A review by elissa_t
The Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck

adventurous emotional reflective sad tense slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.5

This is my second Steinbeck book and I’m starting my third tomorrow. I will not lie, this book is thick and I was super intimidated by it, but the sorry captivated me and the themes are still very relevant in 2025. I like how the chapters were broken up by small chapters that described tbe scenes, the mood of people and the economics of the time. That helped illustrate the story even more so, along with the characters and dialogue. As someone who lives in California who’s grandparents immigrated here like tbe Joads, I had an extra layer of empathy and understanding. And also sadness. The shear magnitude of how poor, desolate, distraught, worried and lost these characters are made me very emotional. The ending was also perfect. Sad. But perfect.
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