Lennie and George…one big…one little, one smart…one not so
smart…two migrant drifters, looking for work in a country ravaged by economic
depression…
John Steinbeck grew up in Northern California, and beginning
with Tortilla Flat in 1935, he wrote
a whole series of novels that occur in the “Golden State”. Of Mice
and Men is one of these tales, but it differs from the others in that it
has taken on the mantle of being considered Steinbeck’s first “classic”
work. Not too bad, for a story that got
eaten by the dog. Apparently, the first
draft of the book was dined on by Rover…Steinbeck simply sat down and re-wrote
it…that is determination worthy of the Depression Era generation.
If you haven’t read this book, it is a must. If you read it in high school like I did,
it’s worth a re-read with a more mature appreciation of literature. It truly is a disgustingly sorrowful story,
but one in which the character of Man is challenged almost to the point of
breaking. It’s a one of a kind work,
which brings the bad flavor of desperation, poverty and desire right into your
belly. It was an instant success…and its
popularity has yet to wain. The book was
the first of Steinbeck’s works to be made into a film, and has been dramatized
as a play and an opera…not to mention the whole “banned book” controversy…
Many have tried to restrict access to this work of
literature…but you can’t keep a good novel down. As far as I know, it’s still being enjoyed,
or reviled, depending on your perception, by students across the U.S. and
around the World.
Unfortunately, this book’s first edition is not feely available on the Internet, but because of its literary significance, I wanted to include it here at First Edition Friday. You can get an original first edition copy fairly easily though. First editions came out in separate printings…for example, in 1937, the year Of Mice and Men was first published, there was a first printing, a second printing, a third, and so on…All of these are considered first editions of the book. The only real “heavyweight” in the lot is the first edition/first printing…that book will cost you a few thousand dollars. However, one of the later printings, from 1937, might cost you a few dollars. I got mine on Amazon for a grand total of eight bucks…
