The Grapes of Wrath

Book: The Grapes of Wrath
Author: John Steinbeck
Publication Date: 1939

 Maybe the first great American roadtrip novel, The Grapes of Wrath is about the Joads, tenant farmers in Oklahoma who have to leave their home because of the Dust Bowl during the Great Depression. Desperate to find a better life somewhere, the Joads hit the road toward California, encountering tragedies and triumphs along the Mother Road. 

 Hailed as one of the best books ever written by numerous sources (Time Magazine, The Daily Telegraph, the Modern Library, Le Monde, The BBC Big Read) and winner of multiple awards (The 1939 National Book Award, the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction), The Grapes of Wrath is credited for helping win Steinbeck a Nobel Prize for Literature. In the speech at the awarding of the Nobel, Anders Osterling, Permanent Secretary of the Swedish Academy, said, "The Swedish Academy’s reason for awarding the prize to John Steinbeck reads, "for his realistic as well as imaginative writings, distinguished by a sympathetic humour and a keen social perception.'" (Nobelprize.org)

 The Grapes of Wrath is social commentary wrapped in beautiful prose, taking a hard, honest look at migrant workers, the depression, greed, farming conditions, and more. This book represents a good look at Books as Author Work, reflecting a particular moment in time and how it can be interpreted long after that moment has passed.
Migrant workers like those depicted in The Grapes of Wrath
Speech:
Award ceremony speech. NobelPrize.org. Nobel Media AB 2018. Wed. 31 Oct 2018. <https://www.nobelprize.org/prizes/literature/1962/ceremony-speech/>

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