HOL

Who hasn't heard of John Steinbeck? If nothing else, some of his works are in the list of 'Banned Books', which means that he was writing about something which the establishment (whatever it might be at the time) deemed too dangerous for people to read. He won the Pulitzer Prize in 1939 and the Noble Prize in 1962 for his works.

You are invited to solve this Sudoku, sending a Forum PM to myself and Emily Spencer with the solved puzzle. Title your Forum PM "Whole Nine Yards - Steinbeck".


graphic is of a Sudoku puzzle
Direct link to image - click

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People who have sent in the solution to this Sudoku -
Hiya Debnath
River Fenwick
Lex Green
Dibyarup James Potter
Rosalinda Malfoy
Adeline Morior
Maeve Madden
Janne Halla

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There are a couple of other things you can do, in addition to (or even instead of) solving this Sudoku puzzle to participate in our March activity.

Reply, in a post below, with one or both of the items listed. (Remember -- send the solution of the Sudoku to me and Emily in a Forum PM! It does not get posted with your write-up and graphic! )

1 - Write about the author, telling us of his life and his work, so we can learn more about John Steinbeck. Have at least 90 words - your own words - in your write-up.

2 - Create a collage which contains nine separate images for that author representing their life and their work. Post it in here, below, along with your write-up. Be sure that the graphic is 600x600 or less. Please write a description underneath the collage, describing what you have in it, and why it represents Mr. Steinbeck's life and work.

Remember, when you complete each part of the week's celebration of an author, you can earn 20 Beans. So if you solve the sudoku, do a write-up and create a graphic, you will earn 60 Beans.

When you post, please keep your post HOL-appropriate.

Everything will be due by the March 31st, 11:59 pm HOL time.

1 - About the Author (Write-up):
John Ernst Steinbeck was an American English novelist, most famous for his well-known novel "The Grapes of Wrath" which was published by him in 1939. This novel summed up the negative era of the Great Depression Decade and helped arouse widespread sympathy for the migratory farmworkers. It fetched him a Pulitzer Prize and a National Book Award, and was also made into a notable film in 1940. John Steinbeck was born on February 27, 1902, in Salinas, California, US, and attended Stanford University in Stanford, California, US, between 1920 and 1926, although he did not take a degree. He supported himself as a manual labourer while simultaneously writing as a hobby which explains his direct experience with the lives of workers and thus the authenticity in his writings. His actual family name was Grossteinbeck, which his paternal grandfather shortened to “Steinbeck” when he first came to the United States from Germany. He spent most of his life in Monterey County, California, a place which later became the setting of some of his fiction. His first novel was "Cup of Gold" in 1929. However, his first popular novel was "Tortilla Flat" in 1935, a story of Mexican Americans. In 1937, he published one of my most favorite books written by him, "Of Mice and Men". This novella appeared in play and film versions and was a tragic story about the complicated and strange relationship between two migrant labourers. He received the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1962.
2 - Collage:

Description:
The image on the top left shows Gwyn, John's wife on their engagement day. The second image from left on top shows Steinbeck's new county home in Monterey County, California, where he lived with his wife, and where he wired the house and worked on the piping system himself. Then, the third image from left on top shows John Steinbeck with his wife Gwyn Conger, the first image from left in the middle shows the book cover of the publication of "Cup of Gold", which was John Steinbeck's first novel. The second image from left in the middle, is of course, a photograph of John Steinback himself, in the center. The third image from left in the middle, shows the book cover of the publication of "The Grapes of Wrath", which was his best known book, published by him in the year 1939. The first image from left in the bottom is of John Steinbeck's wife, named Gwyn Conger Steinbeck and his children - his two sons, John and Thom. The second image from left in the bottom is a shooted scene from the Goldwyn Mayer's movie production adaptation of the film version of the novella "Of Mice and Men", by John Steinbeck. Last of all, we have an illustration by Greg Newbold for the Wall Street Journal (a site of book reviews and hub of other author discussions) of John Steinbeck working in the fields.

1. John Ernst Steinbeck II was an author born in California on February 27th, 1902. Steinbeck was of German, English, and Irish descent. During his life, he wrote thirty-three books, including sixteen novels, six works of nonfiction, and two short-story collections. His works are primarily based in California, especially the Salinas Valley and California Coast Ranges. One piece of literature he created, The Grapes of Wrath, was considered his masterpiece, winning him a Pulitzer Prize. It sold 14 million copies by the time the 75th anniversary of its publication came to date.

2.

Pictured above, top to bottom and left to right, are the Cup of Gold book, The Pastures of Heaven book, To a God Unknown book, a camper truck, a plaque, a highway sign, John and Elaine Steinbeck, Ed Ricketts, and Max Wagner. The Cup of Gold book was his first published novel. The Pastures of Heaven book was one of his shorter works. To a God Unknown book was one of his most challenging books to write. The camper truck replicates the one Steinbeck traveled across the U.S.A. in. He received a plaque in his honor in Sag Harbor, New York. He got a highway route named after him in Salinas. Elaine Steinbeck was his wife. Ed Ricketts was a good friend, and they wrote some literature together. Max Wagner was also Steinbeck's close friend.

#1 – I'm quite surprised to see that Steinbeck wasn't just a novelist or rather, a writer of fictional novellas. Following the quite successful publication of The Grapes of Wrath, Steinbeck traveled to Mexico with freelance biologist Edward F. Ricketts to gather marine species, and the two men worked together to write The Log from the Sea of Cortez, a study of the Gulf of California's biodiversity. In addition to working as a war correspondent, Steinbeck authored several successful works of government propaganda during World War II, including the novel The Moon Is Down, which tells the story of Norwegians living under the Nazis.

Collage:


Imgur Link - Larger Version [1800 x 1800 px]


Write-Up:

In the centre of the collage, there is a portrait of John Ernst Steinbeck from 1939. In the top left, we can see the full cover of his most famous book “The Grapes of Wrath” which was published in 1939. It conveyed the harshness of the Great Depression and aroused sympathy for the struggles of the migrant farmworkers. The book was regarded as an American classic, and Steinbeck also earned the Pulitzer Prize for this book in 1940. To the right of the image of the book cover, we can see a photograph of Steinbeck and his wife, Elaine Steinbeck, in their Sag Harbor home. To the right of that photograph, we can see a photograph of Steinbeck as a child. Below the image of the book cover, we can see the poster for the film adaptation of “The Grapes of Wrath” having the same name as the novel. It was directed by John Ford, the screenplay was written by Nunnally Johnson and the executive producer was Darryl F. Zanuck. Below the movie poster, we can see a photograph of Steinbeck and his son John Steinbeck IV on the dock in Sag Harbor, New York. To the right of this photograph, we can see Steinbeck with his wife Elaine later in life in his house. To the right of that photograph, we can see Steinbeck with his poodle, Charley. Above this, there is a photograph of Bob Hope visiting John Steinbeck during his U.S.O. Christmas tour in Southeast Asia.

John Steinbeck was born on February 27, 1902. He was famously known as "a giant of American letters." He had a diverse ancestry, including German, English, and Irish roots. Steinbeck attended Salinas High School in 1919 and later pursued a degree in English Literature at Stanford University near Palo Alto. However, he did not complete his degree and left in 1925.

Throughout his career, he wrote a total of 33 books. He co-authored one of his books with Edward Ricketts and wrote 16 novels, 6 non-fiction books, and 2 collections of short stories. Steinbeck's first novel, "Cup of Gold," was published in 1929. This book was based loosely on the life and death of privateer Henry Morgan. Between 1930 and 1933, Steinbeck produced three shorter works: "The Pastures of Heaven" (1932), "The Red Pony" (1933), and "To a God Unknown" (1933). However, he achieved his first major success with "Tortilla Flat," a novel set in post-war Monterey, California, that won the California Commonwealth Club's Gold Medal.

Steinbeck's most famous book, "The Grapes of Wrath," is considered to be his crowning achievement and is a part of the American literary canon. The book had sold 14 million copies by its 75th anniversary.

Steinbeck held political views that aligned with the "New Deal" policies of President Franklin D. Roosevelt. In his writings, he criticized certain aspects of capitalism and expressed sympathy for the struggles of workers. However, his views were controversial, and some people accused him of promoting communism. In his hometown of Salinas, he faced a lot of backlash and received numerous threats. As a result, he had to purchase a handgun for his own safety.

John Steinbeck passed away in New York City on December 20, 1968, during the 1968 flu pandemic due to heart disease and congestive heart failure. He was 66 years old and had been a lifelong smoker. An autopsy revealed that the main coronary arteries were nearly completely blocked. On March 4, 1969, his body was cremated and interred, according to his wishes. His remains were placed in the Hamilton family gravesite in Salinas, along with those of his parents and maternal grandparents. In 2004, Elaine, his third wife, was also buried in the same plot.

In 1976, Steinbeck's incomplete novel, which was based on the King Arthur legends of Malory and others, was published under the title "The Acts of King Arthur and His Noble Knights".

https://i.postimg.cc/sDVZZwvC/Untitled-design.png

Image shows in the first row from the left a younger version of Steinbeck followed by his war documentation depicting the things his seen in his life and finally a collection of the books that he has written over his years. The next row shows Steinbeck and his dog followed by him and his wife and him and his kids which he made effort in to get them to read more. The last row depicts him as a novelist and war correspondent in Vietnam followed by one of the many famous quotes by him and lastly him in his old age.

Here's the answer to the 'Steinbeck' Sudoku puzzle: