cuando lei este libro hasta llegue a sonar unas cuantas veces con estar en la carretera polvosa camino a otra comunidad donde pudiese conseguir un mejor empleo, y durmiendo en una hooverville. la historia es fascinante y es tan buena que la novela no parece las paginas parecen cortas. la familia que emigra, la lucha por un trabajo, la muerte, el crecimiento y distaciamiento de la familia. esta novela pinta un cuadro dramatico aunque lleno de hermosura narrativa de la gran depresion de los anos treinta, narrada en un lenguaje humano. es una de las mejores de este autor. muy recomendada..

LUIS MENDEZ

It's great to see Steinbeck's works coming out in this nice edition. This volume is up to LOA's usual excellent standards, and like the first two volumes in the Steinbeck series, continues covering both famous pieces like Cannery Row and East of Eden, as well as some of his less known works. In any case it's a real treat for any Steinbeck fan. Can't wait for the fourth volume!

This book was a great read! I recomend it to any young readers interested in learning about the time during the depression.

A marvelous insight into John Steinbeck and his mentor/pal, Ed Ricketts ("Doc" of Cannery Row fame.). Their obvious affection and respect for the other threads throughout the text. Contains wonderful lines such as," ...in six weeks in Baja, we collected about 3000 specimens of beer.", and of course there is the Hansen Sea Cow. Their musings about a world going crazy (Hitler is on the rise in Europe during the time of the voyage) are superb. The science and biology at the back of the volume is just the icing on a most delectable cake.

The Moon Is Down by John Steinbeck is a classic novel dealing with the emotional effects of war. Set during World War II, we are introduced to the "conquerers" and the town that has been sieged. A once docile, peaceful people, the villagers are quickly changed into a people full of hatred and malice. The Moon Is Down tells us how war can change people for the good, and for the worse. The townspeople become consumed with rage, and want nothing more than to free themselves by killing their conquerers. The conquerers, who were once strictly militant in every move and thought, become affected by what they have done to the once peaceful villagers, and gain more compassion througout the novel. The Moon Is Down is facepaced, and not long length-wise. Contrary to other Steinbeck works, this book is written almost in "play" style. It moves quickly with much of the story being dialog. It reads increadible fast and is very entertaining, as well as thought provoking. It forced the reader to sympathize with the conquerers and become emotionally attached with both the protagonists and the antagonists. This book forces the reader to delve deaper into their own minds and think more deeply about war, and it's effects on all of humanity.

I began reading this book without much background, but from the first page I was drawn into the story and set aside the other book I was reading. This is an extraordinary book that contains a moral argument that can apply to any place and any time. The story is told with an economy that is marvelous to behold. Where other authors would have penned a weighty tome, Mr. Steinbeck presents the problems and personalities of his characters in just over 100 pages. This is an ageless story of the conquered vs. the conqueror. Although the setting offered is in Norway during the German occupation of the Second World War, it is a story that took place in many places with the same problems and arguments.

Perhaps the most interesting part of this book is that Mr. Steinbeck does not take sides. The Germans are in Norway to do a job, to take away as much coal as they can, and the people in the village resist the invaders. One of the pivotal characters is Colonel Lanser, a veteran of the First World War who knows what to expect from a conquered people. He knows the various stages of resistance yet is also aware that he will follow orders and can do nothing to change the course events will take. There is fatalism to all of the characters that they must do what they have to and cannot deviate from their courses: the conquered will resist, the conquerors will punish resistance. The drama of this story is central to the story of Molly Morden, whose husband Alex is executed after he kills a German captain. She finds herself face to face with a lonely German lieutenant who wants to talk with her. She begins to see him as just another human being caught up in an impossible situation, but, eventually, he identity as one of the conquered overtakes these feelings. We see both sides in this conflict as the human beings they are, caught up in an impossible situation. We find the conquerors caught in a no-win situation and the conquered certain that victory will be theirs, but at a terrible price.

I think this book should be taught in schools as it gives unlimited possibilities of discussion but also provides a realization that war is terrible for all, and no one has clean hands. I highly recommend this book.

The Moon is Down is a piece of propaganda written durring the second World War when most of eastern Europe was under Hitler's power. Steinbeck wrote it for the people of these countries, and although it was illegal for them to posess it, people translated and distributed it.

The story itself is about a small town in America, though I doubt this is true, that is taken in the early hours of a Sunday morning. The soldiers think that since this town hasn't seen war in a hundred years that they won't be as strong, but what they didn't realize is that free people are the most strongwilled, causing them more problems than anywhere else.

Ultimately, what the soldiers under "The Leader" want is coal. The colonels have soldiers gaurding the mines forcing them to work. Colonel Loft was ordering a man named Alex Morden to work and he being a free man with a hot temper went after him with a pick. Instead of killing Loft, Morden kills another Captain. It isn't until Alex Morden is "tried" and punished that the town finally realizes that their freedom is gone.

I enjoyed this book, and although it is a bit vauge (only 112 pages), it stayed true to how Steinbeck writes. There are hints of symbolism and politics. I only had the chance to read it twice, so I'm sure I'm missing alot of the big picture, but it was great from what I got out of it. I would recommend this book to people who love this country and the idea of democracy, but are sick of the morons who wave their flags around-- as it will soon remind others as swastikas in the middle of a parade or just hanging in a shop window. This novel makes you see what happens when you say that someone is infalleable- facism takes control and the free spirited are killed, literally or figuratively.

Throughout East of Eden, John Steinbeck creates characters that are intriguing but pushes their personalities to the extreme ends of the spectrum of good and evil, making them difficult to relate to. Despite this, the characters' interactions and the history that they weave makes a compelling read. The parallel to the Biblical story of Cain and Abel is clear and at times, the familiar struggles of the "Cains" of the book provoke an empathy that the more angelic characters fail to stimulate. Even the evilest of characters such as Cathy, can be identified with more then the more moral characters, such as Adam, and, without a doubt, make for a more interesting read. Still, despite issues with characterization, the book pulls you into its world of interweaving stories and one quickly gets lost in trying to sort out the intricacies of relationships and human traits. Despite puzzling family history stories that will have you wondering about their exact significance to the rest of the book, the parallel themes of guilt and forgiveness tie the book together from beginning to end.

I enjoyed East of Eden immensely. Not only was it a very entertaining read, it was also very enriching. Like a previous reviewer mentioned, it is beneficial for the reader to be knowledgeable about the Bible (specifically the book of Genesis) prior to reading this book. It is the type of book that, after finishing it, will make you just sit and reflect. It offers a lot of insight on human nature, focusing on the potential for good and evil in everyone.

The struggle between good and evil is the dominant theme in this book. Steinbeck talks of the choice that everyone has to be either good (represented by the character Adam) or evil (represented by Cathy). The cast of characters is one of the best developed and most interesting I have ever encountered in a novel. All the characters have a purpose and bring the story to life. I highly recommend this book. You will not regret reading it.

The bible is possibly one of the oldest and most read book in the world. There have been countless numbers of books based on biblical allusions, and "East of Eden" by John Steinbeck ranks top among the ones that I have read. The novel is a modernized re-creation of the story of Cain and Abel, two brothers in the Bible. Steinbeck incorporates the themes of this old biblical story to explore the truths of the human soul.
The story details the layers of good and evil through the characters and relationships of the families of Adam Trask and Samuel Hamilton. Adam Trask is a man who, blinded by illusions and a lost within himself, travels to California with his beautiful, but insidious, prostitute wife. There he meets Samuel Hamilton, a man poor in money but wealthy in life. The novel chronicles the development and relationships of the two men, their families, and the people surrounding their lives. It is an excellent novel, for Steinbeck effectively integrates his message throughout the book.
This is not a carefree, happy novel; rather, it is very dark as it explores the blacker areas of the human soul. Despite the foreboding mood and circumstances of the novel, Steinbeck manages to assert an uplifting message about the strength of human goodness and the perseverance of the human soul. Although the novel is fiction, he magnifies human nature through exaggerated circumstances. We may see a hidden part of ourselves, whether it is deceit on one occasion or jealousy on another, through the characters in the novel. We may also realize that the true message of the novel is indeed a very essential part of our lives. Perhaps this is why I feel that East of Eden is such an exceptional novel: not only does it bravely delve into an exploration of human morality, but it causes us to reflect on our own existence.

This book is short, but it seems to plod along. It feels forced, as though Steinbeck was straining to write about normal people when possibly he couldn't relate to them anymore. The characters are O.K. But nothing like the characters in the other books I have read by him thus far: Grapes, Eden, Cannery and the Pearl. Basically I was disappointed. However, I will still seek out more Steinbeck to read since most of the other works I have mentioned were so monumental. Every writer is allowed a dud here and there, especially one who has such an amazing track record.

"The Winter of our Discontent" was published in 1961, just before Steinbeck received the Nobel Prize in 1962. The story is set in the late 1950s in New Baytown, a small (fictitious) New York -New England town which, Steinbeck tells us, had flourished during the whaling days of the mid-19th century. The main protagonist of the book is Ethan Allen Hawley. Ethan ("eth" to his friends is descended from early pirates and whaling captains. His family had lost its capital through speculative business ventures during WW II and Ethan, with has backround and his Harvard education, is reduced to working as a clerk in a small grocery store he once owned. Marullo, an Italian immigrant, owns the store and calls Ethan "kid".

For a short novel, the book includes a wealth of characters, many of which I found well described. There is Ethan's wife Mary who is impatient with the family's impoverished lots and eager for Ethan's economic success as well as the couple's two children, Allen, who is writing an essay called "Why I Love America" and the sexually precocious daughter Ellen. We meet the town banker, Mr. Baker, a bank clerk and a friend of Ethan's, Margie Young-Hunt, twice married and the town seductress, and Danny Taylor, Ethan's childhood friend who has thrown away a career of promise and become a drunk.

The book describes the deteriorations of Ethan's life as he gradually loses his integrity and succumbs to temptations to lift his life, and the lives of his family members, from its materially humble state to a state consistent with Ethan's felt family heritage and education and with the desire of his family for material comfort. The story is sad and told in a style mixing irony and ambiguity that requires the reader to reflect and dig into what is happening. The story ends on a highly ambiguous note with Ethan's future left in doubt.

The book describes well the lessening of American standards and values. The book seems to attribute the loss to an increasing passion for commercial and economic success among all people in the United States. Juxtaposed with the economic struggle are pictures of, in steinbeck's view, what America was and what it could struggle to be. I think the images are found in religion (much of the story is, importantly, set around Good Friday and Easter and these holidays figure preminently in the book), and in America's political and cultural heritage. In the old town of
New Baytown, America's history figures prominently with speeches from American statesment such as Henry Clay, Daniel Webster, and Abraham Lincoln tucked (suggestively) in the family attic. The book is set against a backround of New England whaling and reminds the reader inevitably of a culture that produced Melville and a work of the caliber of Moby Dick.

The most convincing scenes of the book for me were those where Ethan ruminates his life in his own mind and compulsively walks the streets of New Baytown at night. I was reminded of Robert Frost, a poet of New England and his poem "Acquainted with the Night" which begins:

"I have been one acquainted with the night.
I have walked out in rain -- and back in rain.
I have outwalked the furthest city light."

Steinbeck captures much of the spirit of this wonderful poem.

The plot of the book seems contrived at is climax and depends too much on coincidence. The characters, and their inward reflections on themselves, the descriptions, the setting, and the theme of the book, mingled between a love for our country and a sense of despair, make the book memorable.

Steinbeck comes forth with his usual superb character development as expected. What was unexpected was how relevant his question remains today. Is everyone dishonest in business? Is that what it takes? What happens to an honest man when he tries to get ahead?

The story is set in the typical small American town. If you have ever watched small town politics, you know the cast. Except for Ethan. He is unique because he is honest. He is also "a failure" because he is honest. He has a wonderful wife - never openly begrudging and always accomodating. But then he has two kids, both of whom want to know why he isn't rich or when he will be. They are the future, as children naturally are and the question plays out between them too. Then there is Margie. Like a carbon copy of the perfect wife, she is the perfect "confidant" if you get my drift. As a woman, the contrast between them begs study. But it also pushes the fidelity angle too as Steinbeck goes into her relationships with various men. Like Young Goodman Brown (Hawthorne, I think) who goes to meet the Devil fearing what various people would think only to find out that they are all already there, Hawley questions of morality go there too.

But the true grit of this, for me, is the honesty factor. When being asked by his family when he will be rich, one of his responses is that there are two kinds of money - no money and not enough. It will never be enough. At what point do you stop "bending the rules". Do you "bend the rules" to get a house and security and then behave as an honest and decent man? Or do you then have the "not enough" kind of money and have to keep going. Is to be rich necessarily to be dishonest? And in the return to honesty and decency, will the money be lost?

This is an excellent book - and always will be. As long as we keep doing things we wouldn't "normally" do to make money, i.e. trade off our family and values to do this or do that. Are we being who we want to be? Are we striving to be the best spouse, neighbor, parent or does business come first? And, if so, why? Is that really success?

"Sweet Thursday" is, without a doubt, my personal favorite Steinbeck novel.
Assuredly, he wrote better books -- ones, such as "Cannery Row," for example (and for which this volume serves as a sequel), which were arguably far more profound and which today remain far more prominent in the public mind as examples of Steinbeck's craft -- yet I don't believe that he ever wrote anything with more insight, not mention love and dedication, than "Sweet Thursday."
"Sweet Thursday" is, simply put, a 'love letter;' Steinbeck's love -- for the characters (and the real-life people who inspired those characters), as well as his love for the simple craft of writing -- shines forth in every page. Written approximately fifteen years after its "prequel," "Sweet Thursday" also serves to document Steinbeck's growth as a writer (he'd significantly narrowed the gap in those intervening years between what a writer wants to say -- as expressed by yet another California author [Raymond Chandler] -- and his ability to actually say it).
But above all else, it's simply a "marvelous read;" and, by the way, you don't have to read "Cannery Row" beforehand in order to fully enjoy it.

If you liked Cannery row, this is a lesser known sequel to it, and it is a MUST READ. It is good Steinbeck reading even without having read Cannery Row, but you are cheating your self out of all the tasty character building and incedents in the first book that serve as foundation for Sweet Thursday.

I had read Cannery Row several times before I got my hands on a copy of Sweet Thursday. I was skeptical that a sequel could possibly live up the epic greatness Cannery Row and I was worried that Steinbeck would somehow ruin the wonderful characters of the "palace flophouse." Sweet Thursday is every bit as magical as Cannery Row. The new characters are beautiful and the old characters are so expertly polished that they shine brighter than ever. The book picks up the lives of the Row characters a few years after the events of the first book. Steinbeck masterfully chronicles the rise of an unlikely hero as a frightening crisis threatens the Western Biological Supply. The only mistake I ever made was seeing the movie based on Cannery Row and Sweet Thursday. It was horrible - a crime against Steinbeck.

I read the novel Of Mice and Men, which was recommended to me by my cousin. He told me the book wasn't that long and the story was really nice. So I went to the library and checked it out. When I first started to read the book it seemed kind of boring because the two main characters where just talking back and forth, but after the first two chapters I couldn't put the book down. It was a wonderful book and I had a great time reading it. While I was reading this book it made me think about me and my friends and what friendship really is.

Of Mice and Men is a story about a relationship between two friends who travel around California, working on farms. Lennie is a big, giant, strong man with the mind of a small child traveling with George, a short, smart guy who not only looks after himself but also has to look after his job and take care of his mentally retarded friend, Lennie. George is like Lennie's older brother who watches out for him all the time. Lennie does unintelligent things like carry around dead mouse in this pocket and George always yells at Lennie and gets mad at him yet, George can't go on with his life without Lennie. They travel together working hard on farms and saving up money so their dream can come true. All they want is a place of their own with chicken, rabbits, horses, and other farm animals. On their way to their dream they stop at a farm to make some money where things go wrong because Lennie likes to touch, pet, and hold on to soft things. Their dream is ruined because of Lennie's habit. Lennie likes to touch all things that are soft, and I mean all things that are soft, even a woman's soft pretty dress, or her soft silky hair, which gets Lennie killed by his best friend. George decides that he can no longer protect Lennie from the horrible things that he hadn't intended to do. This was a really hard decision for George but he knew the outcome was going to be the best for both him and Lennie.

Of Mice and Men takes you through life changing events, problems, and dreams of two poor laborers who just want a place of their own, which is just like many people in the world. Many families and friends work together so their dreams can come true. This book also made think of friendship and how we treat our friends and others in the world who are different, and less intelligent then us. People treat others bad, and put them down just because they are different. Even though the ending of this novel seems sad, and heart breaking, I think George did the right thing; he didn't want his friend to live the hard harsh life, in this unkind world. After reading this book, it made me realize that John Steinbeck is a wonderful author and I loved his writing style. It simple, easy to understand, relates to life, teaches you something and leaves you with something to think about. I am a person who doesn't like to read much but when I am assigned to read for a class I tend to find books that interest me. In the future I plan to read this book again and I also want read more of John Steinbeck's novels.

My name is Kelly, and I am a junior in high school and I was recently assigned to read John Stienbeck's novel OF MICE AND MEN. I thouroughly enjoyed reading this book, for many different reasons. For instance, Steinbeck uses a storyline that grabs the attention of all ages, young or old. In the begining, we are introduced to George and Lennie the novel's two main characters. They are fleeing from their former hometown in search of a new job opportunity on a ranch located in the Salinas Valley. The two fathem a dream of owning their own ranch one day with lots of acres and rabbits. They work out a plan to earn money so this dream can be fulfilled. While on the ranch the young childish Lennie is objected to numerous situations, in which they put George in akward posiitions. George's loyalty is constantly tested throughout the novel. With a surprise ending their dream seems to fade away. This book is one everyone should read, because it teaches the meaning of friendship and the "American Dream".

Although not one of the lengthiest books to ever hit the shelves, Steinbeck's Of Mice and Men is definitely a warhorse in the arena of American Literature. Illustrating the fierce love between two friends, Steinbeck takes the reader on a journey through the poverty stricken lands of the West. These two friends, George and Lennie, are the two main characters of the novel, and their journeys from job to job hold only one thing in common: they keep their dreams to one day own their own little patch of land. Because of Lennie's combination of mental retardation and incredible strength, he often gets into troublesome situations and ends up leaving town. George always goes with Lennie, but in the tragic end, George realizes that he cannot keep protecting Lennie from the world.

There is much to this book, but it can easily be read as simply a sad story. I found it very readable, and I have always kept it close to my heart. There are some instances of foul language and inappropriate situations, but they in no way are distracting to the overall thematic content. Steinbeck's evocative language and beautiful descriptions are breathtaking. The story is not so complex or farfetched that it becomes unbelievable, and I highly recommend it to anyone that is considering reading it. I truly do love this book.

I admit to approaching the reading of "The Grapes of Wrath" with some preconceived negative notions. Having it be a "required" read was also not encouraging. However, about 100 pages into the story, I became captivated by the Joad family---particularly Tom, a man of great moral integrity, and the strong-willed but loving Ma Joad who provides the family's source of strength and courage in the face of overwhelming adversity. While some parts may make you flinch in horror, others will make you sad to realize these events really happened in the land of plenty.

"The Grapes of Wrath" is an engrossing tale of one Oklahoma family seeking not their fame and fortune, but just the hope of putting a few scraps of food on the table. Join them in their clunker of a truck as all 12 of them pile in to make the long and arduous drive west to California in the hopes of finding work picking fruit. They lose family members along the way, some by death and some by choice, but they learn a lot about friendship and taking care of not only their loved ones but also the strangers who find themselves in the same dire straits as the Joads are in. Steinbeck's descriptions of the hunger, the hardship, the futile search for work, the disappointments, the hostile environment the migrants faced in California, all make for an eye-opening read. This is a great source of information on how it was for one group of people during the Depression.

It may not be one of the great novels of the twentieth century, its characters are often overly-sentimental, and its theme is relatively simple, but it is a landmark of literature for the way it portrays the Depression in the western United States. This book has been proven to be an accurate portrayal of the victims of the Oklahoma Dust Bowl.

Steinbeck alternates plot-driven chapters that feature the story of the Joads with chapters that focus on the large-scale problems of the economic history of California and the psychology of groups of migrants and of the landowners. These large-scale chapters provide background information and a broad world view that gives weight to the Joads' struggle, while the story of the Joads gives the large-scale chapters a sympathetic human face.

Whether you love or hate the book, you will probably never forget this story of one family's valiant fight to survive while the world around them collapses and disintegrates.

The novel was made into an excellent film in 1940 which starred a very young Henry Fonda as Tom Joad.

When I was first assigned to read John Steinbeck's book The Grapes of Wrath in English class, the first thing that I noticed was how huge it was. Over 600 pages! I was afraid it would be a story that wandered all over the place and didn't really have a point. Even after I had begun reading, it seemed that this assumption was correct since all book seemed to be doing was telling a very detailed and slow-moving story about a family in Oklahoma. However, as I continued reading, I began to realize that the very way the book portrays the life of these people so realistically and what the reader learns from their situation is itself the point of the book. The Grapes of Wrath is the story of the Joad family, an Oklahoma family of tenant farmers during the Great Depression who are kicked out of their homes because they cannot make a profit on their crops. As more and more farmers are kicked off their land to be replaced by men on tractors, over 300,000 people migrate west to California in hopes of earning a living picking fruit, cotton, etc... for owners with larger farms. Hardship follows them during the long trip to California. Even once they get there, they're divided against themselves as they compete for work so they can just feed their families. Throughout the book the family encounters opposition from all sorts of people, including land owning farmers who must pay extremely low wages in order to make a profit, cops who cause more trouble than good, locals who are afraid of the massive influx of people, and a government that seems unable to help. In the end it's sheer will that gives them the strength to continue to fight as the Depression relentlessly tries to break the people's determination and the family bonds. The Grapes of Wrath gives a very realistic view of the Great Depression and tells it from viewpoints you don't see from just reading about it in a history textbook. The book is divided into narrative chapters that tell the story of the Joads, and, every other chapter, the inter chapters that give information about the situation in a style that's part documentary, part editorial. Throughout the book, especially during the inter chapters, Steinbeck uses symbolism to convey ideas. In particular, there are many allusions to the Bible, including the title. Due to its realistic portrayal of the life of the migrants, the book has also come under considerable controversy for its profanity and sex, since those things were parts of the lives of these people. Also, Steinbeck uses the inter chapters both to make people aware of the problems and to give suggestions for how to deal with them, and many of his beliefs could be seen as Communistic. I have really found The Grapes of Wrath to be a difficult book to rate. On the one hand, it's a slow-moving book that contains a whole lot of talk that people who aren't really into reading books for fun will likely find boring, and it's just too long to hold some people's interest. On the other hand, however, the character interaction is very realistic and human, being based on actual migrants Steinbeck knew. Because of this, we get to feel like we really know the people in the book. The seemingly excessive length of the book is actually needed to give us a real understanding of how these people lived their lives. When the characters get into intense situations that threaten the physical and psychological well-being of the family both as a group of individuals and as a single unit, the book reaches hights of drama and emotional intensity that is almost never matched today in movies, books, video games, music, or any of our other forms of art. I often found myself just sitting there thinking about what I'd just read for a while after I finished with the required reading for the day. There's not really space within this 1,000 word limit to fully discuss my thoughts on this book, but what I can say is that it will draw you into the world of the migrants in the 1930's and show you plainly and truthfully just what it was like. I can understand the opinion of people who hate this book because it's all a matter of taste, and some people just would not be able to forgive the many parts they consider agonizingly boring. Although I give this book four stars overall, there are parts of it that I'd give 10 stars if I could. I highly recommend this powerful book to anyone.

I must have read Steinbeck's "Grapes of Wrath" a half dozen times since I first picked it up as a high school student. The story of the ongoing hope and determination of the displaced migrants, pitted against the disdainful land-owners, highlights a 20th century conflict between traditional values of inherent virtue and the interests of business, economic efficiency, and the profit-seeking wealthy. The first few times I read this story, I saw only a tract that promotes centralized state authority and socialist constructs as a solution to injustice and poverty, as also appears in Upton Sinclair's "The Jungle". In my later years, however, I have seen Steinbeck's prophecy against the hypocrisy of those who would call themselves "Christian" and "righteous", then ignore the essential tenets of their faith to serve their own interests, the minute they've left church on Sunday. The book continues to speak to our own age, when the well-to-do in the "winner-take-all" competition of the modern marketplace find it all too convenient to neglect the poor that remain. Although history has since proven the value of a free-market economy, its "winners" are just as human as its "losers", and cannot in good conscience brush them aside, discounting them as products of their own failings.