Comments (43)

What did you think about this title?
1 to 25 of 43 items
Mar 06, 2024Melogramatic rated this title 4.5 out of 5 stars
This wasn't the first Steinbeck novel I've ever read, but it WAS the first I've read since Junior Year AP Lit. made me slog through "The Grapes of Wrath." Back then, my inexperienced literary palate was unprepared for Steinbeck, and I…
Mar 02, 2024Rudy_Best rated this title 2 out of 5 stars
Boring, Confusing, and Sad.
Sep 29, 2023indigo_dog_2033 rated this title 4 out of 5 stars
Summary: In an attempt to pay for a doctor to save his infant baby from a scorpion sting, Kino and his wife go on a fishing voyage and stumble upon a breathtaking pearl. Although the pearl seems like the answer to their family’s poverty…
Aug 29, 2023
Whether you were assigned it in high school or are encountering it for the first time, Steinbeck's novella is well worth a read. As deceptively "simple" as the pen-and-ink illustrations by legendary Mexican artist Jose Clemente Orozco,…
Jul 11, 2023
Summary - Set in a small village near Mexico, “The Pearl” is about a fisherman, Kino, and his family. Although poor, Kino and his family lead a happy life until Kino comes across a valuable pearl on one of his fishing trips. Ultimately,…
Apr 08, 2023Tony_Jeffers rated this title 5 out of 5 stars
I started reading this years ago and didn't finish it for some reason. Perhaps there is a special place in Hell for a doctor that would poison an infant so he could then pretend to cure it. As the story progresses Steinbeck's…
Mar 24, 2023RodneyJBrown rated this title 4 out of 5 stars
As a birthday gift to myself, I set aside time during the day to read this little literary thriller all the way through. I don't have a record of reading it previously in any of my book lists, but I am certain that I read it for English…
Mar 07, 2023Ivyyyyyyyyy rated this title 4.5 out of 5 stars
“The Pearl”, written by American writer John Steinbeck, shows the deepest depth of evil. Kino, Juana, and their son, Coyotito, live by the sea, and their family is a peaceful and loving family at the beginning. When Kino finds a beautiful,…
Dec 27, 2022lataurchini rated this title 2.5 out of 5 stars
disappointing ending, anticlimactic
Sep 27, 2022WooKenneth rated this title 0.5 out of 5 stars
Unlike Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck, The Pearl is not so great of a story, which feels much more shallow and uninspiring compared to Steinbeck’s other works. The story follows the family of a diver named Kino and how he found a giant…
Jun 25, 2022_ShyGuy_ rated this title 4.5 out of 5 stars
The Pearl, which is written by John Steinbeck, author of the Grapes of Wrath and Of Mice and Men, is a novel depicting life in a small Mexican fishing town in the early 20th century. In only 90 pages, Steinbeck manages to tell the story of…
Apr 23, 2022teddyaaron2027 rated this title 4.5 out of 5 stars
Very interesting book, it was a great read, I recommend it.
Apr 07, 2022Paul_215 rated this title 4.5 out of 5 stars
The Pearl is a very interesting book from John Steinbeck. It is about a humble person who has an opportunity to get rich as finds a large oyster and opens it to find a sizable pearl. He is very happy about what he has found and expects to…
Feb 19, 2022alicat1 rated this title 4 out of 5 stars
Financial complexities are woven into this a quick parable.
Jul 20, 2021AlteredStaite rated this title 1.5 out of 5 stars
This is my second Steinbeck novel this week. Unfortunately I chose to re read this author by picking up ones I hadn't yet read. Big mistake. Both this and Sweet Tuesday were flops for me. Now I'm going to have to put off more Steinbeck…
Jan 21, 2021
In this unsettling account of an innocent family's material curse, John Steinbeck introduces themes of greed, selfishness, and downfall. "The Pearl" is a simple story about a poor young man named Kino's striking of gold as he finds a…
Aug 20, 2020smhgeo422 rated this title 4.5 out of 5 stars
In The Pearl, John Steinbeck demonstrates that the success one may envision in his/her mind can be a disguise of unexpected downfall. Kino, the main character, serves as an example of how one can suffer through this theme. Kino, a man of…
Aug 04, 2020leejuliet rated this title 5 out of 5 stars
The Pearl is an allegorical story written by John Steinbeck to reveal the evils of greed and haste. Kino was an ordinary man who lived by simple joy among his wife and his baby son. He enjoyed the accompaniment of nature along with the…
Jul 24, 2020
The Pearl, by John Steinbeck, is a story about Kino, his wife Juana and his young son Coyotito. After Kino’s son gets a serious scorpion bite, the couple rush to the town doctor, hoping to get treatment. However, they are turned away,…
Jul 02, 2020
The Pearl by Nobel Prize-winning author John Steinbeck begins with one of the most picturesque, idyllic scenes in literature: a young pearl diver Kino awaking at dawn, gazing lovingly at his wife Juana and their baby son Coyotito,…
Jun 23, 2020wyenotgo rated this title 2.5 out of 5 stars
With apologies to all those eminent commentators (whose credentials in the judgment of literary merit greatly exceed my own) I beg to differ: Not on the merit of Steinbeck’s prose but on the validity of his parable. As with many folk tales…
Oct 28, 20191aa rated this title 3 out of 5 stars
A novella that has many aspects of the story undeveloped (like, where is the law? where and when did this occur?); the basic plot is rather stereotypical: a poor person suddenly gets rich (or in this case gets something of great economic…
Oct 26, 2019MKBrosnihan rated this title 5 out of 5 stars
Very good. Very sad but then show me a Steinbeck book that is happy. He writes about life not sunshine, lollipops and rainbows. Life isn't happy and that what he writes about. very good!
Apr 22, 2019Gwolf_65668 rated this title 1 out of 5 stars
has a really sad ending.
Apr 14, 2019Bookworm1562 rated this title 5 out of 5 stars
I marvel at Steinbeck's genius. Sure there are possible philosophical themes. But you can just enjoy his writing.