Customer Reviews: Read 1096 more reviews...
 The Greatest 20th Century Novella? September 18, 2008
Although you can read this book in just a few short hours, the relatively few words found in "Of Mice and Men" carry tremendous weight. From the first paragraph Steinbeck manages to paint a vivid picture of the environment, taking great care to simultaneously describe both the beauty of nature and the agony of the story's characters.
I'd long considered Hemingway's "The Sun Also Rises" to be the greatest American 20th century novel, and after reading "Of Mice and Men" last evening it's clear this story has assumed the #1 spot in my personal list of greatest novellas.
 Depression-era Greek Tragedy September 15, 2008
John Steinbeck's powerful Depression-era novel weaves together timeless themes of work, kindness, cruelty, loneliness and longing. George Milton and Lennie Small are poor migrant workers in California during the Great Depression. George is intelligent and looks after Lennie, a mentally-challenged man of brute size and strength, but whose lack of sense causes trouble. Sharing a bare cabin with other migrant workers, George and Lennie have little more than their dreams of owning a rabbit farm - an unlikely goal for migrants. Their companions include an aging ranch hand (Candy) minus a hand from a work accident, and a black man (Crooks) with a bad back forced to sleep alone and seek solace in books. All try to avoid trouble, particularly from the boss's hot-headed son Curly and his flirtatious young wife. Steinbeck uses foreshadowing to lead to the inevitable (if slightly contrived) ending, when Lennie becomes violent and George administers final justice. The result is a powerful Greek-style tragedy.
John Steinbeck (1902-1968) wrote from his hobo experiences, and claimed that Lennie was based on a real-life migrant he once worked with. Published in 1937, OF MICE AND MEN was quickly performed on stage and in the movies. Not suprisingly, this story has faced censorship for its raw language, treatment of mental retardation, sex and violence, etc.
 A Sad Story July 29, 2008
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
In my opinion I thought this book was extremely sad and unpleasant. First, almost every other word was a swear word. Yes, I realize that a lot of the population swears, but I don't understand why novels have to have so much of it. Second, I was very appalled at all of the deaths. The death of one of the worker's dogs, the death of Curley's wife, and finally the death of Lennie. Lennie happened to be my favorite character, so obviously I was sad to read that his companion, George, shot him. I was also sad that Lennie didn't get to tend to his furry rabbits.
easy, short, to the point July 23, 2008
steinbeck is awesome for pulling this through.....he was able to pack so much information in this short book.....that is some REAL talent right there!
Great book! One of my favorites. June 24, 2008
0 out of 1 found this review helpful
I love this book. This was my first Steinbeck novel, and I thought it was great
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