Steinbeck does what he promises on the first page, “to open the page and to let the stories crawl in by themselves.” Doc and Mack and the boys, spinning in their orbits, stole my heart.

“Mack and the boys avoid the trap, walk around the poison, step over the noose while a generation of trapped, poisoned, and trussed-up men scream at them and call them no-goods, come-to-bad-ends, blots-on-the-town, thieves, rascals, bums. Our Father who art in nature, who has given the gift of survival to the coyote, the common brown rat, the English sparrow, the house fly and the moth, must have a great and overwhelming love for no-goods and blots-on-the-town and bums, and Mack and the boys. Virtues and graces and laziness and zest. Our Father who art in nature.”

Funny and wonderfully written. Steinbeck captures the spiritedness of his characters so well. And he describes the landscape beautifully. I'm glad I finally got around to reading this one!

Страхотно жизнеутвърждаващо четиво, просмукано от тънка ирония и простички битийни мъдрости, в което злото се мярка само мимоходом, колкото да подчертае струящата почти от всяка страница искрена до наивност доброта. Вкусен, описателен език, с напевен почти поетичен ритъм и едни очарователни в безпътицата си герои-пройдохи, които авторът категорично обича. Ще ми се да ударя петнадесет звезди

— Бас държа, стига да е искал, Мак е можел да стане президент на Съединените щати — отбеляза Хейзъл и ритна пясък върху огъня.
— И какво щеше да прави? — възрази Джоунс. — В това не би имало нищо весело.


Бяха станали платежоспособни, а оттам и неизобретателни.

Мак и момчетата, предполагам, знаят всичко, станало по света, и положително всичко, което има да става. Сигурен съм, че на тоя свят те могат да живеят по-добре от другите. Във времена като днешните, когато амбициите, нетърпението и завистта разкъсват другите на парчета, те са безгрижни. Всички ония, които наричаме „преуспели“, са хора болни, с развалени стомаси и развалени нрави, докато Мак и момчетата са здрави и необикновено чисти. Правят каквото си искат. Задоволяват апетита си, без да го кръщават с други имена.

Качествата, които ценим у човека — доброта и щедрост, откритост, честност, разбиране и чувство, — всички те съпътствуват неудачите в нашата система. А ония черти, които презираме — нетърпимостта, алчността лакомията, низостта, егоизма, — те са пътят към успеха. И макар хората да се възхищават от стойността на първите, те всъщност обичат плодовете на последните.

Същината на веселията не е достатъчно изучена. Всички обаче схващат, че всяка веселба има своя патология, че тя е нещо като живо същество и че има склонност да бъде твърде извратено същество. Всички също така знаят, че почти няма веселба, която да е завършила тъй, както се е предвиждало, според предварителните намерения. Тук, разбира се, не става дума за онези унили раболепни тържества — пришпорвани, контролирани, ръководени, — които обикновено се уреждат от човекоядните професионални домакини. Тога изобщо не са тържества, а представления, паради, и са толкова непринудени, колкото и напъването на червата, толкова интересни, колкото и крайният продукт на това напъване.

I think it's now safe to say that Steinbeck is my favorite American author of all times. In Cannery Row he captures a moment in time in the most vivid colors and imprints it on the only unperishable and eternal medium: paper.

They say that every place, be it a town or a city, however small or big, has a distinct aura. A soul of some sort. And it's the people that live there that give shape to this soul and define its quality. To me Cannery Row, California was like the reflection of a part of me. Reading about those simple people living their simple lives in melancholy and joy acted like a sort of introspection. It was like something from inside me was projected on the pages like a film, with nostalgia being the ever-present soundtrack playing subtly on the background.

A corner of the USA in the 1930s and Greece of the mid 2010s. When, through all this distance in space, time and conditions, you have managed to speak to the heart of even one single person, you know you have achieved something great.

<<Συμβαίνει κάτι πολύ περίεργο>>,συνέχισε ο δοκτορας. <<οι αρετές που θαυμάζουμε, η καλοσύνη, η γενναιοδωρία, η ανοιχτή καρδιά, η τιμιότητα, η κατανόηση, τα καλά αισθήματα, όλα αυτά συντείνουν στο να αποτύχει ένας άνθρωπος μέσα στην κοινωνία. Και το αντίθετο, αυτά που σιχαινομαστε, η πονηριά, η απληστία η γλισχροτητα, ο εγωισμός και η συμφεροντολογια οδηγούν ολοισια στην επιτυχία. Κι ενώ από τη μια θαυμάζουμε τις αρετές, από την άλλη αγαπάμε τα κέρδη που μας δίνουν οι κακίες >>.
Αλλη μια φορά ο Σταινμπεκ με αγγίζει με το βιβλίο του.

Man, I love Steinbeck. I love the simplicity of his characters and the humdrum feeling their lives evoke. I love the indigence of his settings and the candidness with which these characters accept their conditions. I love how quietly he frames his stories with comments on fatalism, while still revealing to us the potential for happiness that pushes at its surface, trying to elbow its way out. At its core, the Steinbeck novel want us to figure out how to embrace the cards life has dealt us. It knows that the sooner we do, the sooner that happiness can become ours for the taking. It might be a fatalistic coin we’re being asked to pocket, but it’s a coin on which has been embossed a seal of optimism.

But he certainly doesn’t make it very easy. The characters in his books are so far down the economic ladder you need a pair of binoculars to find them. And when you do spot them, you discover they are haggling over nickels and frogs. You almost want to step in and give them a Lowe’s gift card, just to make things a little easier for them. But Steinbeck characters don’t need your damn Lowe’s gift card. The point is not to move up that ladder; it’s to find comfort with the rung you’re already on. If they can recognize that, why can’t you?

And that’s the thing about Steinbeckian characters: they often possess a deeper level of knowledge and understanding than their financial statuses—or their grammar—would otherwise suggest. There are also usually one or two who stand out from the rest for their capacity to grasp and relay human need. Where Ma Joad was just such a character in The Grapes of Wrath, it is Doc who lays it to us straight in Cannery Row.

n  “The things we admire in men, kindness and generosity, openness, honesty, understanding and feeling are the concomitants of failure in our system. And those traits we detest, sharpness, greed, acquisitiveness, meanness, egotism and self-interest are the traits of success. And while men admire the quality of the first they love the produce of the second.”n  
n

Ruminating on the contradictory nature of being human, wherein one’s needs are in direct competition with one’s moral goals, Doc reminds us what’s worth appreciating about Mack and his Flophouse friends. Sure, they manipulate a situation for an advantageous edge if they can, and sure their idea of a party would make Clarissa Dalloway scream in mortified horror, but when all is said and done, they are honest with their friends and true to themselves in their dealings, and that is what makes their lives—at least that part of it—worth emulating.

So keep your Lowe’s gift cards. They are not wanted here.

Mükemmel bir Steinbeck eseri daha. Yumuşacık bir anlatım, her zaman bir yerlerde gördüğünüz müthiş karakterler, hayal kırıklıkları, umutlar, yaşama arzuları... Sardalye Sokağı'ndakileri anlatmak için orada yaşanmış olması gerek, tıpkı Yaşar Kemal'in Çukurova'sını anlatmasında olduğu gibi. Romanda bence felsefi yük oldukça fazla ama siz yine de çok bir anlam yüklemeden öylesine okuyun. Keyif alacaksınız, roman kahramanlarıyla arkadaş olacaksınız, bir "Sardalye Sokağı"m benim de olsaydı diyeceksiniz.

A beautiful little book. I knew I loved Steinbeck’s style, and this book was no exception.

"Док можеше да слуша всякакви глупости и срещу тях да ти даде някаква мъдрост. За ума му нямаше граници, а привързаността му не познаваше поквара. Можеше да разговаря с децата и им казваше дълбокомислените неща тъй, че го разбираха. Живееше в свят от чудеса и вълнение. Беше страстен като жребец и дяволски нежен. Всеки, който го познаваше, му беше длъжник. И всеки, който си спомнеше за него, веднага си казваше: „Наистина трябва да сторя нещо хубаво за Док.“"

"Мак и момчетата бяха склонни да мислят, че всеки, който пътува без сол, пипер и кафе, е истински бунак."

— Да — рече Хюи, — но и той беше като всички останали: взе малко пари и реши да са ожени. Смени три жени и най-сетне парите му се свършиха. Знаех си, че така ще стане. Ще купи някоя сребърна лисица и шат! — докато се обърнеш, лепнала му са нова жена."

"На женен човек доверие да нямаш. Колкото и да мрази жена си, пак при нея ще се върне. Започва да мисли, да размишлява и се връща у дома си. На такъв повече вяра не можеш да имаш. Вземете Гей — жена му го бие. Но аз си залагам главата, три дни не я ли види, почва да си въобразява, че той е виновен и се връща да иска прошка."

"Край тях припадаше вечерта — нежна като музика.

"— Бас държа, стига да е искал, Мак е можел да стане президент на Съединените щати — отбеляза Хейзъл и ритна пясък върху огъня.
— И какво щеше да прави? — възрази Джоунс. — В това не би имало нищо весело."

"Вълшебна е ранната утрин на улица Консервна. В мъглявия промеждутък, когато е вече светло, но слънцето още не е изгряло, обляна в сребристо сияние, Улицата сякаш увисва някъде извън времето."

"Котките се прехвърлят през стоборите и като сироп се проточват на земята да дирят рибешки глави."

"Това е опаловият час, границата между деня и нощта, когато времето спира и се замисля за себе си."

"Жените, които имат обичая да обличат лавиците с хартия и да окачат такива малки кърпи за ръце, питаеха някакво вродено недоверие и неприязън към Мак и момчетата. Такива жени познаваха, че насреща си имат най-страшната заплаха за всеки дом, тъй като Мак и момчетата предлагаха безгрижие, всякакви мисли и приятна компания — нещо напълно противоположно на реда, прибраността и чистотата."

"Мозъкът на Ли, също като мишка в долап със сирене, започна да души предложението."

"Човек никъде не си почива тъй, както на един сносен гуляй. Бивал съм пребит като куче, че чак панталоните ми са се влачили, и като отида на гуляй — все едно, че не е било."

A novel without much of a plot but highly invested in its characters, ‘Cannery Row’ centers on Mack and his group of friends, as well as Lee Chong, the local grocer, Dora Flood, local madam, Doc, owner of Western Biological Laboratory, and other varied community members. Mack and his friends are the type that many might judge as shiftless and ‘no count,’ but Steinbeck observes that for them happiness has come gently and without much need for productive endeavor. While other men struggle unnecessarily and have heart attacks and ulcers, these men live in contentment without all the hassle. They take each day as it comes. Some of them work part-time and contribute as they see fit.

In an auspicious world of book synchronicity, I happened to be reading ‘How To Do Nothing’ by Jenny Odell almost congruently with this one. Odell writes, “In the face of the increasingly materialist and pragmatic orientation of our age...it would not be eccentric in the future to contemplate a society in which those who live for the pleasures of the mind will no longer have the right to demand their place in the sun.” Many of us had or have careers in which our minutes are portioned out in allotments of functionality and productivity. During my nursing career, I had to be careful how much time I spent with each patient, so I could get to all of them and still have time for everything else. Most nurses keep the face of compassion, but inside many suffer burn out. Of course, there’s no way to apply the laws of shiftlessness to nursing care, but productivity and compassion do not always make good bedfellows. Although I could never take on Mack’s approach to life, there is something about it that is appealing, that says slow down and take your time...you only pass this way once. As well, there is something about the materialist, productivity oriented lifestyle that can be disconcerting, that can leave one unmoored and grasping for a deeper and more meaningful life.

Steinbeck writes some captivating sequences such as chapter 6’s descriptions of the Great Tide Pool. It is beautiful and observant of nature, the good and the bad. A crab tearing off the leg of its brother or the murderous octopus, the fluted nudibranchs, the colors and movement detailed, the smells, even the tactile sensation of salt spray, all of it glorious and down to survival. Steinbeck is no less observant of his human characters and one gets the notion that if you could just sit down and observe the world as Steinbeck does, then the richness and meaning of life must surely show itself.

Cannery Row was a pleasant little book based in Monterey, California, one of my favorite spots in the United States. The book has a single loose plot, focused on a group of central characters residing there, but several chapters divert to unrelated stories or tangents. This is something that typically irritates me and would impact my rating of a book but so well done by Steinbeck here in Cannery Row. The general plot focuses on the group of characters, who are all, in one way or another, trying to make something of themselves and deal with their own thoughts, such as failure, pain, and loneliness, among others. There is also a fair amount of scene setting and descriptions of Cannery Row and Monterey.

”The things we admire in men, kindness and generosity, openness, honesty, understanding and feeling are the concomitants of failure in our system. And those traits we detest, sharpness, greed, acquisitiveness, meanness, egotism and self-interest are the traits of success. And while men admire the quality of the first they love the produce of the second.”

“It’s all fine to say ‘Time will heal everything, this too shall pass away. People will forget’ — and things like that when you’re not involved, but when you are there is no passage of time, people do not forget and you are in the middle of something that does not change.”

I’ve only read one other Steinbeck book, Of Mice and Men, which was required reading for me in high school. I remember liking it enough back then, but I really liked Cannery Row, even with it being quite different from the typical books I choose to read and end up enjoying.

I owe Mr. Steinbeck an apology. I am so shamed that I cannot even use the familiar 'John'. I have taken this beautiful story and mucked it up. I read about Lee Chong during a middle school basketball game, I learned of Dora Flood while riding the shuttle bus to work. I grew to love/hate Mack during a cheerleading competition filthy with Rihanna songs. I fell in love with Doc and Frankie and Darling while watching a traumatic brain injured patient freak out about his meds.

I am not worthy. This series of stories is so…breathtaking. I may even go to California because of it… before it was Big Sur that made me think of leaving my treasured New England, but now… now I want to bask in the rubble of Cannery Row.

Except, I can’t…
can I? Because it is set in a time that is so far off my radar. It’s set when credit bought you cheap whiskey and Model T’s were interchangeable. When squatters could make an old cannery their home and when artists could pretend to be French and live in a partially built boat. Why do I wish for this? It’s depressing and everything feels soaked in sepia and I see pageboys and horny sailors and dare I say… ruffians? I am messed up.

This is beautiful and sad and romantic and hopeful and tragic and wistful…. and….

Everyone seems to have a favorite story… the gopher, the party, the frog hunt. I can’t pinpoint one. I can only describe emotions and even then, I feel like I cheated and was only able to give in to them superficially. It’s really hard to take in “The word is a symbol and a delight which sucks up men and scenes, trees, plants, factories, and Pekinese. Then the Thing becomes the Word and back to Thing again, but warped and woven into a fantastic pattern. The Word sucks up Cannery Row, digests it and spews it out, and the Row has taken the shimmer of the green worlds and the sky-reflecting seas.” while the bus driver is laying on his horn and swerving dangerously around a Subaru.

I love every part of this book. Every word. It conjures up whimsy and makes me feel like there is more to life than vampires and reality shows and twitter and… and….

I also want to give a shout out to the reviews that many of my friends have posted. Each are in itself a chapter, a slice of the Row. I love that Sarah read this to her friends during a trip from Portland to Salinas. I love that Ben is reminded of teenage fears that karen uses the phrase ‘well-meaning ineptitude’ and that I now have an image of Logan  flirting it up with Steinbeck.

Thank you, Mr. Steinbeck, thank you goodreaders, and thank you Carole Louise Dahl of Olympic Valley, CA for giving away this book so that I could buy it for a quarter at a library sale. I am a better person for having read this.

on a side note... does it detract from my appreciation if I mention how hot Steinbeck was?