Tortilla Flat (John Steinbeck, 1935) is an absolute delight to read.
Set in Tortilla Flat, a run down area above Monterey in California,
Steinbeck conjures up a vibrant, dissolute, warm, nihilistic and, most
of all, deeply comic world in the form of the novel’s hero, Danny, and
his friends.
Danny returns from the army to find that he has inherited two houses
from his grandfather. He promptly moves into one and rents out the
other to a friend - not that any rent is ever paid - who in turn
sublets to others. The tenants having accidentally burned down this
rented house, are then welcomed into Danny’s house and this small
community of colourful characters grows. The novel centres around the
various adventures of the group including Danny, Pilon, Big Joe and The
Pirate and his ever-present pack of dogs. Much of their time is spent
sitting on the veranda, where they idle away their time in gossiping
about the inhabitants of Tortilla Flat, philosophising and swatting
flies. When they are not doing this, they are busy in either consuming
vast quantities of cheap wine or in hunting for wine to consume. This
is a world of unemployment, of homelessness and alcoholism, of petty
crime, promiscuity and violence. However, it is also a world where the
friends help the slow-witted Pirate save up for a gold candlestick to
offer to St Francis, where there is genuine love and compassion, where
the friends are even prepared to do a day’s work to help pay for a
surprise party for Danny. It is a novel where Steinbeck shows his deep
compassion and respect for his fellow man and, though the tale may be
no more than the story of a group of what could be termed social
inadequate, it is a deeply touching book and the end is one of the most
moving pieces of literature written.Write your translation here.
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