The Grapes of WrathThe Grapes of Wrath
Score Classic
What it's about
When the Dust Bowl and the banks drive them off their Oklahoma farm in the 1930s, the Joad family, newly paroled Tom Joad, his determined mother, his grandparents and the rest, pile everything onto a truck and head west on Route 66 toward the promise of work in California. What they find there is a land of plenty that has no place for them, and thousands of families just like them.
Why it's worth reading
It's one of the great American novels, a furious, compassionate story of survival and dignity, and it won the Pulitzer Prize. Ma Joad is one of fiction's most powerful characters, and the ending is unforgettable.
You'll love it if you liked
East of Eden
Demon Copperhead
The Warmth of Other Suns: The Epic Story of America's Great MigrationGood to know
Short interchapters about the wider migration alternate with the Joads' story. The dialect and the bleakness take some patience. About 460 pages.
By the numbers
- Readers52 out of 100 · counts 42%
- Critics97 out of 100 · counts 34% (its stronger lane)
- Bestseller90 out of 100 · counts 14%
- Buzz0 out of 100 · counts 10%
Critics and Bestseller are two ways to earn a place: a book's stronger one counts more. Buzz rewards recent bestseller weeks and prizes, so older books start at zero. The parts combine into the Must-Read Score, shown on a scale where the best book we found scores 99 and the last book to make the ranking scores 50.
Where it ranks
Why it made the list
Reads as
Thought-provoking
More by John Steinbeck
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Sweet Thursday
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Quick answers
Is The Grapes of Wrath worth reading?
Yes. It's one of the great American novels, a furious, compassionate story of survival and dignity, and it won the Pulitzer Prize. It ranks #135 of the 2,816 books in our ranking, with a Must-Read Score of 85.5 (the best book we found scores 99).
What is The Grapes of Wrath about?
When the Dust Bowl and the banks drive them off their Oklahoma farm in the 1930s, the Joad family, newly paroled Tom Joad, his determined mother, his grandparents and the rest, pile everything onto a truck and head west on Route 66 toward the promise of work in California. What they find there is a land of plenty that has no place for them, and thousands of families just like them.
How long does it take to read The Grapes of Wrath?
About 12 hours (496 pages), or about 3 weeks at 30 minutes a day.
What awards has The Grapes of Wrath won?
Pulitzer Prize for Fiction winner (1940).
What should I read after The Grapes of Wrath?
If you liked it, try East of Eden by John Steinbeck, Demon Copperhead by Barbara Kingsolver or The Warmth of Other Suns: The Epic Story of America's Great Migration by Isabel Wilkerson.