435. Cannery Row

Cannery Row
John Steinbeck
1945
Around 210 pages

Now back to our favorite wet blanket, John Steinbeck. I do enjoy his non fiction but as a novelist I find him to be rather dull and depressing. Let's get the ranking over with, as he is another one who has loved me and is leaving me:

1. Of Mice and Mice
2. Grapes of Wrath
3. Cannery Row

So let's get to the worst of the bunch! Mack and his friends want  to do something nice for their friend Doc, who I just took for granted was the Doc from West Side Story. They decide to throw him a party and the results are devastating, which is the case with most parties. There are colorful characters on Cannery Row, and by that I mean a lot of misery people with no money. There's also a mysterious "Chinaman," so Steinbeck salutes us on his way out with some racism.

I never really click with Steinbeck's characters, and I felt like I was reading The Cat in the Hat because of poor Doc and the ill-conceived attempts to repay him for his generosity. Definitely the most skippable novel in Steinbeck's repertoire. 

RATING: **---

Interesting Facts:

The actual location Steinbeck that the novel was based on, Ocean View Avenue in Monterey, was later renamed "Cannery Row" in honor of the book.

Adapted in 1982. 

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