The Grapes of Wrath: Reading assignment I

Discussion post will follow on Sunday, 2/2.

Hey everybody. The first reading assignment for The Grapes of Wrath, which will be discussed on Sunday, 2/2, is chapters 1-6. This is about 60 pages in my copy, which is one of those fancy copies with the deckle edges, which looks sexy but is really just annoying. Sixty pages isn’t a lot, but I figured it would be better to start slow and adjust our pace accordingly. Even if your reading timeline can’t always be aligned with that of the book club, please feel free to reference our posts and discussions at your own leisure.

For the first discussion upcoming I’m not going to give any prompts or anything like that, although I will likely adjust the approach over time as we refine the whole process. This week, I’d say just take notes about anything that struck you at all, and feel free to share them in the comments. If you’re unsure of what to talk about, character and theme and plot are always a good place to start. Literary devices are an absolute blast. And then of course there is that larger, overarching question of what The Grapes of Wrath, a purported Great American novel, tells us about America then and America now. Because even though the story takes place some 90 years ago, I suspect there are parallels to be found between the plight of the Joads and our own challenging circumstances, both personal and political, less dusty but no less dire.

So, yeah. Just take notes. And please forgive me for the fluid process—I’m hoping the reading and discussion process is one we can cultivate and optimize over time, in a way that works best for all of us.

One last thing: the second discussion post will be Wednesday, 2/5. It is also just occurring to me as I write this that it would probably be beneficial to publish the reading schedule in advance, so that is something I will provide to you on Sunday as well.

Get reading, and see you then.