John Steinbeck

Author profile

born

in Salinas Valley, California, The United States

February 27, 1902

died

December 20, 1968

gender

male

website

http://www.steinbeck.org/

genre

Literature & Fiction

influences

Ed Ricketts, Will Lang, Socrates, Emiliano Zapata, Lincoln Steffens, A...more

About this author

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John Steinbeck III was an American writer. He wrote the Pulitzer Prize-winning novel The Grapes of Wrath, published in 1939 and the novella Of Mice and Men, published in 1937. In all, he wrote twenty-five books, including sixteen novels, six non-fiction books and several collections of short stories.

In 1962 Steinbeck received the Nobel Prize for Literature.

Steinbeck grew up in the Salinas Valley region of California, a culturally diverse place of rich migratory and immigrant history. This upbringing imparted a regionalistic flavor to his writing, giving many of his works a distinct sense of place.

Steinbeck moved briefly to New York City, but soon returned home to California to begin his career as a writer. Most of his earlier work dealt w...more John Steinbeck III was an American writer. He wrote the Pulitzer Prize-winning novel The Grapes of Wrath, published in 1939 and the novella Of Mice and Men, published in 1937. In all, he wrote twenty-five books, including sixteen novels, six non-fiction books and several collections of short stories.

In 1962 Steinbeck received the Nobel Prize for Literature.

Steinbeck grew up in the Salinas Valley region of California, a culturally diverse place of rich migratory and immigrant history. This upbringing imparted a regionalistic flavor to his writing, giving many of his works a distinct sense of place.

Steinbeck moved briefly to New York City, but soon returned home to California to begin his career as a writer. Most of his earlier work dealt with subjects familiar to him from his formative years. An exception was his first novel Cup of Gold which concerns the pirate Henry Morgan, whose adventures had captured Steinbeck's imagination as a child.

In his subsequent novels, Steinbeck found a more authentic voice by drawing upon direct memories of his life in California. Later he used real historical conditions and events in the first half of 20th century America, which he had experienced first-hand as a reporter.

Steinbeck often populated his stories with struggling characters; his works examined the lives of the working class and migrant workers during the Dust Bowl and the Great Depression. His later body of work reflected his wide range of interests, including marine biology, politics, religion, history, and mythology.

One of his last published works was Travels with Charley, a travelogue of a road trip he took in 1960 to rediscover America. He died in 1968 in New York of a heart attack and his ashes are interred in Salinas.

Seventeen of his works, including The Grapes of Wrath (1940), Cannery Row (1945), The Pearl (1947), and East of Eden (1952), went on to become Hollywood films, and Steinbeck also achieved success as a Hollywood writer, receiving an Academy Award nomination for Best Story in 1944 for Alfred Hitchcock's Lifeboat.(less)

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John Steinbeck's Books

Average rating: 3.82 · 1,476,592 ratings · 41,080 reviews · 106 distinct works · Similar authors

	Of Mice and Men 3.75 of 5 stars 3.75 avg rating — 797,306 ratings — published 1937 — 208 editions	Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	The Grapes of Wrath 3.85 of 5 stars 3.85 avg rating — 268,781 ratings — published 1939 — 201 editions	Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	East of Eden 4.3 of 5 stars 4.30 avg rating — 165,445 ratings — published 1952 — 2 editions	Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	The Pearl 3.3 of 5 stars 3.30 avg rating — 76,086 ratings — published 1945 — 136 editions	Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Cannery Row 3.96 of 5 stars 3.96 avg rating — 42,307 ratings — published 1945 — 77 editions	Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Travels with Charley: In Search of America 4.02 of 5 stars 4.02 avg rating — 25,259 ratings — published 1962 — 17 editions	Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	The Winter of Our Discontent by John Steinbeck, Susan Shillinglaw (Annotations) 3.95 of 5 stars 3.95 avg rating — 17,101 ratings — published 1961 — 64 editions	Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Tortilla Flat 3.79 of 5 stars 3.79 avg rating — 18,458 ratings — published 1935 — 85 editions	Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	The Red Pony 3.33 of 5 stars 3.33 avg rating — 19,738 ratings — published 1933 — 76 editions	Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	The Moon is Down 3.81 of 5 stars 3.81 avg rating — 6,533 ratings — published 1942 — 53 editions	Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars

More books by John Steinbeck…

Quotes by John Steinbeck

“There ain't no sin and there ain't no virtue. There's just stuff people do.”
― John Steinbeck, The Grapes of Wrath

1,862 people liked it

“Maybe ever’body in the whole damn world is scared of each other.”
― John Steinbeck, Of Mice and Men

tags: loneliness, people, scared, world

1,798 people liked it

“I believe a strong woman may be stronger than a man, particularly if she happens to have love in her heart. I guess a loving woman is indestructible.”
― John Steinbeck, East of Eden

1,614 people liked it

See all John Steinbeck's quotes »

Polls

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Shadow HillsShadow Hills

2 votes 66.7%

the wake of forgivenessThe Wake of Forgiveness

1 vote 33.3%

The hostThe Host

0 votes 0.0%

any steinbeckSteinbeck ; London ; Melville

0 votes 0.0%

3 total votes

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