Grapes of Wrath, by John Steinbeck

    I recently finished reading John Steinbeck’s classic Grapes of Wrath: poetry in novel form. This book appears on Time’s List of the 100 Best Novels, a list compiled of books written between 1923 and 2005 in the English language. It was remarkable to read, each word meant to be there, no extra, none missing. The writing style was simple but poetic. The story does not have a classic rising and falling action, climax between, but is more of a journey. Steinbeck’s skill with words is truly phenomenal.

     The story begins in rural Oklahoma during the Great Depression and documents a family’s journey to California. The story contains little happiness, save for the little things. As the pages turn, the family starves, looses one member after another, and generally loses heart. Has the story grows, so does the anger, the ‘grapes of wrath’ on the vine. Families starve as food goes to waste, burned and destroyed by the owners of farms. Big businesses take over the smaller ones, lives are overturned, and the world darkens.

    For those interested in literature and without the need of adventure in their reading, Grapes of Wrath is a great book and I recommend it. It is not a pretty, happy, or fulfilling story, but it means something, and it is worth the read.

My Favorites:

• Character:
• Tom Joad, Jr. 
• Scene:
• the stand-down in Hooverville