The short novels of John Steinbeck

by John Steinbeck

Book Overview

A Penguin Classics Deluxe Edition of Steinbeck's brilliant short novels Collected here for the first time in a deluxe paperback volume are six of John Steinbeck's most widely read and beloved novels.... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: B0007DPXPM
• Release Date: January 1953
• Publisher: Viking press
• Length: 407 Pages
• Weight: 1.47 lbs.

Customer Reviews

The Short Novels of John Steinbeck

This is a wonderful book containing several of Steinbeck's best short novels. He is one of greatest writers of modern or any other time. He is very descriptive so that you feel like your witnessing the events as they unfold. The book is very well binded, etc. This was a great buy.

I couldn't put it down!

This is a nice edition (Kindle). Steinbeck's prose style is simple, yet he gives a sense of people and place that create vivid pictures of them. The most interesting aspect of these stories for me were how they reminded me of Classical Greek Tragedy -- that is they are about how people exercise their freedom of choice and express their dignity within the circumstances of their lives over which they have no control. However, unlike the gods and heroes of that genre, Steinbeck does this for very ordinary people. The stories make the reader think about how each of our lives are the same. We have circumstances, such as affluence or poverty, disability, the family we are born into, chance aquaintances ecountered in our work lives, people we just meet randomly under significant circumstances, war, etc. over which we have limited or no control. But it's how we decide to act within these circumstances that is the theme that makes these stories relevant for anyone's life. BTW, the story that impressed me the most was one I'd never heard about before, "The Moon is Down".

Fabulous Buy, Great Value

This is an outstanding collection of the best know shorter works by Steinbeck, or more accurately a collection of his novellas. The writing is exceptional and this is a highly recommended buy. The stories are short and they cannot be compared with his best known novel "Grapes of Wrath." But this is a superb collection containing his best short work and first novel "Of Mice and Men." Also, it contains "Cannery Row," another great story. And, it has his interesting novel "The Moon is Down." It is about resistance to an invading force. We can assume that it is probably Norway during World War II, and their resistance to Germany, but Steinbeck keeps it a bit vague which broadens the appeal of the book. It could apply to any invading force. John Steinbeck (1902 - 1968) was among the best known American writers of the 20th century. He won the 1962 Nobel Prize for literature. His 1939 Pulitzer Prize winning novel, "Grapes of Wrath" has over ten million copies in print. Steinbeck was born in rural California, went to Stanford, and spent most of his life in California. He has been associated with the plight of farm workers and others. His books have been very popular and many were made into movies and stage productions. He won an Academy Award nomination for best story in 1944. I have read a number of his novels and am still surprised with the quality of his work - especially his short stories and short novels, so the present collection is a great buy. The collection has his famous short works and is not a heavy read. Each of the works takes one evening to read. I liked all the stories. Readers will appreciate the clarity of the prose, the characters, and the messages. This is a great value purchase and an interesting reading experience.