A story of classic simplicity, based on a Mexican folk tale, The Pearl explores the secrets of man's nature, the darkest depths of evil, and the luminous possibilities of love.

"The Pearl Of Great Price" from a parable in the Gospel of Matthew, attempts to teach with the same jewel from the sea. Mr. Steinbeck was also a great reader of medieval texts, and one of these morality plays was in the form of a poem written in the 14th Century, entitled "Pearl" although the Author is unknown. These three works are separated by millennia, but their commentary on the human condition is consistent.

Mr. Steinbeck wrote this after his triumph "The Grapes Of Wrath". The work was a monumental bestseller, it brought The Pulitzer Prize to the Author, and was rapidly made into a movie that is a classic in it's own right. Superficially one could argue Mr. Steinbeck achieved all that a writer might conceivably want, fame, fortune, and critical recognition.

Unfortunately, like his work, often when you feel something good is about to happen, a positive change for his characters that have struggled, and fought to survive, he slams you face down on bedrock's reality. The acclaim for his work brought him great discomfort as well. He was labeled a socialist, a communist, an agitator, and became the focus of FBI attention, and not because they liked his book. He viewed and detested the treatment the racism toward Mexicans in Southern California, and witnessed the so-called "Zoot Suit Riots" that resulted.

"The Pearl" might be called the lottery if it was written today. The ticket that vaults a person from the troubles of day-to-day life, and is thought to leave them "set for life" all too often is a quick financial ride up and a crash back down.

Sudden wealth when thrust upon a person, changes the person, and everyone around them. All their reference points, their friends, and all that their lives have not prepared them for, surround, threaten, and many times destroy them.

This book is very brief, but it communicates as much as a novel 10 times its length. The ending is brilliant, tragic, and redemptive. It is a story that few could write, and even fewer could make work. The emotional scenes he brings the reader to are at times almost violent in there reading. And then with a turn of phrase he can change the mood time and time again.

A wonderful novella from an Author known for sweeping sagas.


Finding the Real Treasure   October 1, 2002
 35 out of 41 found this review helpful

Most people born and raised in America cannot even imagine the depths of poverty that most of the rest of the world are forced to live with. This story illuminates this fact, as we enter the world of Kino, a pearl diver and occasional fisherman, his wife Juana, and their baby son, Coyotito. All they have is a grass shack house, a few clay cooking utensils, and their prize possession, Kino's boat, inherited from his father and grandfather. The boat is the family's livelihood, providing the means to put a meal on the table and to provide a few pesos for store bought goods by selling the small pearls Kino is able to find.

But Kino and his family, far from being depressed or unhappy, have a great treasure, the love they have for each other and their satisfaction with life as it is, with few disturbing dreams of greater things. But their quiet, routine life is turned upside down the day that Kino finds a Great Pearl. Suddenly Kino can dream of better things: a rifle for himself, school for his son so he will be able to read and tell what is really in the books, a real house. But dreams can be deadly things. Dreams lead to desire, and desire to greed, and greed to violence.

What happens to Kino and family from this point on is not a pretty story. Now we see that underneath the quiet, idyllic seeming small town and its inhabitants lie the seeds of cheating, betrayal, collusion, fear, and murder. And we see the gradual loss of Kino's real treasures. By the end of the book, events have reached the level of real tragedy, and you, along with Kino, are liable to end up in a state of emotional exhaustion.

Steinbeck's prose for this book matches his characters and situation very well, a very minimalist sentence structure and set of speech patterns. As a parable, the story has a strong moralistic point, but Steinbeck does not overdrive his thematic message, but lets his story speak for itself. One of Steinbeck's great strengths was his ability to capture on paper the characters he saw around him, and this book is a showcase for that talent. The characters of Kino and Juana are exquisitely drawn, real people you can relate to even though their lifestyles may be very far from your own. And because they are real people, it is very hard not to get drawn into their lives, where their dreams and their pains very readily become your own.

This may not be Steinbeck's greatest book, as it is too short and with too limited a focus to compare to something like his Grapes of Wrath. But within its own territory, there are very few other pieces of literature that are even half as good.


Not for kids or teachers...   January 28, 2000
 17 out of 36 found this review helpful

I've looked at 171 on-line reviews and am astounded that no one seems to understand the theme of this book any more. This is a very serious allegory novella that is to be read on many levels. It is being trivialized in our schools by being presented out of context as a tacky metaphor about the corrupting influence of wealth. Try this, kids:

Remember the parable of Jesus, "The kingdom of heaven is like a merchant seeking goodly pearls; and having found one pearl of great price, he went out and sold everything he possessed that he might be able to buy the extraordinary pearl."

"The Pearl" is, of course, the "pearl of great price"--the great spiritual truth of Jesus' message of love and service to God and man.

The story of "The Pearl" is, of course, an allegory of the 2000 year tragedy of Christianity, as it appropriated Jesus and then so often lost sight of his saving message. You should be able to figure the rest out from there.

"For mature audiences only"


An English Teacher's Perspective   February 22, 2000
 13 out of 16 found this review helpful

I find it interesting that the vast majority of the negative reviews come from people who can barely craft a coherent sentence, a point I made to my 9th grade GATE class. Nonetheless, THE PEARL is not my favorite Steinbeck work, either. However, I do think that one of its messages is pertinent: that education and knowledge are keys to power and freedom from abuse. Another theme I got from the book was that it is tempting fate to try to raise one's position in the world (e.g. witness what happened to Kino and Juana when they dared dream of a better life via the pearl). I'm not sure I agree with that sentiment, although perhaps the underlying message is that a person has to *work* for what he/she earns, rather than be given it.

Certainly, the book made me think, which to me is one of the hallmarks of a successful work of literature. Unfortunately, it mostly made me think rather dark thoughts.