Let's Bust a Recap : The Pearl

Back in 2015, I read my first Steinbeck: Of Mice and Men. And I was depressed for about a week afterwards. So I didn't put any Steinbeck on my book lists for the next two years. But this year, I decided it was time for another one, and I placed The Pearl on my 2018 list. It was also on the depressing side, but it ended on a semi-hopeful note (at least that's the way I've decided to look at it) so it was easier to stomach than Of Mice and Men was. 

The Pearl by John Steinbeck was first published in 1947. It's a short, 6-chapter, 90-page book and very easy to read. It very much reads like an old folk tale that's been passed down for generations in the oral tradition, and, in fact, Steinbeck was inspired by an old Mexican folk tale he heard on a trip to La Paz which used to be a very pearl-rich region. In it, we learn the story of the indigent pearl diver Kino who discovers the Pearl of the World. 

In The Pearl, Steinbeck explores themes of poverty, human greed, materialism, and "the inherent worth of a thing." He paints a heartbreaking picture of mankind: of the rich taking advantage of the poor, of the poor being trapped in their poverty by ignorance, of the hope a little wealth can bring but also of the all-consuming greed it can bring.

90 pages but they were heavy. Again, Steinbeck just made me sad. I have two more of his on my Life List (The Grapes of Wrath and East of Eden), but it may be another 2 or 3 years before he makes it on another book list.

Short recap for a short book. Have you read The Pearl? Did you like it? Have you read anything else by Steinbeck? 

Let's Bust A Recap : Of Mice and Men

Y'all. Of Mice and Men. By far, the most depressing thing I've read this year. Maybe even ever. It was awful. I got depressed just thinking about writing this recap of it. Oy. Vey. Let's just get it over with, shall we?

If you've been reading the blog the past couple weeks, you know that I went on the Ultimate Roadtrip Across the United States with my dad. You know that I spent a few sweet days in North Carolina with family. And you know that during all that time, I read three books.

The second book I read was Of Mice and Men. Why did I think taking this book on my sweet family-time trip would be a good idea? My husband read it a while back and told me it was depressing. I'll tell you why I took it. It's on my book list for the year, it's small, and I've wanted to read it ever since Cody did. 

Cody was right. So depressing. Not like, crying-my-eyes-out depressing. More like, I-physically-felt-ill-by-the-end-of-it depressing.

Of Mice and Men centers around two friends, George and Lennie, and their dream of owning their own piece of land. They're common laborers just trying to scratch out a living and scrape up enough money to buy an acre of property to call their own. They're an unlikely pair who have really become family to one another. In Of Mice and Men, it seems that they are finally about to obtain the object of their dreams when tragedy strikes. 

This book really is a quick read. It doesn't take long to get through, but I just wouldn't recommend it. On the up-side, Steinbeck knows how to paint a picture with his pen. I was transported to California and could see and hear the characters as if I were sitting by the little stream or hanging out in the bunkhouse with them. And his writing is compelling, too. Like a trainwreck you can't help but watch, I couldn't stop myself from turning page after page till the bitter end. 

But that's just what it was. Bitter. There was quite a bit of language that I just honestly wasn't expecting, and the story itself was....disturbing. 

You guys should know by now that I don't like to spoil the story of the book I'm recapping, so if this post is actually making you want to read Of Mice and Men, I can't blame you. If I read a recap like this, I'd probably go out and read the book immediately. What is it with us humans and our morbid curiosity, amiright? But reading Of Mice and Men is making me seriously second-guess my desire to read The Grapes of Wrath which is on my Life List. It will certainly not be making next year's book list, I can tell you that. 

Have you read Of Mice and Men? Did you find it depressing, disturbing, or wonderfully entertaining? Believe me, I'd be interested to hear a positive perspective on this book. What's the most depressing thing you've ever read?