I was reading an article about Barack Obama’s favorite books that he’d recommend everyone to read. Steinbeck’s ‘Of Mice and Men’ was one of them. Reading the blurb at the back of this short book, I came to know that this is a classical short story set during the post-depression era in America, where it was really hard to make a living.
The story follows two relative friends, George and Lennie, who are both daily wagers and are trying to earn enough money to buy a place of their own. What makes the story interesting is that almost no one worked in pairs in those tough days, so to see these two fellas work together was a surprise for every other worker; even a bigger surprise was that Lennie was slow. Being hit on the head in childhood by a horse, Lennie had ever since lost his ability to grow and has remained a child – a big and strong child, but a child nevertheless.
For this reason, Lennie gets in all sort of trouble, even life-threatening ones, and George is always the one to come for rescue. No wonder Lennie is a burden on George, but George knows better. He knows how Lennie has no one else other than him, but even more importantly, he knows that he ain’t got anybody than Lennie as well. They accompany each other to make a friendship, a family if you will, which everyone else in those godforsaken times is deprived of.
A smart, elder-brother character with a dumb and strong fella, both on the journey of one day buying a place of their own and having fluffy rabbits who would need tending, this reminds of one a similarly sketched 2020 movie called ‘Peanut Butter Falcon’. In that movie, Shia plays the big-brother role and looks after, rather compulsively and out of sympathy, a slow young kid who wants to become a wrestler.
Stories with such characters and plots are almost guaranteed to pull a string in your heart. What Steinbeck does so well in this novella are the dialogues. They are rough, western, and honest which makes the reading experience that much more transportive and relatable. Much of this novella is filled with sweetness and niceness and stands a strong testament to how love and kindness can make almost anything work. The relationship and bonding between these two intimate fellas are both heart-tearing and sweet.
It is the ending, however, that leaves you shook and searching for answers. Whether Steinbeck was trying to even out the story with such an ending in order to present the harsher realities of life, or he just saw this particular ending was the most suiting end to his novella, I don’t really know. What I know is that it is really heartbreaking and betraying also in a sense. Could the ending be the biggest example of kindness performed in the whole novella? Or it is just how life is – unexpected and harsh?
A happy-sad, bitter-sweet, short and a gripping
novella, Steinbeck’s classic will certainly leave you with a memorable tale and
something morally questioning about life and its tragedies.
Ratings: 5/5 ***** June 5, 2021_