John Steinbeck and The Grapes of Wrath

Muncie Civic Center is presenting Frank Galati's adaptation of John Steinbeck's novel The Grapes of Wrath on March 9, 10, 11, 15, 16, and 17.

Want to know more about Steinbeck? Did you know that University Libraries' Archives and Special Collections Research Center holds a large collection of Steinbeck-related material, including the Hayashi Steinbeck Collection and Archives? You can see much of our Steinbeck collection in our catalog.

If you want to brush up on The Grapes of Wrath, we have the book (in many languages!--not just French and German, but also Japanese and Czech) or we also have it in audio form. Or try some other fiction about migrant laborers, like John Grisham's Painted House, or fiction set during the Great Depression (mostly kids' books).

We also have the film adaptation of The Grapes of Wrath with Henry Fonda. You might also enjoy these other films set during the Great Depression.

For background information, we have a few videos that discuss the dust bowl, including a video on how the U.S. government launched the U.S. Soil Conservation Service as a response to the devastation of the dust storms of the 1930s. You might also like Surviving the dust bowl, an episode of the TV program American Experience. To get a sense of what it was like back then, check out Documentary Photo Aids' pictures of the Dust Bowl era. We also have some videos on history and life during the Great Depression.