And I loved the descriptions of the landscape: They stress the importance of home, friendship, and survival, giving an insight into their life in Tortilla Flat. Some of the stories are humorous, and some are tragic. But they don’t really care about money, they trade what they have or what they find for wine and then share it before sleeping it off. He’s the only paisano who works, making 25 cents a day selling kindling, but he doesn’t spend it, saving it and hiding it. After a while Pirate joins them along with his five dogs who follow him everywhere. They spend their days partying, drinking, sleeping, thieving or in jail. He lives in one house and ‘rents’ the other to his friends, but they are all poor, do not work and never pay him, except in wine. It begins just after the end of the First World War, when they return to find that Danny has inherited two houses from his grandfather. The stories have almost a mythical feel and indeed, Steinbeck compares Danny and his friends to the Knights of the Round Table. They are paisanos, being a mix of Spanish, Indian, Mexican and assorted Caucasian bloods, living in old wooden houses in the midst of pine trees. Tortilla Flat is a collection of stories about their escapades, and their thoughts and endeavours. And after a somewhat slow start I soon settled into the book and thoroughly enjoyed it.Īs Steinbeck explained in his Preface this is the story of Danny and of Danny’s friends, Pilon, Pablo, Jesus Maria, and Big Joe. Monterey is also the setting for Cannery Row (the first of John Steinbeck’s novels that I read) and Sweet Thursday, both of which I enjoyed, so I was expecting this book to be just as good. Tortilla Flat is on the hill high above Monterey, an old city on the coast of California. It was John Steinbeck’s fourth novel, first published in 1935. Tortilla Flat was my Classics Club Spin book to read by 30th April.
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