Reviews

Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck

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rachd24's review against another edition

3.0

This was an assigned book for my English Literature exam, so rather than this being a review of something I read for pleasure, it is a review of a book I had to analyse, interpret, memorize and discuss in a two hour exam, some five years ago. I often wonder if books that you have to study to that extent at school can ever be looked at in a pleasant way again, but I suppose I still enjoyed Of Mice and Men, not sure if I will read it again though...

Anyways, on to the review. There may be subtle spoilers in this - I don't like to give a blow-by-blow account of a book, or quote from it in reviews, just provide an overall opinion of my thoughts. I really disliked the ending of the book, it was sad, it was dreary, my hopes for Lenny and George had been built up and then shattered. I was not impressed. However, the ending seems fitting, it is how the story should end. It is suitable for the struggle.

I think the book gives a pretty realistic insight (not that I can be sure, not being around in that time and all) but it doesn't appear to be glamorized or over exaggerated for reports of that time. The "themes" (here comes my 18 year old exam ready self) are well depicted and the story is well told, especially for such a short story. I had a vivid image of all of the characters (and the movie is well worth a watch, as I found it brought the story to life very accurately)and would struggle to name other short novels that have managed to breathe such a large amount of life into a small collection of characters within such a short timeframe. Then again, that could be the 6 weeks of studying talking.

It is unlikely I would have read this book if it were not for A Level English Lit, which I suppose is the point of those classes, broadening your horizons and whatnot. But it is easy to see why this is a classic.

xchris_reads's review against another edition

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adventurous dark sad tense medium-paced

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

4.0

bubblegumcreams's review against another edition

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2.0

Read this in high school. I had high expectations because of the hype around this book. Didn't blow me away. Wasn't a huge fan of the storyline. I'm going to try and re-read this as an adult and see how I feel about it.