I felt that John Steinbeck did a great job of portraying the American ideals (or lack of) in Travels with Charley. However, I felt betrayed in that most of his story was fictionalized. In my opinion, there is a fine line between non-fiction, creative writing and fiction. What he did here was fiction. The book lost all its authenticity when I heard what actually happened. I guess it's ok to say, for example, that a man was driving a porsche instead of his beat up camry but to fictionalize the very basis of a story is just tasteless to me.
On a more positive note, I did feel that my knowledge of parts of America (its history and people) were enchanced. The world Steinbeck sees was beautifully crafted for us and that is something I will give to him regardless of where he spent most of his nights.
Phil
I totally understand your point. I felt betrayed, and I felt oddly hurt. I trusted the book. I loved the book. But then, after some smoke cleared...guess what. I trusted the book and I loved the book. So maybe he accomplished what he meant to do--maybe he told the truth in some bizarre fashion. Maybe it's more a philosophical venture more than an adventure. I don't know yet.
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