The Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck started slowly for me but became more intense and gripping as the Joad family began their journey to California, among the thousands of other families searching for work. This historical fiction book stood out to me because it was about a time period I knew near to nothing about, which made it all the more intriguing and horrifying.
I liked Steinbeck's style of alternating the chapters between the Joad Family's story and the fast paced story of all the others, a glimpse of the trouble that would be up ahead for the Joads. These chapters would include snippets of conversation, either showing the townspeople's hatred for the "Okies" or the desperate pleads from the newcomers with empty gas tanks and starving children. They would also include a detailed description of what was happening in California, what the government knew and wanted to happen. The government wanted as many people as possible, the hungrier the better, to flock to the places with promised work. Then, with way too many people for the little bit of work, they could lower the wages again and again and it wouldn't matter - any work is better than none.
Of course the Joads don't know that yet, the readers do because of Steinbeck's style. It's a way of foreshadowing what is to come for the Joads, and perhaps to warn us that things aren't about to get any better.
I feel that I have learned so much from this book, yet it was still enjoyable to read. The overall theme was probably the strength of family, or just the power of people in the shaping of America.
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