Elaine Steinbeck and Robert Wallsten (Editors) �Steinbeck: A Life in Letters�
I�m reading this book in the local dive bar last week, waiting for a band to start or for somebody that I know to walk in, and I�m totally engrossed in the book. So I don�t notice the two chicks that are standing next to my tiny table in the corner, looking over my shoulder. I finally look up, and one of them asks me what I�m reading.
�It�s a collection of letters written by Steinbeck,� I say.
�My god, you�re such a nerd!� she says.
�Nerds aren�t as hot as I am.�
She stops and gives me a once-over.
�Yeah, you got a point there. You are pretty hot.�
I love it when I�m right.
I can�t seem to win in the art of letter writing. I�m not good with e-mail, because I�m never satisfied with a perfunctory note that has no content. I�m the same way with letters, when I bother to write them. They usually end up being four-to six-page epics in 10-point type. I�m constantly receiving updates from my sister, saying my father wants to hear from me, and when I do write, I hear that he wants me to write shorter letters, so he isn�t overwhelmed.
But Steinbeck is an icon, and some people such as myself want to read every and anything he ever wrote, hence this 900+ page monstrosity. In a volume this size, it becomes pretty obvious that sometimes he was writing simply for the sake of not writing novels. And when you get into the later years of his life, you can�t help but wonder if he spent more time on his books, instead of writing every fucker in the world, his later work wouldn�t be so crappy. But there you go.
You can see the effect of how his work went downhill in his letters. The earlier letters are short and quick, most simple slightly more than a note saying, �Sorry! Gotta keep writing!� After East of Eden, the letters get longer and more involved.
Essentially, while the editors did a good job of not letting Steinbeck appear repetitive, I�m sure there was a lot of needless punching on the keys, because he didn�t want to get back to work. Therefore, all these letters probably kept him from writing a decent book in the later years.
Of course, I haven�t written much for my own sake since starting this site either, so I can put my decline on your heads then. Bastards.
