The topic of John Steinbeck's final novel is amazingly acute today although it was first published more than fifty years ago... it's a novel revolving around morals in a money-centred modern world.

The Winter of Our Discontent is the story of a good and honest man who finds his morals corrupted by the requirements and habits of post-war America where virtually everything seems permitted to achieve financial wealth and social status. The protagonist clings to his high moral standards passed on to him by his forefathers, but his family's yearning for wealth and prestige forces him to think over his attitude and thus plunges him into a deep inner conflict.

I invite you to follow the link and read my long review on my main book blog Edith's Miscellany or its duplicate on Read the Nobels!

Can't believe I didn't grab this before now. Lucky me! :)

Not sure how long it'll be that low, but figured I'd let you all know about it!

http://www.amazon.com/Grapes-Wrath-John-Steinbeck-ebook/dp/B001BKTEZA/ref=sr_1_1_title_0_main?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1404227924&sr=1-1&keywords=GRAPES+OF+WRATH

Every year the ALA puts together a top ten list of the most frequently challenged books. This year, Captain Underpants beat out The Bluest Eye, The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian, and Fifty Shades of Grey to take the dubious honor of being number one for the second year in a row. I guess I'm happy on some level that Americans object more to words like "pee-pee" and "wedgie" than heart-rending portrayals of the effects of racial inequality, but...actually, I'm maybe not all that happy about that. The juxtaposition is ludicrous. 

Anyway, it was interesting to go through the lists year by year to see what changes and what stays the same. The books are a weird mix of downright classics -- lo, people still hate To Kill a Mockingbird and John Steinbeck -- popular fiction, comics, and the occasional sex-ed manual. I was charmed to see the Scary Stories series made the list last year. I just loved how horribly creepy those illustrations were when I was a kid, and it's nice to see that they still pack a punch. For example, I just did a GIS thinking maybe I'd include one here, and -- shudder -- I decided against that. You're welcome.