Down to a Soundless Sea, by Thomas Steinbeck
To answer the immediate question, Thomas is John's son. To answer a question no one has asked, I actually like the son's writing better than the father's, sacrilege tho I know this is. Altho I enjoy the elder Steinbeck's writing (Of Mice and Men is my favorite), there always seemed to be something forced and artificial about it -- perhaps this was a deliberate choice in style, I don't know, something experimental perhaps. It didn't stop me from enjoying the stories, but it made me less than enthusiastic about reading them.
Did not have that problem with the younger Steinbeck's writing, which is very natural and has an easy flow about it. In fact, "flow" seems to be the descriptive word for his writing, at least in this collection of short stories. They all take place along the northern California coast, and water in some form figures largely in almost all of them, usually the sea but sometimes as violent rainstorms. The collection is bracketed by violent storms -- the first story features a birth during one, and the last story features a death during one. The stories are also connected by some common characters, particularly the Post family, who are often mentioned in each story even if they play no other part. And unless I'm mistaken, the stories also present a timeline as the main Post character, Frank, goes from being born in the first story to being remembered as an old man in later stories.
The stories are as follows:
The Night Guide. As mentioned, this one is about the birth and childhood of Frank Post, son of a native California Indian and an Eastern homesteader. It's a rather mystical story, unlike the rest which are very naturalistic.
The Wool Gatherer. A story that I suspect is a Steinbeck family yarn, about a young man's encounter with a giant bear on his way to summer work at the Post ranch, and his difficulties getting anyone to believe he saw such a thing.
Blind Luck. This is one of my favorites, about a man with a very hard and unhappy childhood (born to indifferent parents who abandoned him at a young age with a violent uncle) who discovers that life for him is only good when he's on the sea. After a shipwreck that leaves him badly injured, and should have ended his seafaring life, he finds a way to continue it as an independent man. Lots of interesting information about life as a merchant marine before the shipwreck, and I loved the ending of the story:
"Plain he may have been, but Chapel Lodge lived a long, enterprising, and cheerful life. He died in his sleep aboard his last boat, the Dulce Fortuna, at the venerable age of eighty-six; his faithful old bilge cat, Mr. Pepper, stayed with him until the end. It was agreed by all that Captain Lodge passed away gracefully at home and in the very best of company."
Excepting the boat, that's how I'd like to go.
An Unbecoming Grace. And this is another favorite. Primarily the story of a country doctor, the main sub-plot concerns a vicious old man, the unhappy but fore-bearing young woman he bought as a bride and the young ranch hand who eventually rescued her. SPOILER ALERT. The part I'm going to quote is the focal point of the entire story, but it's such a perfect example of Steinbeck's skill and style as a writer that I have to use it. Skip onto the next story if you dislike spoilers:
"The rancher's enraged and wrathful voice mounted into a tirade of truly hideous proportions. It reached a crescendo with the sharp report of a slap and a brief, stifled scream. Doc was about to change his mind and enter the fray before any more violence erupted, but he was too late. A melee exploded with a shattering crash of furniture, screams, shouts, and curses. Before Doc could reach the door, it splintered off its hinges with a bang, and out rocketed two figures. In the lead was the old man, screaming and flapping his arms like an earthbound albatross. At first Doc couldn't believe any old man with a broken leg could move that fast until he noticed that Dean had the rogue by the collar and crotch and was giving him the bum's rush. The Stoat weighed as nothing in Dean's strong grip, and though the old man railed and waved his arms about, he was powerless.
While Doc watched, fascinated, Dean raced the old man across the yard, over the goat-trimmed grass, and toward the cliffs. Dean screamed that this would be the very last time the old blackguard would beat a woman this side of hell and with that parting sentiment, launched the old sinner out over the cliff like a bag of wool.
Doc Roberts stood agape. The old man seemed suspended in air for a moment, flapping his arms in the most optimistic manner. Then he disappeared like a rock, squeaking his last mortal profanity, something to do with excrement, as Doc recalled."
The Dark Watcher. A rather quiet tale about a university professor who decides to do some field work over the summer, and lets his imagination get the better of him.
Blighted Cargo. One of the shorter stories, about a young blackguard engaged in the smuggling of kidnapped Chinese workers for the gold mines and the railroad, who gets his comeuppance one foggy night at sea.
Sing Fat and the Imperial Duchess of Woo. Similar in nature to Blind Luck, this story (the longest in the book) is about a young man from China who survives many years of incredible hardship and misfortune, and finally gets a lucky break only to have his spirit broken by lost love. Unlike Blind Luck, this one does not have a happy ending but it does have a sentimental ending that even I found satisfying.
I enjoyed this book tremendously and, as it was a loaner from my stepmother, I plan to get my own copy as soon as possible.
Did not have that problem with the younger Steinbeck's writing, which is very natural and has an easy flow about it. In fact, "flow" seems to be the descriptive word for his writing, at least in this collection of short stories. They all take place along the northern California coast, and water in some form figures largely in almost all of them, usually the sea but sometimes as violent rainstorms. The collection is bracketed by violent storms -- the first story features a birth during one, and the last story features a death during one. The stories are also connected by some common characters, particularly the Post family, who are often mentioned in each story even if they play no other part. And unless I'm mistaken, the stories also present a timeline as the main Post character, Frank, goes from being born in the first story to being remembered as an old man in later stories.
The stories are as follows:
The Night Guide. As mentioned, this one is about the birth and childhood of Frank Post, son of a native California Indian and an Eastern homesteader. It's a rather mystical story, unlike the rest which are very naturalistic.
The Wool Gatherer. A story that I suspect is a Steinbeck family yarn, about a young man's encounter with a giant bear on his way to summer work at the Post ranch, and his difficulties getting anyone to believe he saw such a thing.
Blind Luck. This is one of my favorites, about a man with a very hard and unhappy childhood (born to indifferent parents who abandoned him at a young age with a violent uncle) who discovers that life for him is only good when he's on the sea. After a shipwreck that leaves him badly injured, and should have ended his seafaring life, he finds a way to continue it as an independent man. Lots of interesting information about life as a merchant marine before the shipwreck, and I loved the ending of the story:
"Plain he may have been, but Chapel Lodge lived a long, enterprising, and cheerful life. He died in his sleep aboard his last boat, the Dulce Fortuna, at the venerable age of eighty-six; his faithful old bilge cat, Mr. Pepper, stayed with him until the end. It was agreed by all that Captain Lodge passed away gracefully at home and in the very best of company."
Excepting the boat, that's how I'd like to go.
An Unbecoming Grace. And this is another favorite. Primarily the story of a country doctor, the main sub-plot concerns a vicious old man, the unhappy but fore-bearing young woman he bought as a bride and the young ranch hand who eventually rescued her. SPOILER ALERT. The part I'm going to quote is the focal point of the entire story, but it's such a perfect example of Steinbeck's skill and style as a writer that I have to use it. Skip onto the next story if you dislike spoilers:
"The rancher's enraged and wrathful voice mounted into a tirade of truly hideous proportions. It reached a crescendo with the sharp report of a slap and a brief, stifled scream. Doc was about to change his mind and enter the fray before any more violence erupted, but he was too late. A melee exploded with a shattering crash of furniture, screams, shouts, and curses. Before Doc could reach the door, it splintered off its hinges with a bang, and out rocketed two figures. In the lead was the old man, screaming and flapping his arms like an earthbound albatross. At first Doc couldn't believe any old man with a broken leg could move that fast until he noticed that Dean had the rogue by the collar and crotch and was giving him the bum's rush. The Stoat weighed as nothing in Dean's strong grip, and though the old man railed and waved his arms about, he was powerless.
While Doc watched, fascinated, Dean raced the old man across the yard, over the goat-trimmed grass, and toward the cliffs. Dean screamed that this would be the very last time the old blackguard would beat a woman this side of hell and with that parting sentiment, launched the old sinner out over the cliff like a bag of wool.
Doc Roberts stood agape. The old man seemed suspended in air for a moment, flapping his arms in the most optimistic manner. Then he disappeared like a rock, squeaking his last mortal profanity, something to do with excrement, as Doc recalled."
The Dark Watcher. A rather quiet tale about a university professor who decides to do some field work over the summer, and lets his imagination get the better of him.
Blighted Cargo. One of the shorter stories, about a young blackguard engaged in the smuggling of kidnapped Chinese workers for the gold mines and the railroad, who gets his comeuppance one foggy night at sea.
Sing Fat and the Imperial Duchess of Woo. Similar in nature to Blind Luck, this story (the longest in the book) is about a young man from China who survives many years of incredible hardship and misfortune, and finally gets a lucky break only to have his spirit broken by lost love. Unlike Blind Luck, this one does not have a happy ending but it does have a sentimental ending that even I found satisfying.
I enjoyed this book tremendously and, as it was a loaner from my stepmother, I plan to get my own copy as soon as possible.