His drool could fill a small swimming pool in a matter of minutes. The minute he sees a car door open, he begins to drool… and drool. My friend has tried absolutely everything to cure Sprocket of his car sickness, but nothing has worked to date. He loves walkies, he loves food and he loves people. As I reached down to pet him he fell over onto my feet so I could tickle behind his ears and rub his tummy. He squeaked and whimpered, did a happy dance with all four paws and the wag that started at his tail worked its way through his entire body, so by the time I reached him he was just one big wag. When I walked through the door his excitement was barely contained. I hadn’t seen him in almost 4 years but he hadn’t forgotten me. He has a glossy coat of the perfect shade of red and kohl-lined eyes that glitter with joy. Sprocket is a very distinguished senior gentleman, part Rhodesian Ridgeback and part mystery.

He chose this book as a present because he knew I was about to embark upon a road trip with another fabulous dog, my friend’s canine companion Sprocket. This is a book to be read slowly for its savor.Just before I left New York on my epic train journey, a friend of mine gave me the present of a book “Travels with Charley” – the autobiographical account of John Steinbeck’s road trip around America with his French poodle Charley. A rugged and passionate adventure of self-identity, Steinbeck's vision of the changing world still speaks to us prophetically through the decades. His 10,000-mile journey took him through almost forty states, where he saw things that made him proud, angry, sympathetic and elated. Moving through the woods and deserts, dirt tracks and highways to large cities and glorious wildernesses, Steinbeck observed - with remarkable honesty, insight and a humorous eye - the gamut of America and the people who inhabited it. He felt that he might have lost touch with its sights, sounds and the essence of the American people. In 1960, John Steinbeck set out in his pick-up truck with his dog Charley to rediscover and chronicle his native USA, from Maine to California.

Travels with charley dog