call it "Read the Year Club". This time, 1961 was picked. For more information, see Simon @ Stuck in a Book and Kaggsy @ Kaggsy's Bookish Ramblings (here is Karen's invite and here is Simon's). If you are looking for inspiration, there are a few books from that year that I read already:

Bruckner, Karl "The Day of the Bomb" (GE: Sadako will leben) - 1961

Buck, Pearl S. "A Bridge for Passing" - 1961

Grass, Günter "Cat and Mouse" (GE: Katz und Maus. Danziger Trilogie 2) - 1961

Griffin, John Howard "Black like me" - 1961

Heller, Joseph "Catch-22" - 1961

Juster, Norton "The Phantom Tollbooth" - 1961

Lem, Stanisław "Solaris" (PL: Solaris (powieść)) - 1961

Lewis, Oscar "The Children of Sanchez" - 1961 

Naipaul, V.S. "A House for Mr. Biswas" - 1961

Scott, Mary "Tea and Biscuits" - 1961

Stone, Irving "The Agony and the Ecstasy" - 1961

Tanpınar, Ahmet Hamdi "The Time Regulation Institute" (TR: Saatleri Ayarlama Enstitüsü) - 1961
Tau, Max "The Country I Had to Leave" (GE: Das Land, das ich verlassen mußte) - 1961

Yates, Richard "Revolutionary Road" - 1961

Another book that is also on my list:

Rawls, Wilson "Where the Red Fern Grows" - 1961 (Goodreads)

This challenge takes place from 13 to 19 April 2026.

I have picked a story by a fascinating author of whom I always wanted to read more:

Steinbeck, John "Travels with Charley" - 1962