The Grapes of Wrath

Rating:
Summary: Wonderful
Review: The greatest book written by an American author

Rating:
Summary: important historical view of how fast a nation can change
Review: This was of course, wonderful

Rating:
Summary: Bad naturalism and bad propaganda
Review: As if it weren't bad enough that _The Grapes of Wrath_ is an example of naturalism, it's even worse that it is *bad* naturalism laced with tear-jerking propaganda. John Steinbeck was a well-known leftist. So what? So was Victor Hugo, but Hugo was a bonafide romantic writer. Steinbeck couldn't even devise a plot, aside from the weary, disconnected journey of a destitute family.

Aside from its nauseating politics, the entire novel is filled with filthy characters doing nothing in particular save a near-constant whining about their sorry "fate." And the end is so unspeakably stomach-turning that any virtues _Grapes_ might have had are dashed for a cheap gross-out.

Save your minds and stomachs. Read Hugo instead.

Rating:
Summary: Important and moving but how can you call it irrelevant ?
Review: I can understand people calling the plodding dialogue dull but how can so many Americans sit there and discard this book as irrelevant and untrue or the work of 'reds'. Have we learned nothing? When something in this magnitude happens to you and your family I hope there isn't one person who says the issue is stupid or boring.

On a lighter note I've never read a book with so many untied ends but that's OK I guess - art mirrors life successfully in that regard sometimes. I found myself thinking "How can I be reading dialogue about two children bickering over a flower when so much has yet to happen and we have only a couple of pages to go?".

I found myself trying to distance myself from the family at times because I could see the direction things were going. The late passages where they get work and are suddenly "flush" for a while are glossed over and so incidental that I did wonder whether the relentless beating my concience was being given was perhaps being overdone.

A message of hope about the human spirit after all that and many beautiful passages.

Rating:
Summary: This book is a perfect blend of drama, history, and emotions
Review: This book is an amazing piece of literature which has made millions of people both think about and discuss this book, as you can see on this webpage. All those who gave this book under a four-star rating do not truly understand good literature and should stick to "The Baby-Sitter's Club" series.

Rating:
Summary: Not my favorite Steinbeck
Review: Steinbeck is one of my favorite authors but I preferred East of Eden, Tortilla Flat, Cannery Row, The Long Valley and others to Grapes of Wrath.

Rating:
Summary: Beautiful, yet harrowing story of the sacrifices offamilies
Review: This book is truely one of the master pieces of the 20th century and Steinbeck one of the best story tellers of our time. It is a simple book of hard times and how one family has to cope with the times by moving states in the hope of work. As we move into the new mellenium this book reminds us that we should not forget the hardship that our forefathers endured.

Rating:
Summary: There's a reason scholars call it a masterpiece.
Review: I get personally offended when I read reviews accusing this masterpiece of being "boring." I suppose if one is extremely uneducated, this towering drama of American restlessness can seem boring, but if one is that uneducated, one should stick with Mary Higgins Clark. Steinbeck isn't difficult stuff, people. The language is far from that horribly stuffy Charles Dickens crap; rather, it's closer in style and elegant simplicity to the pinnacle of 19th-century American literature, Mark Twain. The dialogue is NOT trite, it's sparse. The descriptive passages are NOT monotonous, they're stark and yet detailed. The plot is NOT far-fetched, it's based on a journey undertaken by thousands of discontented pilgrims.

I will not go so far as to call this work the Greatest American Novel, or even the Greatest American Novel of the Twentieth Century. It's up there, without a doubt, if only because of its social influence and the underbelly that it exposes. But in addition to being one of the GREATEST books, it is also one of the BEST books. It's genuinely interesting...gripping...engaging. I read it a few years ago, I think during the summer between the 10th and 11th grades, and I could barely put it down. It's one of those rare novels: a page-turner, yet with prose sometimes delicious enough to roll through your imagination a few times, savoring the language composition. And after you've finished reading, you find that the novel has left you profoundly affected.

So it's not just a Great Book; it's a really really good book as well. It's powerful, it's enjoyable on every level. Read it and be changed.

Rating:
Summary: It's not about literature, it's about life...
Review: This book should not be required reading for anyone. It should be sought out by those ready to enrich themselves, and those who want to 'feel' what it is like to be out of society's main stream. I would also recommend Ayn Rand's "Atlas Shrugged" for those wishing to understand how people on the other side of life's river view the world. We, the people, are the heros in both these novels, and my life has been enriched by having heard these stories. I highly recommend these books as valuable assets to our collective compassion and the individual spirit. There is plenty of room for both, and we can afford to lose neither... BTW - both are available on Audio for those who commute.

Rating:
Summary: Pure American hokum
Review: Though I've read many bad books, none can compare with this trite, contrived piece of work. Every line, every word, is deliberate and pretentious--Steinbeck is pounding it into our collective consciences at every step that this is a great work of art. People have called this book propaganda, but that doesn't even begin to cover it. Nowhere else will you find such schmaltzy dialogue, or such a laborious, falsely deep message. But I recommend everyone read this book, just to get a taste of what absolute tripe millions of people are capable of swallowing.