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Summary: That's not dust in your eye...
Review: John Steinbeck's triumphant, classic tale of Oklahoma's "Dust Bowl" migration of families to California, as they try to rebuild their tattered lives in the face of insurmountable odds; prejudice, ignorance, and a deepening economic depression. This seminal work transcends the fictional construction of it's impoverished family, as they suffer the loss of their elders on the journey to the promised land of migrant laborers, only to find their hopes dashed in the dwindling labor markets, and mounting hatred of California's equally impoverished population. This is Steinbeck's greatest creation, and a telling piece of Americana which affirms the indomitable spirit of those who experienced the worst era in modern history.
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Summary: An amazing authors.
Review: There are some authors that have so much talent that it is inhuman. Eudora Welty, T.S. Eliot, Faulkner, and, quite obviously, Steinbeck. If you are a beginning writer, do not read this, because it will depress you to no end.
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Summary: Why the Grapes of Wrath?
Review: When George Steinbeck made this book, he assigned the title "the Grapes of Wrath". Why did he do this? I personally think that he did this to make his readers ponder the meaning of the title. I think that it means different things to anyone that reads the title. To mean it means, The hardships of life.
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Summary: TRULY A "MASTERPIECE"
Review: I don't know how anyone could read this book and not give it a five star rating. The true test for me of a "great book" is one that stays with me -- one I can't stop thinking about long after I've finished. I read this book for the second time in my life a month ago (first time was in high school many years ago), and I'm still haunted by the suffering endured by the Joad family. The interesting thing is that Steinbeck wrote this book in 1939 at the height of the injustices being fraught upon the migrant workers in California. I'm sure it wasn't popular then as it brought to the forefront the corruption of some powerful people in America. It also spoke to the conscience of every American which eventually led to political reform in California. After reading this book, I did some research into Steinbeck's motivation and learned that he was haunted by the plight of California's migrant workers to the point of obsession. To fuel his anger, he would visit the migrant camps each day full of their dirt, disease and hungry people and then return home to write about those people responsible for these conditions -- people he considered to be murderers.Steinbeck concentrated on the circumstances of one family, The Joads, tenant farmers in Oklahoma until they were forced out by the larger companies who wanted their land back. With dreams of luscious grapes and peaches in abundance waiting to be picked, they loaded up their belongings and began their journey on Route 66 headed for Bakersfield, California. They began their trip with a bevy of colorful characters led by Ma and Pa Joad. It's amazing how much power Steinbeck gave to Ma Joad -- years before women had any right to a voice. Unfortunately, just as the Joads were heading out, so were thousands upon thousands of other families. This would ultimately lead to supply and demand. There would be too many workers for the few jobs available and, consequently, people would be agreeing to work for peanuts just to be able to feed their families. Steinbeck's writing is astounding as the unrest of the migrants builds to a crescendo and just as the dust has risen in Oklahoma, so will the voices of the poor migrant workers. Steinbeck says, "In the eyes of the hungry, there is a growing wrath. In the souls of the people, the grapes of wrath are growing heavy." It is just a matter of time before their wrath is unleashed and you can feel it in every page you turn. He says that, "Our people are good people; our people are kind people. Pray God some day kind people won't all be poor. Pray God someday a kid can eat." I don't know how you can read some of his words and not get teary eyed. But sixty years have passed since the writing of this book and there are still migrant stories to be told and kids who have no food to eat yet sadly the world continues despite its injustices. I won't kid you into believing that this is an easy book to read. The first 150 pages are so slow going that I almost had to put it down. But I kept on going just as the Joad's kept on going and I'm certainly glad I did. We could all take a lesson from their quest for survival and their quest just to be able to eat the next day. Their determination, in light of all the obstacles they had to face, is truly a lesson to be learned. You feel a sense of accomplishment after reading a book like this -- I know I did.
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Summary: Literary Classic
Review: The word classic gets thrown around alot in describing books, movies, music, etc. Very few books can claim that title, but John Steinbeck's The Grapes Of Wrath is one of them. The book was released in 1939 during the Great Depression and it details the journey The large Joad family takes from Oklahoma to California. The family at one time had a burgeoning farm, but the land dried up and became barren. They are told that California is the land of milk and honey and jobs would be waiting for them. They face hardships and discrimination along the way. They are looked down upon as dirty Okies and life isn't so sweet. Life is bleak and Mr. Steinbeck's vivid description of the camps that the Joad's set up in are heartbreakingly depressing. The heart of the book is Ma & Pa Joad's oldest son Tom. Tom is Mr. Steinbeck embodiment of the struggle of the little guy in America at the time. He has committed crimes, but he doesn't do them because he is bad, but he is forced to out of desperation. The Grapes Of Wrath is not an uplifting story, but it is an incredible, real, believable American tale and a true literary classic.
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Summary: One Of The Most Enduring American Novels Ever!
Review: I was much more impressed by Steinbeck's distinctive writing style than I was with the general concept of the book. The author brings characters to life better than any book I've ever read. It's very difficult not to be enthralled while reading The Grapes Of Wrath. The book has historical value, and sentimental value aswell. And it just simply belongs in any personal collection.
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Summary: A picture of the past
Review: In his own way steinbeck has captured the true picture of what was going on in a time of great suffering. This story has forever captured what our grandparents went through. Listeb to the voice Steinbeck has called uo from the past and experance the true story of suffering and survival.
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Summary: Dust and Turtles
Review: After FINALLY completing the book, I realized that I did enjoy the themes Steinbeck illustrated. However, it did bother me that there was an entire chapter dedicated to the trials and tribulations of a turtle. It made a good point, but it was so long. And how long can one go on about dust? I realize it's the dustbowl, but some of Steinbeck's descriptions are a bit excessive. If you are required to read it, as many high school students are, enjoy it's themes, but don't leave reading the 600 page book to the last minute.
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Summary: A disturbing look at the haves and have-nots
Review: This book is quite possibly the best book I've ever read. It is a story of the Joad family; a poor share-cropping family in oklahoma during the dust bowl. Having fallen on hard times thanks to bad crops and an uncaring system, they are forced to go west. Their journey exposes the very worst of class distinction. The Joads are forced to live in unspeakable conditions, and like the other migrant families are constantly harrassed and exploited by the powers that be. This is a vivid tale of the human condition and a message to all of us. Steinbeck does a masterful job of telling the story. He pulls no punches and makes no excuses for the barbaric treatment of the migrants. He tells a story that the world might have otherwise forgotten, and makes us consider the fairness of it all.
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Summary: Meet Ma Joad!
Review: Steinbeck's epic American novel is, in my estimate, the 20th century reply to Melville's despair-ridden MOBY DICK. In the latter, Evil is incarnated as a Force of Nature...The Great White Whale. The monster mocks human effort to defy and delimit its destructive power while obsessing the most heroic (Ahab) with blind-defiance of self-absorption ending in catatrophic self and COMMUNAL annihilation. Spirit becomes anti-spirit. Those...to recall Blake...who behold it die "howling in dread and pain". In THE GRAPES of WRATH radical evil of Man's greed in conjunct with the blind wrath of Nature, is opposed not by the spirit of DEFIANCE but defied and transformed by the spirit of humility and generosity. Ma Joad, n my opinion, is one of the greatest heroes of modern literature. Her answer to evil that "lurks behind pasteboard masks" is love and unconditonal care...in and for FAMILY. Unlike the crew of the Pequod which is destroyed in apocalyptic battle, THE JOAD FAMILY...presenting the heart and soul of a tried Nation...is renewed by sacrifice and commitment to Goodness. MA JOAD is the spiritual force centering and nourishing renewal. She is a MYTHIC MOTHER figure. Goethe called such DAS EWIG-WEIBLICHE..."the Eternal Feminine". Dante called her BEATRICE. World literature, mythology and...sometimes life...summon and assert Sacred Care as the force that can "defy" evil and transform its potential victims into better, stronger human beings. Again and again, Ma Joad insists the primacy of FAMILY...the Community of ultimate fellowship...that must be nurtured and preserved at all costs. AHAB and the anti-heroes may be more dramatic but their self-centeredness betrays illusions of grandeur and reveals and revels in a suicidal reality. They are heralds of DEATH. The caring, sometimes holy, other-Centeredness of THE MA JOADS' is source of redemptive RENEWAL. This is why Melville called MOBY DICK a "wicked book": there is no possibility of redemption/Renewal. In THE GRAPES OF WRATH, Steinbeck...particularly in the person of the plain and simple MA JOAD...incarnates care and other-centered, unconditional LOVE. She unconsciously knows this is humanity's best chance for itself and the children of posterity. Read this great novel and allow yourself to be renewed by Steinbeck's affirmation of human dignity and hope.... 10 STARS!
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