Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck: Book Review

(Book Review--Rereads)

Started: July 13, 2025

(This is a reread.  As I mentioned in the video, I originally read it in high school, or rather had it read to me in high scholl.  But as this is my first time reviewing it on this blog, according to my new rules, I'm doing this as a video only review.)

Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck: Book Review

Related playlists: 

* Books I read in 2025: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLOY-0V_l_9x7Fev7Uv6_tzuSf84LtYwQu&si=Im1rdozRXrgGnr99

* Book Reviews Playlist: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLOY-0V_l_9x7dao6py7ODX_PkUvrAEch7&si=EJ7CG8iO9IouNaYY

* Rereads Playlist: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLOY-0V_l_9x5dMXnK5v4Yc7a8MF5p32Bx&si=HJZkQ7gk8J-EXB9f

* Literature Playlist: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLOY-0V_l_9x4PjU8NX0_OGClFlA44DpdS&si=2x2pIzH3YCj-hcmI

* John Steinbeck Playlist: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLOY-0V_l_9x5y2IZag5TiVWw-mQ78_EU5&si=v2IIGlcAO7H3ZAOg

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Of Mice and Men (1992)

(Movie Review)

Why I Saw This Movie: I was assigned to teach the novel Of Mice and Men to an advanced English class, and after we finished reading the novel we watched the movie together.

My History With the Novel: I first encountered the novel when my 10th grade English teacher read it aloud to us.  Since then, I have taught the novel (or the Graded Reader Version) 3 times to ESL classes.

My History With the Movie: I’ve managed to avoid seeing this movie until now, but of course I’ve been aware of it for years from various pop culture references, such as the various winks and nods to John Malkovich’s role in this movie in Being John Malkovich. 

The Review

          Very faithful to the book, and very well done for what it is.  This is probably the best adaptation of Steinbeck’s novel we can hope for. 

            But unfortunately, some novels don’t successfully transfer onto the screen, and this is probably one of them.  Characters who seem so lifelike and real in the book just come across as flat and boring on the screen.

Other Things I’d Talk About If I Wasn’t Limiting Myself to 100 Words

* At some point, the discussion should be had about what makes a successful novel, and what makes a successful movie, and why some unforgettable novels make for some very forgettable movies—but someone smarter than me will probably have to tackle that question.

Rating :

5 out of 10 Stars.  (It’s not a great movie as a movie, but it’s the best adaptation of the novel that we could have hoped for, and it’s competently done, so it gets at least a 5.)

Link of the Day

Noam Chomsky on Wikileaks

East of Eden by John Steinbeck

 (Book Review)

Steinbeck was one of the few authors assigned in high school that I actually enjoyed. I always meant to read more books by him, but I got distracted by other things.

A few year ago, I saw the movie “East of Eden”, and really enjoyed it, so I’ve been meaning to read the book for some time now. I had a hard time finding a decent copy, but when I saw it in the Oita library I grabbed it.

Because I had already seen the movie, I was a little worried that I would get bored with the book, but actually it turns out the movie only deals with a small portion of the actual story. The book actually traces three generations of two different families: the Trasks and the Hamiltons. In this way the book is actually a much more epic story. It reminded me of Thomas Mann's "Buddenbrooks".

The Hamilton family is John Steinbeck’s actual maternal family, and so Steinbeck writes himself into the book, including what I’m assuming are real autobiographical details mixed in with his fictional story. This is an interesting literary technique, and some of the most interesting parts of the book are those dealing with Steinbeck’s life, such as the time he recalls with great regret about how he and his sister took part in the harassment of a German immigrant during the first World War.

As the title indicates, and as anyone who’s seen the movie knows, this story is a modern retelling of the Garden of Eden story. I’ve heard that this book has been criticized for lack of subtlety, and this is really true. The characters themselves even comment on the Garden of Eden and the Genesis story, so that there’s never any doubt as to where the story is going. In this regard those who have seen the movie, and already know how the story will end, are at no more disadvantage than those approaching the story for the first time. At times I felt things were a little heavy handed, but on the other hand it’s kind of refreshing for an author to be like: “look, I’m not going to be coy with you and make you guess at the symbolism. This is the story I want to tell. It’s all out in the open for you.”

Useless Wikipedia Fact
The September 25, 2005 edition of the San Francisco Chronicle newspaper reported that Tillman held views which were critical of the Iraq war and did not support President Bush's re-election. According to Tillman's mother, a friend of Tillman had arranged a meeting with Noam Chomsky, to take place after his return from Afghanistan. The article also reported that Tillman urged a soldier in his platoon to vote for John Kerry in the 2004 U.S. Presidential election.

Link of the Day
CIA Spy Speaks Out: No WMDs in Iraq Was Not an 'Intelligence Failure'

Video Version