Synopsis
"We do not take a trip; a trip takes us," John Steinbeck noted in his 1962 classic, Travels with Charley. In the summer of 2008, Bill Barich stumbled upon a used copy of Travels in Ireland, where he has lived for the past eight years, and it inspired him to explore the mood of the United States as Steinbeck had done almost a half century before. With a hotly contested election looming, and in the shadow of an economic meltdown, Barich set off on a 5,943-mile cross-country drive from New York to his old hometown in San Francisco via Route 50, a road twisting through the American heartland.
Long Way Home is the stunning result of his pilgrimage, an illuminating and perceptive portrait of America at a dramatic point in its history. Where Steinbeck returned from the road depressed about the country's soul, Barich-while not uncritical of the narrow-mindedness and incivility of our present culture-finds brightness among the dark and rekindles his belief in the long view, as exemplified by the unbridled optimism of some high school kids in Hutchinson, Kansas, and by the undaunted spirit of an eighty-year-old barber he chanced upon in Jefferson City, Missouri. "The world truly does renew itself while we're looking the other way," he observes.
From the Eastern Shore of Maryland to the spectacular landscape of Moab, Utah, to Steinbeck's own Salinas Valley, filled with memorable encounters and redolent with history and local color, Long Way Home is a truthful, inspiring account of the country at a social and political crossroad. "The highway snakes into a tunnel," Barich writes about a stretch of Route 50 in West Virginia, "then erupts into the light with the force of revelation."
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About the Author
Bill Barich has written for The New Yorker and other publications for many years. He is the author of the classic Laughing in the Hills, as well as Crazy for Rivers, Carson Valley, and most recently A Fine Place to Daydream: Racehorses, Romance, and the Irish. He lives in Dublin.
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Long Way Home : On the Trail of Steinbeck's America
Published by
Walker & Company, 2010
ISBN 10: 0802717543
ISBN 13: 9780802717542
Used
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First Edition
Seller: Better World Books: West, Reno, NV, U.S.A.
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Long Way Home : On the Trail of Steinbeck's America
Published by
Walker & Company, 2010
ISBN 10: 0802717543
ISBN 13: 9780802717542
Used
Hardcover
First Edition
Seller: Better World Books, Mishawaka, IN, U.S.A.
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Condition: Good. 1st. Pages intact with minimal writing/highlighting. The binding may be loose and creased. Dust jackets/supplements are not included. Stock photo provided. Product includes identifying sticker. Better World Books: Buy Books. Do Good. Seller Inventory # 4225146-6
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Long Way Home : On the Trail of Steinbeck's America
Published by
Walker & Company, 2010
ISBN 10: 0802717543
ISBN 13: 9780802717542
Used
Hardcover
First Edition
Seller: Better World Books, Mishawaka, IN, U.S.A.
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Condition: Good. 1st. Former library copy. Pages intact with minimal writing/highlighting. The binding may be loose and creased. Dust jackets/supplements are not included. Includes library markings. Stock photo provided. Product includes identifying sticker. Better World Books: Buy Books. Do Good. Seller Inventory # 7689287-6
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Long Way Home: On the Trail of Steinbeck's America
Seller: ThriftBooks-Atlanta, AUSTELL, GA, U.S.A.
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Hardcover. Condition: Very Good. No Jacket. May have limited writing in cover pages. Pages are unmarked. ~ ThriftBooks: Read More, Spend Less. Seller Inventory # G0802717543I4N00
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Long Way Home
Published by
Bloomsbury Publishing USA, 2010
ISBN 10: 0802717543
ISBN 13: 9780802717542
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Seller: Library House Internet Sales, Grand Rapids, OH, U.S.A.
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Hardcover. Condition: Good. Dust Jacket Condition: Good. Using John Steinbeck's classic Travels with Charley as a model, an author makes a 5,943-mile pilgrimage across America to explore the mood of the country and its people and to take in local color before the 2008 election. Former library book. Mylar protector included. Solid binding. Moderate edgewear on the boards. Moderate shelf wear. Please note the image in this listing is a stock photo and may not match the covers of the actual item. Ex-Library. Seller Inventory # 123688581
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Long Way Home: On the Trail of Steinbeck's America
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Condition: Good. Good condition. No Dust Jacket. A copy that has been read but remains intact. May contain markings such as bookplates, stamps, limited notes and highlighting, or a few light stains. Seller Inventory # D02L-01299
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Long Way Home: On the Trail of Steinbeck's America
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Long Way Home: On the Trail of Steinbeck's America
Published by
Walker & Company, New York, New York, U.S.A., 2010
ISBN 10: 0802717543
ISBN 13: 9780802717542
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Long Way Home: On the Trail of Steinbeck's America
Published by
Walker & Company October 2010, 2010
ISBN 10: 0802717543
ISBN 13: 9780802717542
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Hardcover. Condition: Used Very Good. Dust Jacket Condition: Good. Dust Jacket has some edge and corner wear, some scuffing, but still intact. Front and back covers have light edge and corner wear. Spine intact with no creasing or warping. Binding is tight and intact, pages clean and unmarked. Firefly sells new and used books through our store front. We try to add a detailed description to as many titles as possible. If you have questions regarding this title, please contact us. Photos available on request. Seller Inventory # 462673
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Long Way Home: On the Trail of Steinbeck's America
Published by
Walker Books October 2010, 2010
ISBN 10: 0802717543
ISBN 13: 9780802717542
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Hardcover. Condition: Collectible-Good. Dust Jacket Condition: Good. First Edition. First edition by number code. Seller Inventory # 263022