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The Courage of Others

1. 
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   Alexander McCall Smith

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meghanjanssen, January 31, 2008 (view all comments by meghanjanssen)
I opened this book for the first time - one of the few Steinbeck novels I had not yet read - shortly after completing my own first attempt at writing a novel. The little book is one of Steinbeck's earliest published works and, interestingly enough, the one that took him the longest to complete. It was in this context that I found the book most provoking: myself an aspiring writer, it was interesting to witness part of the development of one of my favorite novelists. Although not yet as strong and defined as in his later works, the classic Steinbeck tone is still there, and, of course, it is set against the oft-revisited setting of the fertile farmlands of Central California.

What prevents me from giving this book a higher rating is that, in the scope of Steinbeck's literary career, it is not very impressive. The characters do not gel together as flawlessly as those in most of his later works and the classical allusions to parallel stories and characters in the Bible are a bit shaky and somewhat inconsistent. Nevertheless, what prevents me from giving this book a lower rating is that it remains a thoughtful, intriguing, and insightful piece on the nature of man's relationship to the land and to God.

Overall, it is certainly a worthwhile read. In both its length and the complexity of its symbolism, To a God Unknown is certainly more accessible than Steinbeck's more celebrated longer works, such as The Grapes of Wrath or East of Eden, but it is in no way a comprehensive sample of Steinbeck's essential style and literary voice.

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Product Details

ISBN:

9780140187519

Introduction:

Demott, Robert

Author:

Demott, Robert

Author:

Steinbeck, John

Publisher:

Penguin Books

Location:

New York :

Subject:

General

Subject:

California

Subject:

Fiction

Subject:

Classics

Subject:

Farm life

Subject:

Domestic fiction

Subject:

California Fiction.

Subject:

Salinas River Valley (Calif.) Social life and customs Fiction.

Subject:

Salinas River Valley

Subject:

General Fiction

Series:

Penguin Great Books of the 20th Century

Series Volume:

week 8

Publication Date:

August 1995

Binding:

Paperback

Grade Level:

General/trade

Language:

English

Illustrations:

Yes

Pages:

240

Dimensions:

7.94x5.08x.44 in. .36 lbs.