Substitute Hispanics for Oakies and much of The Grapes of Wrath will sound contemporary. The story remains gripping today because the search for a better life is timeless.
Archive for May, 2009
Vintage novel lays sentiment on thick
Posted in 1939 Bestselling Novels, 1940 Bestselling Novels, tagged John Steinbeck, Depression, Dust Bowl, Oklahoma, California, migrants, working poor on May 27, 2009 | Comments Off
Two ‘38 top books held over on 1939 list
Posted in 1938 Bestselling Novels, 1939 Bestselling Novels, Asides on May 24, 2009 | Comments Off
On the 1939 bestseller list are two titles that were in the top 10 the previous year as well.
Rebecca by Daphne Du Maurier held third place in 1939, up from fourth place on the 1938 bestseller list. The tale of the romantic lass who finds herself playing second fiddle to her husband’s late wife in [...]
Please don’t steal my content
Posted in Asides on May 20, 2009 | Comments Off
I found to my dismay this morning that a blog about weddings has reprinted one of my reviews without permission. I will, of course, be following up to nab the culprit.
I make my book reviews available free via a widget. Get the widget, get the reviews, stay out of trouble.
Copy my work without permission, even [...]
Great reads among 1939 top novels
Posted in Lists of bestsellers by year on May 20, 2009 | Comments Off
This week, I’ll begin looking at the best-selling novels of 1939. Top of the list is a famous novel that became an equally famous film: John Steinbeck’s The Grapes of Wrath. Further down the list is another classic book that became a classic film, The Yearling by Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings.
Few 1949 top novels worth rereading
Posted in My Top Pics on May 17, 2009 | Comments Off
1949 was not a particularly good year for novels.
The best of the lot is a holdover from the 1948 bestseller list, Dinner at Antoine’s by Frances Parkinson Keyes.
The book, like all Keyes’ work, has a clever but plausible plot developed through memorable characters. And she writes well enough that her novels can be reread [...]
Father of the Bride Is Dull Old Duffer
Posted in 1949 Bestselling Novels, Humor, tagged Edward Streeter, marriage, weddings on May 13, 2009 | 1 Comment »
By today’s standards, Edward Streeter’s The Father of the Bride is a quaint novel rather than a funny one. When Streeter requests the honor of your reading his novel, send your
regrets.
