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storyphile's review against another edition
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Content Warnings
Moderate: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Racial slurs, Racism, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Rape
goemonxiii's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
emotional
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.25
I love John Steinbeck, but this is one of his weaker works in my opinion. It was an interesting and new perspective on Californian history, and it did bring up three essential points of discussion (those being how disabled people have been treated historically, and how Black and poor people have been discriminated against in early Californian history), but it's far from my favorite novel or even Steinbeck novel. It's a quick read, and I do like Steinbeck's perspective on many topics, but aside from Lenny and the discussion on anti-Black, anti-poor, and anti-disabled sentiments within society, I didn't really care for the other characters or environment. Also I feel it beats you over the head with its foreshadowing so heavily to the point where the "twist" becomes obvious. I wouldn't say that you should skip this title as, once again, it is a really quick read (I finished it in about 2 hours), but please don't characterize Steinbeck on the basis of this book (characterize him by the opinions in this book, not the writing style).
Content Warnings
Graphic: Ableism, Animal death, Bullying, Death, Racial slurs, Racism, Grief, Murder, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism
Moderate: Cursing, Infidelity, Slavery, and Alcohol
alixbx's review against another edition
emotional
sad
tense
fast-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
3.25
I read this for my 2024-25 Re-Reading Your Childhood challenge. This was required reading in high school, so I did read this back around 2008/2009, thereabouts. Since I am using a reading journal I found on Amazon to reflect on eBook reads (I usually annotate in my physical copies), I'm going to break this down in the 3 Main Parts: Pre-reading Reflection, Essential Review, and Post-reading Reflection (reflections will be abridged).
Pre-reading Reflection:
-I was uncomfortable when I read this in school, but I don't feel that I really appreciated the purpose and message of the text for what it really meant. The gravity of the content wasn't missed, but not understood as deeply as I think it probably should have been.
Essential Review:
-This book was ahead of its time in many ways. That said, it's not a fun book to read, but I do understand why it is required reading. It teaches important lessons, even if they are subtle. My belief is that Steinbeck intended to show softness and humanity in the kinds of people society would look down upon for on reason or another. I believe he absolutely achieved that in this writing, which is remarkable given how short it is compared to many other classics that end up being required reading. Though he wouldn't have intended it at the time, the ending of the book also teaches current day readers how far we have come in our treatment of people of different disabilities and standings in society.
Post-reading Reflection:
-I realize now what I thought I remembered with clarity, I did not. While I had all the right details, I had them in the wrong order, so when I was re-reading it the emotions were intense as I realized the things I had wrong. Even though I knew the ending, I was in tears - the kind you cry when you feel defeated. I also was able to see even bigger of a picture in all that Steinbeck was commenting on through the decisions he made with character interactions, character behaviors, and character decisions. In this way, some characters are really lovable - Lennie, Candy, Slim, and Crooks - and then characters that you cannot stand - Curley, Carlson. Equally, the diversity of characters is there - well off, poor, white, black, male, and female - but when you have a book that uses the "n" word dozens of times, even with it being of the time when the text was published, it is hard to be glad that this black character is portrayed in a positive way with softness when you know how horrible that language used to speak to and about that character. The book is both so of the times and equally ahead of its time, but in different ways. More than every I understand and support this as required reading because good conversations about what has changed and what remains from then to now.
Pre-reading Reflection:
-I was uncomfortable when I read this in school, but I don't feel that I really appreciated the purpose and message of the text for what it really meant. The gravity of the content wasn't missed, but not understood as deeply as I think it probably should have been.
Essential Review:
-This book was ahead of its time in many ways. That said, it's not a fun book to read, but I do understand why it is required reading. It teaches important lessons, even if they are subtle. My belief is that Steinbeck intended to show softness and humanity in the kinds of people society would look down upon for on reason or another. I believe he absolutely achieved that in this writing, which is remarkable given how short it is compared to many other classics that end up being required reading. Though he wouldn't have intended it at the time, the ending of the book also teaches current day readers how far we have come in our treatment of people of different disabilities and standings in society.
Post-reading Reflection:
-I realize now what I thought I remembered with clarity, I did not. While I had all the right details, I had them in the wrong order, so when I was re-reading it the emotions were intense as I realized the things I had wrong. Even though I knew the ending, I was in tears - the kind you cry when you feel defeated. I also was able to see even bigger of a picture in all that Steinbeck was commenting on through the decisions he made with character interactions, character behaviors, and character decisions. In this way, some characters are really lovable - Lennie, Candy, Slim, and Crooks - and then characters that you cannot stand - Curley, Carlson. Equally, the diversity of characters is there - well off, poor, white, black, male, and female - but when you have a book that uses the "n" word dozens of times, even with it being of the time when the text was published, it is hard to be glad that this black character is portrayed in a positive way with softness when you know how horrible that language used to speak to and about that character. The book is both so of the times and equally ahead of its time, but in different ways. More than every I understand and support this as required reading because good conversations about what has changed and what remains from then to now.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Ableism, Death, Mental illness, Racial slurs, Racism, Violence, Murder, and Classism
Moderate: Animal death, Cursing, Grief, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Schizophrenia/Psychosis
Major Character Deathteddie_valetine98's review against another edition
emotional
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death, Death, Gun violence, Misogyny, Racial slurs, Racism, Sexism, and Injury/Injury detail
pikkumarja's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Loveable characters? No
2.25
Kirjan pituuteen nähden (noin 140 sivua) lukemiseen meni tuskaisen kauan. Tämä ei ollut minulle, enkä ihan suoraan sanottuna ymmärrä klassikkoasemaa, koska kirja kuvaa ihmisyyttä niin vastenmielisellä tavalla, ettei samaistumispintaa ihmisyyteen edes ole näin lukijalla. Toisaalta saattaa olla, että ihmisille, jotka eivät tiedä mitään vammaisuudesta, kirja uppoaisi paremmin. Ja ehkä sellaisille henkilöille, joille riittää yksi nainen kirjan hahmokaartissa ja ei haittaa, vaikka n-sana mainitaan aika monta kertaa.
Ei tämä siis kyllä ihan umpisurkea ollut ja onpahan nyt luettu.
Ei tämä siis kyllä ihan umpisurkea ollut ja onpahan nyt luettu.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Ableism, Death, Racism, Violence, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Animal cruelty, Misogyny, and Abandonment
jzargo_thebird's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
This book is definitely not the big behemoth that many people put it up to be. But I can't argue against the fact that it is such a pure and raw showcase of emotions and character that I have ever read in a book. They use literally next to nothing in terms setting or plot devices etc. But its just a bare bones story. And I think it's just one of those books where I have no notes.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Cursing, Death, Gore, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Rape, Slavery, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail
ameliasbooks's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
reflective
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Men have to do what men have to do?
(I read an edition with notes, which was quite helpful and let me getting more out of this story than expected.)
(I read an edition with notes, which was quite helpful and let me getting more out of this story than expected.)
Content Warnings
Graphic: Ableism, Animal death, Death, Gun violence, Mental illness, Misogyny, Racial slurs, Racism, Sexism, Violence, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail
rochelleisreading's review against another edition
dark
emotional
sad
fast-paced
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Bullying, Death, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, and Violence
Moderate: Gun violence and Injury/Injury detail
threeundertwopnw's review against another edition
emotional
reflective
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
An absolute masterpiece. Gets better every time I read it.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Ableism, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Bullying, Cursing, Death, Emotional abuse, Gun violence, Mental illness, Racial slurs, Racism, Violence, Blood, Dementia, and Injury/Injury detail
kiwij96's review against another edition
emotional
reflective
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
After having to leave their previous town, George and Lennie find themselves on another ranch as a stepping stone for their own future ranch.
This is the first time I've read this book independently since leaving school. School definitely made this book feel longer but it was a quick evening read of 120 pages.
Reading it in Secondary School, I used to think Curley's wife was the villain of the story. But having read it now as an adult, there are no villains. It is just a concise social commentary on life in 1930s America:
1. Sexism: Curley's wife didn't even have her own name and based on her conversation with Lennie, she didn't even have her own life - she just married Curley to get back at her mother. Dreamt of being an actress and making a name for herself.
2. Racism: Crooks also didn't even have his own name. He lived on his own, segregated from the rest of his colleagues based on the colour of his skin. He put up with racist slurs being hurled at him constantly.
3. Ableism: Crooks' nickname comes from his injury. Candy and Lennie get left out of the men's outing to town. And George frequently tells Lennie that Lennie is a burden.
The book is not well-written by modern standards for sure: racist, misogynistic and ableist terminology is rife. The repetition also becomes a bit painful at times. But in little over 100 pages, you understand the characters and there is no need to continue it much further than where it ends.
The story is wanting the American Dream. Everyone in this story wants it, dreams of it, works for it. But in the end, no one really achieves it.
This is the first time I've read this book independently since leaving school. School definitely made this book feel longer but it was a quick evening read of 120 pages.
Reading it in Secondary School, I used to think Curley's wife was the villain of the story. But having read it now as an adult, there are no villains. It is just a concise social commentary on life in 1930s America:
1. Sexism: Curley's wife didn't even have her own name and based on her conversation with Lennie, she didn't even have her own life - she just married Curley to get back at her mother. Dreamt of being an actress and making a name for herself.
2. Racism: Crooks also didn't even have his own name. He lived on his own, segregated from the rest of his colleagues based on the colour of his skin. He put up with racist slurs being hurled at him constantly.
3. Ableism: Crooks' nickname comes from his injury. Candy and Lennie get left out of the men's outing to town. And George frequently tells Lennie that Lennie is a burden.
The book is not well-written by modern standards for sure: racist, misogynistic and ableist terminology is rife. The repetition also becomes a bit painful at times. But in little over 100 pages, you understand the characters and there is no need to continue it much further than where it ends.
The story is wanting the American Dream. Everyone in this story wants it, dreams of it, works for it. But in the end, no one really achieves it.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Ableism, Animal death, Death, Misogyny, Racial slurs, Racism, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Rape