Our discussion of The Longest Road by Philip Caputo

Last night, our book group co-hosted the Big Read book discussion with Downers Grove Library.   The Big Read book this year is The Longest Road by Philip Caputo, and we had a great discussion.  Here’s some of what people had to say:

• One person started us off by saying that he really loved the book.  He liked that the author was adventurous, and felt that he was a bit of a kindred spirit.  He felt he understood the author’s desire to drive on non-interstate roads, especially.    Another person added to this, saying that she thinks that the slower you go, the more you see.

• We had some general discussion about how the author got so many people to talk to him.  One person was surprised by how many people opened up to him, and we talked about how this may have been because of the author’s personality, but also, his background in journalism.  As one person said, “This is a culmination of 50 years of experience.”   We also talked about how the author had several “ins,” as well: traveling with his wife, the two dogs, and an Airstream can all help generate conversation.

• One person said that reading this book made him remember some of the trips he and his wife had taken in the past, like their drive to California, and seeing some of the national parks.    This was something many readers said, as well, that reading the book made them think of their own travels.   One person noted that while she never went on family trips as a child, she did drive to Key West a few years ago, so having the book start there really made it feel familiar.  She said that since the author went to so many different places, that people reading it would probably feel a connection to at least one place in the book.

• We did have a reader treat us to a little show-and-tell; she had brought in a photograph of the statues mentioned by the author on page 101.   It was great to see this and bring the description in the book to life.  She mentioned that she was familiar with Lewis and Clark, and that Clark’s ability to sight a landmark, dead-reckon the distance, and be so accurate was pretty impressive.

• There were some comments from readers that they wanted more photos in the book, especially because they were curious about some of the places that the author described.   So that’s a request, please, Mr. Caputo --- we’d like more photos, please!

• We had some general discussion about Caputo traveling with his wife, and about his trip, in general.  One person said she liked that he was making an effort to not let this trip ruin his marriage, which she found to be charming.   Another person noted that she was struck by how this book is really about the author, and that it’s his journey.  She felt his original idea of what the trip would be like started to snowball a bit on him, and thought that the trip probably turned out quite differently than what he had originally planned it to be.  She said that for her, this made the book more than a travelogue, and more like a memoir, with overtones of the author’s own political philosophy.  She was surprised, because she had anticipated the book would be just a travelogue, but felt the author was such a good journalist that he was able to turn it into something more, and make it both concise and interesting.     Another reader said that she appreciated that while the author’s own political views came through in the book, she didn’t feel he was bludgeoning other people with these views (whether it was the people he met on his trip or readers of his book). 

• What seemed to seal the interest for many readers was the whole question of “What holds us together?”  Some readers said that while the people he spoke to were interesting, they didn’t really feel that any of their answers were that unique.   One person thought, however, that the author should have asked more people this question.   Another person said they felt the author used this question as a jumping-off point, sometimes to give his own views on the question.  She said, “Boy, this Chicago boy is smart!”  She felt he used these people to give a cross-section of what people in general think, but really gave a lot of his own opinions (which she felt was a legitimate and interesting device on his part).   This led to some general discussion of how the author spoke to people, and got their stories and opinions.  One person said that by asking individual people, you get a story about those people, even as he’s also giving us an account of his trip (and is skilled enough to blend it together).   We also had some general discussion about whether or not the author used people’s real names in the book.  

• We had some discussion about some of the people that Caputo spoke to in his travels, and whether they were representative (generally) of this country, especially considering that he stayed away from large, urban areas.  As one person said, “Who is a typical American?”   Another person said that she felt that the author originally thought this would be a trip of discovery of America, but that it seemed to turn out to be a discovery of himself.

• We also talked about how the author shone a light on some places, and issues, that were unfamiliar to many readers.  For example, the situation in the one town with the meatpacking plant, was a chapter that many people found to be interesting.   

• One reader said that for him, the book was enjoyable because of all the history that the author worked in about all of the different places.  He personally had knowledge of some of these places, which made the book enjoyable.  Other readers said that they liked that the author made them want to know more about different places.   People felt there were many things and places to learn more about, especially since the author’s writing style was very visual.   However, we did agree, as one person said, that his writing style had “no wasted words,” and that this was partly what made the book so good.

So, we you can see, we found a lot to talk about.   Thank you, everyone, for such a great discussion!  As always, we welcome more discussion and comments!     There will also be additional Big Read book discussions throughout March and April.  For full information, please visit www.thebigread.org