I went through my period of reading Steinbeck in college as well. "The Pearl" is realistic, but that guy sure could write!!! He knew how to use the English language. Sue S. ----- Original Message ----- From: "Donna Smith" <donnafsmith@xxxxxxxxxxxxx> To: <bksvol-discuss@xxxxxxxxxxxxx> Sent: Sunday, January 16, 2005 10:05 AM Subject: [bksvol-discuss] Re: Steinbeck The Pearl is a bit of a deviation for him for those of you who find his more well known stuff a bit too realistic. I would hardly call The Pearl fanciful, <grin>, but it is quite poetic. Of course, I'm relying on memory as it has been years since reading it. I just remember in college going through a period of reading Steinbeck and finding The Pearl to be a bit of a relief. Peace and Hope, Donna