... Ernst Steinbeck, Jr., b. Salinas, Calif., Feb. 27, 1902, d. Dec. 20, 1968, based most of his novels on the American experience, often with sympathetic focus on the poor, the eccentric, or the dispossessed. Steinbeck grew up in Salinas Valley, a rich agricultural area of Monterey County and the setting of many of his works, where he learned firsthand of the difficulties of farm laborers. From 1919 to 1925 he studied intermittently at Stanford University but ... not receive a degree. His early novels (Cup of Gold, 1929; The Pastures of Heaven, 1932; and To a God Unknown, 1933) aroused lit...

• Word Count: 1312
• Approx Pages: 5
• Grade Level: High School

... making them feel like they are actually there. For his talent of expressing the lives of the American people in literature, he was presented the Noble Prize in 1962. Steinbeck grew up in California and many of his novels were set there. His works are based upon the issues of the time and setting. His novels "The Grapes of Wrath" and "Of Mice and Men" are cored around migrant farm workers in ... California that are affected by the Great Depression and the Dust Bowl. Many of his novels are about society's lowest class during the 30's, in which he sympathizes with ... them. Steinbeck won t...

• Word Count: 1667
• Approx Pages: 7
• Grade Level: High School