The Grapes of Wrath

I don't think I was ready to read this book the first time I read (part of) it, way back when I was 17 or so, for an english class. There is too much that would have been foreign to me (the past is another country and all that), and the themes of solidarity among poor folks, of the strength and weaknesses of family (which I will always say as “fambly” now, in my head, thanks to this book) were just as foreign to me as earning a dollar a day to feed one's family is.

I do wish I had read it fifteen or so years ago, though, when I was working in a straight-up retail environment, for fairly large companies–the book makes clear how, much of the time, “I'm just doing my job” is another way to say “the system is fucked up, I recognize that, but I'm trying to survive, just like you are”. “The owners” rig the game from the start, and that rigging includes a divide-and-conquer strategy that does much of the work of keeping people in line. A small example from retail: Most companies don't allow one to disclose how much one earns. This is ostensibly to keep things “private”, but really it is to ensure that folks don't band together, realizing that the game is rigged by looking at how much some folks make vs. what other folks make.

The central theme that will stay with me from the book, though, is how well Steinbeck communicates that people want to work–they want an honest day's pay for that work, but they would rather work than not work. This is something that folks who have never been poor often don't quite understand: Human beings like to feel like we are contributing to something, like we are building something bigger than ourselves. We like to work with other people–we are social animals. Creating, working, playing–these are all inextricably intertwined, and if they're not all engaged in a person, slow death happens. The Grapes of Wrath conveys this wonderfully.


Less clear is the theme that the workers will “rise up” someday, in anger, and take what they deserve–this theme runs deeply in the book, but also doesn't paint a picture that gives room in reality for this happening. By the end of the book, the little hope that exists seems to be eclipsed by the foundations of power that have already been laid by “the owners”.

ps: The book is not perfect, of course, and is a product of its time. Race and gender aren't dealt with much at all, and there are some glaring problems with how the family treats black folks and native americans (who are both almost nonexistent in the book, which also seems unlikely). That said, as a snapshot of one family that can be generalized in various ways, it's also a universalizable story.

Late thoughts and consequently a little less coherent. Steinbeck gets polemical, but I don't fault him in the slightest. Honestly, I don't know the mindset that would be offended by this; I could only get guilt at my ignorance and complicity. I think the scary part is the recognition of the same capitalistic impulses around us today, the xenophobia, the sense of dignity and defeat that characterises the Joads and their fellow migrants. I've read some who thought the ending was abrupt, but I feel that betrays the desire for a neat conclusion, a happy ending, some grand finale. There was no real happy ending to the Dust Bowl and Great Depression, only war; people just died, and those who killed them spewed their indignation as they continue to do now. If there's one thing that bothers me, lacking the Christian fervor, it's that I don't think the hope and threat in the title came to pass, not in the novel and certainly not in real life. The grapes of wrath didn't grow heavy in the souls of the people, mine eyes have not seen the glory of the coming of the Lord, and deliverance from oppression will not be automatic.

Read this, build some empathy, and decide what you're going to do about it.

I read up to chapter 11, then read reviews and summaries of the book before reading the ending and moving this to my ???did not finish??? shelf.

(Note: I had to create a ???did not finish??? shelf just for this book. I am not the sort to perpetually start reading books only to toss them aside unfinished.)

I could see what the author was doing and appreciated that he accomplished his goal so well but I just have no interest in spending more hours of my life continuing to read the rest of the book.

The descriptive scenes of the environment are beautifully cinematic in their composition and there is a description of an iron man on an iron monster (a tractor driven by a man who has become little more than a replaceable cog in a wheel) that is so stunningly written that I dog-eared the page so I could easily find it again.

Aside from those two things of note, however, the book has no redeeming qualities. Not every story needs to have a happy ending or to be uplifting or positive or hopeful to be a good one (this one has none of those qualities), but when it is also not in the least bit enjoyable to read, I have a hard time justifying spending time I can never regain on continuing to read it.

Not one of the characters introduced thus far is at all likable or endearing. Their dialogue is so excessively riddled with profanity that I counted over 80 occurrances before I stopped numbering them (and remember, I only read chapters 1-10). The ending is not at all satisfying and is actually quite strange; perhaps even a little disturbing.

All in all, this was just not the book for me. There are others that I think far more worthy of the descriptors commonly bestowed upon masterful works, and I could not be happier (or more relieved) to put this book away knowing I shall never finish it so I can move on to another (much better) classic.

Painful and gut-wrenching prose. It will hit you like a punch which requires more than a few moments to catch your breath. Steinback weaves the story with prose that makes you want to complete it as fast as you can and savour it for a little longer.

P.S. The end hit me the hardest and was duly addressed with a meltdown.

4.25 stars/5 .
The main things that I've appreciated in the book-1. the family bonding, I was pleasantly surprised when I saw the Joad family members had a close connection with each of them esp Ma, her support of Rosahran and Tom during the hard times,2. the characterisation- most of the characters were not one dimensional and layered and even Rose who wasn't that noteworthy, her kindness and bravery during the last scene of the book were pretty commendable, Casy wasn't a very strict religious ex-preacher, he has his disagreements with his almighty3. The end was pretty anti-climatic but I guess Steinbeck wanted to end it realistically without too much sadness or unnatural happiness, the migrant workers' condition is still unknown and hard, Tom probably following Casey's path and maybe he's going to die, Noah, Connie had no mention at last(although I hate him still).....

“In the souls of the people the grapes of wrath are filling and growing heavy, growing heavy for the vintage.”

It's a bad time for the Joads and it's a bad time for Oklahoma and it's a bad time for America. Finally, the Joads pack up or sell everything they have and take off for California. There are ominous warnings along the way that California may not be all it has been made to be, and all of the warnings come true, but the Joads have nowhere else to go and so they stay and try and do the best they can, as they slowly wither away.

I read this first in high school and loved it then, though I didn't understand a lot of it. Now, forty years later, it's as good as it was then, or maybe better. What a story. Life, death, work, hunger, pain, cruelty, kindness...it's all in this book.

If you want to pick one good book to read this year, I'd say for you to read this one. It will stick with you. So much so that you may want to read it again in forty years and see what you take away then.

[note, listened to this as an audiobook, excellently narrated by John Chancer]

This is great writing and the themes in it are as relevant today as they were back then. Chapter 5 alone is worth it. For a book to retain such powerful themes that resonate well after their time is a sign of something special.

The structure of the book is interesting and works once you are used to it. I like the solid tempo of the writing. I love the characters, good people - not perfect - and the author brings out their humanity. How could you not feel for Tom and the various travellers they meet along the way? And how is the dynamic between Ma and Pa, where they openly talk about giving each other a “whuppin'”. And the language, the “fambly” (family) and “overhauls” (overalls) etc.

This is a dimension to the human cost of an aggressive capitalist system that I had not encountered before. It was startlingly powerful and moving.

The ending seemed a little weird at the time, but on reflection reminded me of the more recent, The Road, where you are delicately sandwiched in between hope and despair. I'd give this 4.5 stars if I could, but on deciding whether to round up or down, I went up to 5.

This books shows that the only thing more cruel than humans is nature. I wonder if that's why it's called human nature? This is historical fiction about people who flood to California for a better life because the Dust Bowl has ravaged southern America. They then realize California is no sanctuary and must battle police brutality, a corrupted farmers alliance, disease, starvation and nature itself. I loved Steinbeck's writing style but it's like the ending just came out of nowhere. He could've written at least 50 more pages but I guess he just didn't know what to write and just left it at that.

4.5 Stars

Every book I have read by this author has been been just fantastic, and this book was no different. Even the one small issue I had with it was because I am a grudge holding bitch and felt that Nico needed to do some serious grovelling after the second time he thought the worst about Ava. (lol)

 
Apart from the above mentioned issue, this was was a complete hit with me. The writing was excellent. I loved that it was on the longer side so the story felt suitably fleshed out. It was well paced. The plot was engaging. There were twists and turns. Murder and mayhem. Secrets and lies. Hot sex. No OW or OM drama. It was fairly light on secondary characters, but there were a couple I wouldn't mind reading more about. Ava was an AWESOME heroine. Smart. Feisty. Strong. Nico I liked a lot, but I never 100% warmed up to him. I think he thought the worst of Ava WAY too easily at times. That said, I wasn't expecting Mr. Rogers, and he DID have his moments, so it was just a small niggle for me. Last, it was all wrapped up in a sweet ending that put a smile on my face.

So yea, not much left for me to say. I loved it. I recommend it. I also what to thank Miz Kenborn for gifting me a copy of this book after a rather unpleasant run-in saw me being removed from the reviewer list for this series. She is a class act and a total sweetheart. 

I started this book bored and finished it mesmerized. Steinbeck writes in such detail that only a very particular group of readers will enjoy, but everyone will be able to empathize with the story in the end. It is the strenuous characterizing and detailing of the scenes that, while at first seems unnecessary, really makes the reader feel alive in each line of the scenes.

I started this book in the midst of a poor family, experiencing the downfall of losing their house and land. I journeyed through family losses, money scarcity, famine - all that could go wrong, did. But Steinbeck surprised me: the family was so simplistic, that each tragic loss just felt like a regular Monday at some point. Things like hope and optimism were never lost, because they didn't have anything in the first place.

My 3-star review only reflects an overall adequacy to my reading preferences, but now I understand why Steinbeck deserved a Nobel Prize.