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If I had read this book in high school instead of The Pearl or The Red Pony, I would not have wasted a good part of my adult life avoiding Steinbeck...

I felt emotionally drained after reading this. The pace is deceptively slow, but the tension is there from the opening chapter and it builds dramatically to the inevitable climax. Steinbeck wastes no words in this book. We learn about the characters solely through their conversations and interactions with each other. The scenes are staged as in a play, and the point at which the reader is dropped into the story is a crucial one... just before the final act, just before everything flies apart.

This is a sad and unforgettable story. Your heart will ache for George and Lennie, and for those others who envied their bond of friendship and yearned for the same dream.