I enjoy Steinbeck, but I find him overrated. He has crafted some of the best moments in literature, but he also features some very weak and dull sections of his book that just meander and sometimes are downright boring. Hidden and subtle detail is cool, however it that is the primary focus of a book, it is often very dull, and Steinbeck often falls into this trap. However, I consider grapes of wrath to be one of his weakest works. There is a chapter about a turtle crossing a road. I get the symbolism, but come on, it's boring and the very definition of pretentious.