No need to re-read any of Steinbeck's sentences! Inspired by the story of Cain and Abel, this book - set in California in the early 1900s - is big in every sense, interleaving plots, wide canvas, multiple characters - what American novelists were into in the 1950s. I found it rather refreshing to get away from fashionable 'spareness' and, firmly suppressing cynical reservations, romped through it with appreciation for Steinbeck's undoubted mastery of plot and character.
(Annabel Bedini - bwl 81 Summer 2016 ) |
