Of Mice and Men

by Kevin Hinkle (Adapted By), John Steinbeck

On arriving in California during the Great Depression, George and Lennie find work on a ranch. They dream of earning enough money to buy their own land but Lennieâ€s misunderstood nature and underestimate of his strength leads to a string of difficulties. A portrait of friendship, the novel has overcome repeated challenges to remain a fixture on school curriculums around the world.

Genres: Classics, Fiction, Historical Fiction, Literature, Young Adult, Drama, Novels

40 pages, Paperback

Published August 15, 2001

Reviews

[Caroline · Rating 4 out of 5]

For such a short story, it broke my heart too many times. Great read.

[Ryan Mead · Rating 3 out of 5]

Honestly was better than I remembered! Many unnecessary things though…

[Liz · Rating 4 out of 5]

A great short read. It very much reads like a play, as with each chapter opening, Steinbeck carefully and beautifully describes the scene like a stage set. Vivid memorable characters and an ending I didn’t predict. Only knocked off a star because each character is more like a symbol of the times and I found it depressing how Curley’s wife as the only female character is deprived of a name and granted very little empathy from either the other characters or the author himself.

[Cathal Ó · Rating 3 out of 5]

I read this book because I had not previously read this book. It's done now. I can relax and say I've read it. The book is fine. Forgettable. I don't get why it's so revered though. Was no one else literate in 1930s America? It's not that bad, but it's just not that good either.

[Éabha Caffrey · Rating 3 out of 5]

I had to put on an accent for half of the books dialogue to stay interested in it
#justiceforlennie

[Grace · Rating 3 out of 5]

I liked this book, it made me feel connected to the characters in a way. It gets straight to the point so I didn't really enjoy it as much as I would reading other books. But it's realistic and full of emotion, a nice descriptive short story. So that's why I'm giving it a 3/5 stars.

[sheribubble · Rating 4 out of 5]

No wonder this book is still referenced to this day. It's pretty simple, more of a slice of life style story but it's really powerful. Definitely a memorable story and I want to watch the movie when I've emotionally recovered from the book.

[Nina · Rating 5 out of 5]

Such a beautifully written story, very heartfelt and even made me giggle here and there.

[Rachel Huskisson · Rating 4 out of 5]

The first time I read this was at school, unable to remember much and as my daughter is reading it at school I thought I would read it agin. Really enjoyed it and reading "The story Behind Of Mice and Men" [The Story Behind John Steinbeck's of Mice and Men|186520]
alongside it has been really interesting.

[Bessie · Rating 1 out of 5]

Literally no character development and boring plot (hated it 😍)

[Melissa · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.2? ⭐

I was gonna go in with a solid 4 before sitting with it a bit. It is laid out like a play in separate acts so there's mild opportunity for some character development even in spite of its length. I'd say it's told from George's perspective minus his inner monologue but you do witness the death of his hope even if you don't see any other real change cover to cover. Curley's wife never gets a name and is mostly treated with contempt.

All that said I could easily get lost in the vividly described settings and sometimes forgot this is far from a calm and "nice" story. You could of course see where it was going to end up by the end of chapter one very clearly but not in a way that deters from finding out how. The end was a palpable tension and you can't help feeling George's stuckness. In fact, I'd crudely call the theme of the novel the stuckness of literally everyone. Lennie, Curley's wife, and Crooks particularly the victims of cruel ignorance in a time not made for them.

[curtis :) · Rating 1 out of 5]

plot? no

character development? no

ending? :(

[Ross Whelan · Rating 2 out of 5]

Of mice and men?

More like…

No mice in it 👍

[Embehaydoc · Rating 5 out of 5]

OMG KẾT TRUYỆN ĐAU LÒNG...
Nhân đây thì mình sẽ nói 1 chút về cảm thức cô đơn và giấc mơ - một nỗ lực để chống lại sự đơn độc xâm chiếm tâm hồn của các nhân vật.

-Không gian: Thị trấn Soledad --> Cô đơn xâm nhiễm cả vào cảnh vật.

-George - Thông minh
-Lennie - Khỏe, to xác nhưng kém thông minh
==>Hai nhân vật đều là những người cô đơn và nương tựa vào nhau để sống, họ đều là những con người đều phải vật lộn và mưu sinh với cuộc đời quá đỗi khắc nghiệt này (Mà ở bìa sách có ghi là thời đại suy thoái KT ở Mỹ).
==>Họ cùng nuôi cho mình một ước mơ về việc sở hữu một trang trại có nhiều loài động vật lông xù (Cốt là để cho Lennie xoa xoa vuốt ve:))). Đấy, thấy George chiều Lennie không cơ chứ )

-Crook

-Candy


-Thoạt đầu, mình cứ có ác cảm thế quái nào với vợ Curley cơ=))) nma sau này khi mà vợ Curley chia sẻ vì ông Curley bruh bruh lmao kia nên bả mới phải tán các ông trong trang trại để bớt cô đơn. Nói thật là kiểu "ngoại tình" như này không hiếm trong văn học, mình có nhớ tới Anna Karenina.

P/s: đang bận nấu cơm nên post tạm, khi nào nấu xong thì viết tiết nha kkk

[Scot · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of my favorite books that I read as a child. It taught me a lot about hate and how it is often imbread from ignorance. It helped me formulate and understand confusion of the bias living inside me. Even helped me understand that those we may dislike, even hate or perhaps misunderstand because of their actions; abuse of others; hatred of others; or just plain difrences, are all in fact people we share empathy with. This book is both a beautuful depiction of the worst of human kind and also the goodness of people at their core.

Loony Tunes reference of mice and men is cleaver and hilarious.

[Ava Garvin · Rating 3 out of 5]

The novella, "Of Mice and Men" was a riveting experience, down to the very last page. The symbolism and foreshadowing portrayed compelling and stronger emotions than ever seen before. John Steinbeck knew how to easily paint his scenes and keep the reader hooked on his every word. However, in my humble opinion, John Steinbeck's idea of an ending didn't sit well with me. The ending left an appalling number of questions that would never be answered. What had happened to George after? Will he ever recover? What will happen to Candy? For this reason I recalled 2 stars from the rating. My curious and hungry mind will never be satisfied. :(

[Radhika]

My cousin made me read this when I was legit in elementary school. It was a “summer task.” At that age, this was boring and there was assault and euthanasia. Idk if I even clocked it back then (probably didn’t know what was going on) but I read it again in high school for a paper.

I finished this the same day my brother finished his video game and when my cousin got home he said, “Wow you both have been so productive today.” I was like boy excuse ME?? Me finishing this literary classic at 9 years old is not equivalent to my brother beating Little Big Planet.

[Netri Maru · Rating 4 out of 5]

This story had a sad and shocking ending. I don’t understand why a best friend would kill a best friend, this is story was interesting but also sad at the same time. I was about to cry in the ending when he was making his best friend dream of something wonderful and then shot him with the gun later. I think the story could have been written better. But it’s also fine the way it is. I did like the starting because it was going smoothly.

[John Lewis · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed many things about this book. It had an interesting premise which was fun to follow. It gave me perspective to something that I didn’t know much about. The characters had many layers and there was a lot of deep thought and emotion. There was also a lot of both positive and negative chemistry between characters which always kept it interesting.

[Anaid Liddell · Rating 2 out of 5]

Leí esta versión corta o académica de la historia para mi clase de inglés en la universidad.
Fue un libro entretenido, no tan difícil de leer cómo pensé que seria al ser básicamente mi primera lectura en inglés, pero es bastante irrelevante en mi vida en general y probablemente recuerde poco de él en un tiempo. El final impactante, era un poco incómodo de leer en general por su crudeza.

[John Grinstead · Rating 4 out of 5]

A classic text which very much reflects its time and many of the societal and cultural norms of the day. Now a much loved part of the Literature syllabus in British Schools, it provides a window on a very different time in rural America and a touching insight into the bond of friendship between George and Lennie.

[Judah O'Connell · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was always on my father’s nightstand when I visited and was the only book in his house besides a bible and a Shakespeare book I wasn’t allowed to touch (I read it anyway I just had to wait until he was asleep to do so). Subsequently I read it several times. Thankfully for my sanity, it is the sort of book one can read more than once and find themselves enjoying it again.

[Sarah · Rating 4 out of 5]

End of this book DESTROYED me. It tends to be racially insensitive and most people can be very sexist to women (even if curly was the one in the Vaseline glove)
But as a classic book it continues to keep your attention and keep you hating the main character

[Bookworm2020 · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a great book. Of course I read it for school but it’s one of the more interesting ones I have read. Be aware though that as all books that you read for school are, this one is a little depressing. The character work and inner meanings are beautiful! Happy reading!

[Isabella Pham · Rating 1 out of 5]

boring

[Ali]

Good for English learners

[Kitty Smith · Rating 4 out of 5]

Mb

[Lyndsey · Rating 1 out of 5]

The most boring book I've read in my entire life.

[Patricia Darling · Rating 2 out of 5]

For a classic, it's not too bad 😌👏

[Lav ✦ · Rating 1 out of 5]

Did it for english class. Very traumatizing. Especially w that teacher. No thank you.