Reviews with content warning for Suicide - Cannery Row

Not my favorite Steinbeck book but remarkable still and I don't have any complaints. It's rather light-hearted with occasional depressive moments, a slice-of-life story delving into the life of inhabitants of Cannery Row, although it's more of a collection of character sketches rather than a fully-fledged novel. As usual, Steinbeck is exceptional when it comes to characterization, realism, and scene setting which made it quite enthralling. This book also turned out to be quite funny as per hearsay, much to my delight. It managed to elicit a few laughs which is as rare as me crying somewhat while reading books. 😄 There isn't much of a clear-cut plot and the tone switches back and forth which might be jarring for some readers, but I think it's fitting as Steinbeck is trying to capture the unpredictability of life in general. I would say if The Grapes of Wrath were about the struggles and resilience of humanity, Cannery Row is about melancholy and finding happiness, focusing on the beauty of life rather than its ugliness. While this book didn't resonate with me as much as his other works, I would still highly recommend it to anyone, especially to those who love his writing style.

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joctrem's review against another edition

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reflective slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

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afion's review against another edition

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3.25

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maddiebusick's review against another edition

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medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.0

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abominablesnowaro's review against another edition

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dark funny hopeful reflective sad slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

Messy, sad, chaotic, funny, earnest, cruel, and kind. Maybe not a perfect book, but unquestionably human.

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kari_f's review against another edition

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slow-paced

4.0

Steinbeck has a way of making a place seem idyllic and wistful, even when tragic events take place there. His use of sensory language and imagery paint vivid pictures of his settings, and when that setting is coastal California, the reader can’t help but fall in love with the area. This makes sense, given that Steinbeck wrote the book as a nostalgic and amusing set of tales for soldiers who didn’t want to read another war story.

More character-driven than plot-driven, the reader gets to experience life in this humble place, getting to know a variety of the people who live and/or work there. There is beauty in the mundane, and the reader bears witness to the quiet dignity, the everyday hilarity, and the lonely melancholy each character experiences. In a metaphorical way, the book examines the richness of life in an environment of poverty. There are themes of loneliness and loyalty, resourcefulness and looking to nature and others to meet needs, poverty and opportunity. It’s a sad, beautiful, wistful, and funny little story about a sad, beautiful, wistful, and funny little town.

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kommatator's review against another edition

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emotional funny slow-paced

Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.0

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