The Short Novels of John Steinbeck: (Penguin Classics Deluxe Edition) Paperback – Deckle Edge, July 8, 2009

This is such a nice collection of short novels by the great John Steinbeck. The main thing I want to address is some of the negative reviews for this based on people being misinformed about the condition of the edges of the pages on this book (and any Penguin deluxe edition classic). The feathered edges of the pages are not a manufacturing flaw; it's called a deckled edge, and it's a deliberate design choice. It's an homage to the way all book used to look back when paper was handmade. It's done to create a "Classic" aesthetic. You have not received a defective product, but merely gotten exactly what you've paid for. It's going to be okay, I promise you.

I absolutely love the romantic story telling of writers from Steinbeck's time, be it Faulkner, or Hemmingway. The book has a great cover and appearance, and I really enjoyed all of his stories. I'll rank the stories from my least to most, personal, favorite: The Pearl, The Moon is Down, Tortilla Flat, Of Mice and Men, The Red Pony, and Cannery Row. I rated the stories in based on my own emotional reactions for different scenes in each of the short novels. Cannery Row ends pm a mystic note, which the reader should discover and feel for themselves... The Red Pony is a heart wrenching story about a boy's love turned mournful, a promise with a tragic twist, mountains beyond and man with a home lost, and the passing of old glories. Of Mice and Men is, in my understanding, a character observation of the definition of masculinity and people's senses of pride and promised property. Tortilla Flat is also another elaboration on property, more so tying in the bonds between people and a community in the absence of family, and the obligations of people to one another. The Moon is Down seems to me to be one of Steinbeck's more thematically deviating novels: much of the subject matter seems to be, at the surface, about war and the unconquerable nature of community and nation. The Pearl, I liked the least, not saying it was bad, but it was not on the same level as the others. The Pearl was definitely, compared to the other five, the darkest and most brooding; themes about the failure of capitalism and the viciousness and greediness of people in the fortune of others are clear.In aggregate, the collection is AWESOME!!!!!! I had a blast reading them, and Steinbeck really makes you work to extract meaning from his novels. His writing has a pastel quality in all of his descriptions; whether it be an diving town, Monterey, a surrendering village, a farm in the countryside, in my mind's eye his settings are stylized like pieces by Monet. I'm currently working on Grapes of Wrath, and have East of Eden and The Winter of Discontent in my lined up in my queue.

Somehow I grew up in the United States of America and never read Steinbeck in high school. We even lived about a mile from Cannary Row when I was in the Army but still never got around to reading Steinbeck.It took until my son was in high school for me to read, "The Grapes of Wrath" but that is another review entirely.So about a month or two ago I decide that it is time to catch up on my Steinbeck. I read "Travel's With Charley" and enjoyed it, but it's was (mostly) non-fiction.I really enjoyed each of the stories in this collection. I did not enjoy reading them as an ebook collection in my Kindle. Don't get me wrong, I enjoy reading, and commenting, on my Kindle. But I'd have preferred to read each story individually on my Kindle.I'm not going to go through and discuss each story. They really are classics and show a glimpse of life long gone.Read Steinbeck!Read every day and read for fun!

These are all stories that were written years before my existence. Many I had not read since high school. I am glad that I did. Steinbeck's writing style may be a bit hard to follow for many of today's readers. His propensity to leave a tale open ended may also be troubling for readers who have to see a tale come to a solid conclusion.I enjoyed the collection and read them all.