Book Review: Travels with Charley (Steinbeck)
Have I read this before: No.
Review: This is Steinbeck + dog Charley traveling across the US in a camper. It’s basically the great American road trip with a lot of reflection about the state of America and the American people. He makes sure to note the differences in the people and cultures from state to state, especially as he hits the Midwest and then the West. It’s a summary of the flaws of a country and its people from someone who’s really good at describing the flaws of a country and its people.
Favorite Part: A few good quotes:
“I have always heard that Maine people are rather taciturn, but for this candidate for Mount Rushmore to point twice in an afternoon was to be unbearably talkative.”
After getting a flat tire: “It was obvious that the other tire might go at any moment, and it was Sunday and it was raining and it was Oregon. If the other tire blew, there we were, on a wet and lonesome road, having no recourse except to burst into tears and wait for death.”
“Americans are much more American than they are Northerners, Southerners, Westerners, or Easterners. And descendants of English, Irish, Italian, Jewish, German, Polish are essentially American. This is not patriotic whoop-de-do; it is carefully observed fact. … It is astonishing that this has happened in less than two hundred years and most of it in the last fifty. The American identity is an exact and provable thing.”
Rating: 6/10
Book Review: The Grapes of Wrath (Steinbeck)
Have I read this before: I got through like ten pages in junior high and was like NOPE
Review: So. Steinbeck. I stand by the claim that this should NOT be your first exposure to Steinbeck. Read The Pearl or East of Eden or Of Mice and Men first. I’m not saying The Grapes of Wrath is bad. It’s not. It’s very compelling. But it’s a slow burn at the start. And I mean sloooooooooow buuuuuuuuuuuurn. Like “trying to set water on fire” kind of slow burn. I’m sure that was why I had trouble getting into it when I was younger. But once you do, it’s definitely worth it. I owe Steinbeck an apology for hating on him since like 7th grade, but in my defense, SLOOOOOOOOOOOW BUUUUUUUUUUUURN.
Favorite Part: The ending scene. It’s very jarring and heart-wrenching and really shows the desperation of the time.
Rating: 6/10
Book Review: Of Mice and Men (Steinbeck)
Have I read this before: Nope. As mentioned before, I was an idiot and made The Grapes of Wrath my first introduction to Steinbeck way back in junior high and was so turned off by it that I’ve only been able to give him a second chance in the past several months.
Review: I’d only ever seen Family Guy’s interpretation of this story, so I did have a bit of background going into it and knew what to expect (to an extent). Steinbeck, I’m starting to learn, is really good at expressing despair and desperation in all the ways they can be experienced. I know there’s a lot of positive aspirations and hope in this story, but it’s all overshadowed by all the little things that build up to the main event which, in turn, heightens that feeling of despair that, in my opinion, underlies everything in the novella.
Favorite Part: The buildup to that climactic scene. It’s subtle, even if you know it’s coming.
Rating: 6/10
Book review: East of Eden (Steinbeck)
Have I read this before: Nope. It’s Steinbeck, who I had avoided up until just recently.
Review: This is a fantastic book. There are a decent number of characters and they’re all very interwoven in their lives and stories. There’s obviously a lot of Biblical analogies and references, but it’s not obnoxious about it. There’s also a lot of depth to the story as a whole and it has a lot of moving parts.
Favorite Part: I liked this interesting conversation amongst Adam, Samuel, and Lee when Adam was trying to name his two sons:
Samuel: “Have you thought of your own name?”
“Mine?”
“Of course. Your first-born – Cain and Abel.”
Adam said, “Oh, no. No, we can’t do that.”
“I know we can’t. That would be tempting whatever fate there is. But isn’t it odd that Cain is maybe the best-known name in the whole world and as far as I know only one man has ever borne it?”
Lee said, “Maybe that’s why the name has never changed its emphasis.”
Just an interesting take.
Rating: 6/10
Book Review: The Pearl (Steinbeck)
Have I read this before: Nope. Steinbeck.
Review: So I have avoided reading anything by Steinbeck for the longest time because back when I was in junior high I’d picked up The Grapes of Wrath, read about 20 pages, and hated every last single word. But I have a decent amount of Steinbeck on my list and I can’t hide from him forever, so I chose the shortest work of his that was on the list and went for it.
And it wasn’t too bad. I don’t remember exactly what it was I hated about The Grapes of Wrath way back when, but there was nothing in this story to suggest that there was anything inherent in Steinbeck’s writing style or choice of themes to make me hate his writing in general.
The Pearl is quick and sad. It struck me as somewhat similar to The Old Man and the Sea in a few ways, but of course they’re very different stories.
Guess I’ll have to read more Steinbeck.
Rating: 6/10
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