AUDIOBOOK REVIEW: The Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck

The Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck

Narrator:  Full Cast
Length:  2 hours
Publisher:  L.A. Theatre Works
Format:  Audio
Description:  Drought and economic depression are driving thousands from Oklahoma. As their land becomes just another strip in the dust bowl, the Joads, a family of sharecroppers, decide they have no choice but to follow. They head west, towards California, where they hope to find work and a future for their family.



This review is for the L.A. Theatre Works production of "The Grapes of Wrath" based on the novel by John Steinbeck.  It is not the full novel, only a 2 hour full cast theater production.  When I got the audiobook FREE from SYNC I assumed it was the full length novel, so I was a little disappointed to find I was wrong.  I did enjoy the production, however.  The full cast brought a lot of emotion to it, but you feel a little like there's a television on in another room and you're only hearing it.  It was much different than an actual narration, though I think a lot of that is because of the fact that it was so heavily abridged.  Considering the fact that the full novel audiobook is 21 hours it's not surprising that you feel there's a lot missing from this one.  The story follows the Joad family as they make their way from Oklahoma to California in the midst of The Great Depression.  They have nothing and nowhere to go and hope they can find work when they get there.  This is a chronicle of their journey and the hardships they face.  It's sad and so heart wrenching the trials this family had to face.  This may have only been a small abridged version of "The Grapes of Wrath", but it was enough to show me what I'm missing by never having read the novel.