What you should read instead of "Grapes of Wrath"
5 stars
Sanora Babb grew up on one of those midwestern farms that got hit by the dust bowl. She grew up with those people. She was one of those people. She was also probably one of the most remarkable women to ever grace this country. While working in aid camps, she compiled notes of experiences refugees shared with her, and from those notes, and her own childhood experiences, she wrote a book about the experiences of the refugees. She even got a publisher to agree to publish it. But then one of the most famous authors in America publish a remarkably similar book (John Steinbeck, the Grapes of Wrath), and the publisher pulled out of the deal. Who would read a book by an unknown author when a very similar book was already flooding the market?
It turns out that the manager of the camp Sanora Babb was working at, one …
Sanora Babb grew up on one of those midwestern farms that got hit by the dust bowl. She grew up with those people. She was one of those people. She was also probably one of the most remarkable women to ever grace this country. While working in aid camps, she compiled notes of experiences refugees shared with her, and from those notes, and her own childhood experiences, she wrote a book about the experiences of the refugees. She even got a publisher to agree to publish it. But then one of the most famous authors in America publish a remarkably similar book (John Steinbeck, the Grapes of Wrath), and the publisher pulled out of the deal. Who would read a book by an unknown author when a very similar book was already flooding the market?
It turns out that the manager of the camp Sanora Babb was working at, one Tom Collins, had invited John Steinbeck to visit the camp for a week so that he might write a book about their experiences. To assist in the project, Tom Collins gave Steinbeck a collection of his employees' notes, most of which were written by Babb herself. It seems neither Steinbeck nor Babb knew at the time that this had happened. Tom Collins though, he had to know. F*** him for that.
Fortunately, Sanora Babb was able to get her book published eventually....in 2004. And this is that book. And it is SO much better than The Grapes of Wrath.
