Title: ‘In America: Travels with John Steinbeck’

Author: Geert Mak

Rating: 8/10

I am a fan of John Steinbeck’s work and this book sounded so intriguing when I saw it as I was oblivious to the fact that he even travelled across America on one particular trip.

Mak follows in Steinbeck’s footsteps, travelling across the US and trying to stop in or at least find the hotels Steinbeck mentioned in his account of the journey – ‘Travels with Charley’ , which I personally thought was something unique and even more interesting. Mak doesn’t fail to fulfil this expectation of mine, he successfully compares the way things were then and now and even speaks to people who live in the area he is in, to either find out more about Steinbeck and what he would have seen and experiences, as well as to learn of their stories.

There’s no denying the journey, and therefore the book, is long and at times, tedious. Nevertheless, I found it worth the read and I also learnt things along the way. Mak cleverly intertwines some factual information alongside his travel account, which makes it something different and shows how much he learnt along the way himself.

I would honestly recommend this book to anyone interested in either America, Steinbeck or even just interested in learning and reading something new and different.