No longer willing to be the chronicler of Depression-era subjects, Steinbeck went afield to find new roots, new sources, new forms. The very act of researching and writing Grapes, which occupied him fully for several years and which he had already conceived as his final book on proletarian themes, changed him drastically. As a result he became self-conscious about his own ability, and suspicious of that “clumsy vehicle,” the novel. He was accused of selling out, or co-opting his talent, when in fact the inordinate public success of Grapes and especially its attendant notoriety had caused a backlash for Steinbeck. Traditionally, the critical reputation of Nobel Prize-winning American novelist John Steinbeck (1902-1968) has rested on his achievements of the 1930s, especially In Dubious Battle (1936), Of Mice and Men (19370, The Long Valley (1938), and, of course, The Grapes of Wrath (1939), one of the most powerful – and arguable on of the greatest – American novels of this century.īook reviewers and academic critics often turned antagonistic toward Steinbeck when he no longer produced work with the sweeping reach and social consciousness of The Grapes of Wrath. And what a fitting testament to Tetsumaro Hayashi, who in his insight stimulated the interest of many of us in Steinbeck, nurtured a companionship among us, and encouraged our own explorations.” “The very things that so empowered John Steinbeck's work-the wisdom, depth, and diversity-are generously represented in the remarkable collection. Yasuo Hashiguchi, Yasuda Women's University “What about John Steinbeck after The Grapes of Wrath? This collection in honor of Tetsumaro Hayashi provides a much welcome, contemporary response to this often-asked question about a relatively overlooks, enigmatic period of Steinbeck's career.”
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