Helpful Score: 2
Racist? Wow, that's a tough one. If Gabriel Garcia-Marquez had written this novella, nobody would call it racist. It would be about a bunch of lazy drunk unambitious men who just happen to be Mexican-Indian-Italian-little-bit-of-everything.
Still, Garcia-Marquez didn't write it, Steinbeck did. Can the exact same words, and not just a phrase - what up, homey? - but 70,000 exact same words in a row - be racist when coming from a Californian of European descent, when they would not from a Colombian whose first language is Spanish?
I really don't know.
So I'm going to pretend the book was written by Gabriel Garcia-Marquez, and what a great book it is. His usual elements of eye-widening, soul-delighting surrealism are out in full force, what with women that seem to get pregnant without help, children thriving on just beans, but brought near death by vegetables and milk, and dogs and ghosts and all kinds of stuff that live right between reality and full frontal assault fantasy seizure.
And Garcia-Marquez' characters - just great. They are so messed up, but I swear by the time the book's over you'll see every situation exactly as they do. There's no situation they can't solve - really solve - by selling something for more wine.
As with any story of Garcia-Marquez, you know there's going to be humor - the winking dry variety, wherein our narrator is playing along with his characters, but also letting you know it's just a playalong.
This may rank right up there with his best - Hundred Years of Solitude and Love in the Time of Cholera. Make sure to get a copy by Garcia-Marquez, though. The one by Steinbeck has too many embarrassingly stereotypical Latino behaviors, which were tolerated in the 1930's but are not today.
Still, Garcia-Marquez didn't write it, Steinbeck did. Can the exact same words, and not just a phrase - what up, homey? - but 70,000 exact same words in a row - be racist when coming from a Californian of European descent, when they would not from a Colombian whose first language is Spanish?
I really don't know.
So I'm going to pretend the book was written by Gabriel Garcia-Marquez, and what a great book it is. His usual elements of eye-widening, soul-delighting surrealism are out in full force, what with women that seem to get pregnant without help, children thriving on just beans, but brought near death by vegetables and milk, and dogs and ghosts and all kinds of stuff that live right between reality and full frontal assault fantasy seizure.
And Garcia-Marquez' characters - just great. They are so messed up, but I swear by the time the book's over you'll see every situation exactly as they do. There's no situation they can't solve - really solve - by selling something for more wine.
As with any story of Garcia-Marquez, you know there's going to be humor - the winking dry variety, wherein our narrator is playing along with his characters, but also letting you know it's just a playalong.
This may rank right up there with his best - Hundred Years of Solitude and Love in the Time of Cholera. Make sure to get a copy by Garcia-Marquez, though. The one by Steinbeck has too many embarrassingly stereotypical Latino behaviors, which were tolerated in the 1930's but are not today.
Helpful Score: 1
Steinbeck has always been one of my favorite authors ever since reading Grapes of Wrath back in college. I have had this Modern Library hardcover copy of Tortilla Flat in my personal collection for over 20 years but just now got around to reading it. This is one of Steinbeck's earlier novels published in 1935 and was his first commercial success. The book portrays a group of 'paisanos'âliterally, countrymenâa small band of errant friends enjoying life and wine in the days after the end of World War I living above the town of Monterey on the California coast in the shabby district of Tortilla Flat. The book explains that a 'paisano' is "a mixture of Spanish, Indian, Mexican and assorted Caucasian bloods. He speaks English with a paisano accent and Spanish with a paisano accent. . ."
The main protagonist of the novel is Danny who returned from WWI and inherited not one, but two houses when his grandfather dies. Danny decides to rent one of the houses to his friends with little hope of ever collecting rent. He and his friends are used to sleeping in the woods and getting drunk on wine whenever possible. The story really glorifies drunkenness, stealing, homelessness, and quick casual sex. His friends accidentally burn down the house he rents to them so they end up moving into the other house with Danny. As time passes more friends seem to end up moving in with him. This included a man called Pirate who works selling firewood for a quarter a day that he never spends. He is persuaded to move in by the group mainly because they want to obtain the money he has been saving. But it turns out he is saving for a good cause and so he ends up with the support of all of them. The group carries on with their existence, mainly drinking and brawling until Danny seems to go his own way because he misses the freedom he had when he was alone.
I enjoyed this one. The location of Monterey was later used by Steinbeck in Cannery Row and Sweet Thursday, two of my favorites. Of course the book contained some minor racial slurs that were common in the books of the time but overall this was an interesting look at the down-and -outs that made the most of their situation. The ending of the book was a little unexpected but life goes on. . . This was also made into a movie in 1942 with Spencer Tracy and John Garfield. I remember seeing this several years ago, probably on TCM, but I definitely would like to see it again after reading the novel and I look forward to reading more of Steinbeck that I have missed.
The main protagonist of the novel is Danny who returned from WWI and inherited not one, but two houses when his grandfather dies. Danny decides to rent one of the houses to his friends with little hope of ever collecting rent. He and his friends are used to sleeping in the woods and getting drunk on wine whenever possible. The story really glorifies drunkenness, stealing, homelessness, and quick casual sex. His friends accidentally burn down the house he rents to them so they end up moving into the other house with Danny. As time passes more friends seem to end up moving in with him. This included a man called Pirate who works selling firewood for a quarter a day that he never spends. He is persuaded to move in by the group mainly because they want to obtain the money he has been saving. But it turns out he is saving for a good cause and so he ends up with the support of all of them. The group carries on with their existence, mainly drinking and brawling until Danny seems to go his own way because he misses the freedom he had when he was alone.
I enjoyed this one. The location of Monterey was later used by Steinbeck in Cannery Row and Sweet Thursday, two of my favorites. Of course the book contained some minor racial slurs that were common in the books of the time but overall this was an interesting look at the down-and -outs that made the most of their situation. The ending of the book was a little unexpected but life goes on. . . This was also made into a movie in 1942 with Spencer Tracy and John Garfield. I remember seeing this several years ago, probably on TCM, but I definitely would like to see it again after reading the novel and I look forward to reading more of Steinbeck that I have missed.
