Thus I discovered that I did not know my own country. I, an American writer, writing about America, was working from memory, and the memory is at best a faulty, warpy reservoir. I had not heard the speech of America, smelled the grass and trees and sewage, seen its hills and water, its color and quality of light. I knew the changes only from books and newspapers. But more than this, I had not felt the country for twenty-five years. —Travels with Charley, John Steinbeck What problem is Steinbeck describing? Steinbeck is losing his memory. Steinbeck does not know enough about his country. Steinbeck is having difficulty writing a new story.