John Steinbeck opinions?

  • Thread starter Thread starter Augustine8
  • Start date Start date
Status
Not open for further replies.
A

Augustine8

Guest
Having been more excited by literature recently, I have gotten really into John Steinbeck and his style of writing. His writing can be very profane, so I don’t think he’s for everyone. I’m still in high school but I just finished the Grapes of Wrath and I think I can handle it. What do you guys think about Steinbeck?
 
I’ve read several of his shorter works. I really enjoy his realistic, gritty style. He and Flannery O’Connor have a similar tenor.

-Fr ACEGC
 
My favorite is Travels with Charley! It’s somewhat autobiographical about his standard poodle Charley and himself traveling through America…wonderful!
 
At one time another I read most of his novels and shorter works. The two that made the biggest impression are Of Mice and Men and Junius Maltby which was at at the end of The Red Pony.
 
I really like Steinbeck. He’s one of my favorite authors. If I had to choose one of his, The Pearl is probably my favorite. I read it the first time in 7th or 8th grade and have reread it a few times since.
NevermoreLenore said:
I read East of Eden whilst in the hospital recovering from pancreatic cancer surgery. I loved it. As someone mentioned above, Flannery O’Connor is another excellent writer. These books aren’t necessarily feel-good books; rather, they address the dark realities of life, often in very stark, alarming, and powerful ways (ie O’Conner’s A Good Man is Hard to Find).

Other literature I love: Crime and Punishment, anything by Dostoevsky actually; 1984; Slaughterhouse 5; The Picture of Dorian Gray… I tend to prefer older literature, history, and other nonfiction. Have fun on your journey!! As a voracious reader, I know how fun it is to ‘discover’ a new author or genre.

Edited to add: how could I have neglected Edgar Allen Poe, my namesake’s inspiration?! Matthew Arnold(A Buried Life), William Wordsworth…okay I need to stop
Click to expand...
This is a post I could have written myself. But tell me NevermoreLenore, how is Poe an after thought! That is about the biggest laugh I’ve had today!

ETA: if you haven’t already read it, Animal Farm is also good. Some schools still have it as required reading so it may be something you’ve already read.
 
Last edited:
I just discovered Steinbeck within the past 10 years. I love his style. The Grapes of Wrath is excellent - have you seen the movie with Henry Fonda? It’s very good.
 
I’ve read all of Steinbeck. East of Eden is my favorite. Great film version too with James Dean among other stars.
 
I read East to Eden when I was 14 or so and loved it. It’s a good moralistic story, very biblical, also tragic and romantic. The movie was disappointing but so are all movies after you read the book.
I also liked “Of Mice and Men”, it’s like a Cohen Brothers story before they were even born.
His shortest works I did not like at all. They were like others have said just contemplating the grim side of life with no point to them in my eyes.
But I usually don’t like short stories. It’s not enough to develop a story that makes sense. I regard them as exercises of writing that writers need to do in order to write a serious story like a novel.
 
I recently heard what a raven sounds like when they speak. I always thought it would be high pitched like a parrot. It’s actually pretty low pitched, like a man’s voice.

It made the story much more eerie in my mind.
 
John Steinbeck’s work is classic American literature. The Grapes of Wrath and Harper Lee’s To Kill A Mockingbird are two of my all-time favorite books.
Steinbeck in The Grapes of Wrath gives a good description of just how miserable life was for many Americans during the Great Depression.
I remember stories my grandmother used to tell me about my grandfather who had an engineering degree from a major university, but could only find a job driving a truck during the Depression. Sad, hard times indeed.
 
He’s a big name in American literature, no question about it, but I wonder if his star is dimming somewhat.
 
Yeah that last scene of Grapes Of Wrath…
Had to read it for high school and was like “what? Ewww”
 
tomarin said:
He’s a big name in American literature, no question about it, but I wonder if his star is dimming somewhat.
Click to expand...
He hasn’t produced anything new in years… 😉

I’m not a great critic of American writers by any means, but Grapes of Wrath is an outstanding book and the movie is also outstanding.
 
Last edited:
Augustine8 said:
Having been more excited by literature recently, I have gotten really into John Steinbeck and his style of writing. His writing can be very profane, so I don’t think he’s for everyone. I’m still in high school but I just finished the Grapes of Wrath and I think I can handle it. What do you guys think about Steinbeck?
Click to expand...
I love Steinbeck. The Grapes of Wrath and East of Eden are two of my favorite novels. His short stories such as the Pearl and Of Mice and Men are great as well.
 
I didn’t know anyone read old books to be surprised at the endings. I sure don’t. By the time one bothers to read a book older than 10 years, everybody already knows how it ends, and the reason one is reading is to appreciate the craft of the author or else because you’re required to read it for some class.
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Back
Top