Post #1: Book Introduction

I chose The Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck because it is considered to be one of the greatest classics in American literature. I’ve heard the title mentioned several times in my history textbooks as representative of a major time period during American history. I also chose it because several people from other classes told me that they enjoyed reading the book. Steinbeck is very famous and has won a Pulitzer Prize and Nobel Prize for his work in literature. From the summary on the back cover, I think the story is about an Oklahoma family migrating to California during the time of the Great Depression to escape the Dust Bowl. Even though the novel is centered on one family in particular – the Joads – the story is supposed to be universal in its depiction of immigrant struggles and morality. The Joad family is representative of the thousands of men and women ultimately transforming 1930s America.

I also chose Eternal Knight by Matt Heppe for an additional reading book because I heard very positive reviews about the story. I am unfamiliar with the fantasy genre but I wanted to try reading Mr. Heppe's book. The story is about a huntress named Hadde who is trying to save her family and her village from starving during a great famine known as The Wasting. There seems to be a lot of magical/fantastic aspects woven into the story like non-human creatures in an alternate world with fictional village names. The reviews commented that the story was fast-paced and full of plot twists. So far, the first few pages start right into the action and introduce Hadde's skill as an archer and strong protagonist.