Of Mice and Men (1937)

George and Lennie are hiking to a ranch where they will soon work. Lennie is big and muscular but has a mental disability and relies on George to help him. They take a break at a river and George notices a dead rat in Lennie's pocket. They argue over it for a bit and then talk about owning a ranch. The next day, they arrive at the ranch and meet candy, a cooky, old man who takes care of the bunkhouse. They meet the boss and his son, Curley who dislikes Lennie because of his strength. Then they meet his wife, who Lennie develops a crush on. George talks to Slim, who agrees to give Lennie a puppy. Later, Curley and Lennie get into a fight and Lennie breaks Curley's hand, which he apologizes for immediately. The next day, Lennie gets the puppy and accidentally kills it. He hides it as Curley's wife walks in. She talks about her unhappy marriage and he talks about the puppy. He breaks her neck when stroking her hair and freaks out. George has to kill Lennie and lies to the other men about it being self-defense.
I thought this book was interesting. It surprised me when Lennie died since I thought he and Curley's wife would get married. George was a responsible character who I felt pretty bad for, he did have to kill a close friend after all. This book was a lot more pessimisticc than I thought it would be, but it was a good read nonetheless. If you have a rainy weekend with nothing to do, then this would be a great way to kill time, as it is relatively short. I would recommend this book. 9/10 ( )

I can appreciate it and understand it, but at the end of the day it's still depressing. ( )

Impressively, I managed to earn an English degree without ever reading this book. Today, I remedied this, and perhaps more impressively, I entered this horrible story unspoiled.

Yes, I said horrible. Yes, I give it four stars. And I might nudge it up to five later, after I've processed it.

Writing classes can (and probably some do) use this little book to teach ... well, a whole list of techniques. How to wield omniscient point of view with the emotional resonance of deep point of view. How to withhold backstory (in this case forever). How to compose audible dialogue in which every character's voice is different.

Most notably, Steinbeck teaches here how to construct a story in which every last thing is inevitable yet none of them is predictable. The foreshadowing of Lennie's death is heavy. Steinbeck wants us to see it coming--or more accurately, to feel it coming. But he doesn't want us to guess the particulars, so we don't (at least I didn't). This book is a storm cloud that begins to grow on the first page, piles higher and higher onto itself until the single streak of electricity, the single crack of thunder, and then the book is over and the reader is left in numb, buzzing shock. This is what I've been reading toward all this time. Of course it is. Why didn't I know it would be George? Wait, maybe I did.

I hate this story for being true. I want a different outcome even as I see that any other end would be a lie. This is life. Horrible and twisted and unjust. Right choices seem wrong and wrong choices seem right. Ours is a muddy world and we are broken, dirty souls, and as always, Steinbeck faces this reality, assaults his readers with it, and doesn't blink.

Dang it. Okay. Five stars. ( )

I like the way that George looks out and tried to protect Lennie. He is the brains of the duo and tells Lennie on many occasions, especially when trying to get new work. Lennie is a hard working man, but due to his cognitive disabiility he would have been institutionalized if it was not for George. But, Lennie has a tendency to not realize how strong he is, especially when petting mice and other animals. Even though George has told him many times, to be lighter to the touch. ( )

I very much like Steinbeck's writing. There are some beautiful scenes here, and the characters are interesting. But it doesn't add up to all that much. I wasn't disappointed. It is a great novella. But "East of Eden" adds up to more. ( )