Turn of the Page: 'Of Mice and Men'

by Elizabeth Ostrem and Kayla Werner

“Of Mice and Men” is a John Steinbeck classic that follows two men, George and Lennie, who go to work at a ranch after being chased out of another town. The two share a vision of one day owning their own land and never having to work for anyone else again. Lennie in particular fantasizes about caring for rabbits and other animals, while George seems more drawn to the idea of answering only to himself.

Lennie, a kind giant, seems to attract trouble wherever he goes, partly  because he doesn’t know his own strength but also because he isn’t very bright. Although they both help each other, George, the smarter of the two, usually makes the decisions for dim-witted Lennie and handles all their affairs.

Liz:

What I appreciated most about “Of Mice and Men” was Steinbeck’s ability to pack so much into such a short novel; the version I read had little over 100 pages. I’ve only read one other book by him, “The Grapes of Wrath.” Out of the two I preferred this one mainly because it kept my attention better and the characters were more memorable. The two make for an interesting duo. Lennie is tall, obedient, simple-minded and innocent; George, on the other hand, is short, authoritative and intelligent, thereby more conscious of the evils in the world they come across.

Like George and Lennie’s friendship, I believe that this is a book that will endure for years to come.

Kayla:

While I was reading “Of Mice and Men,” I found that the characters had personalities that were completely different from what I had thought at the very beginning. Lennie was very childlike and George is more like the older brother type. George gets frustrated with Lennie quite a bit, but he is still very protective of him. Lennie likes animals because they are soft and fluffy, but he doesn’t know his own strengths and usually end up killing them without realizing that he is handling them too hard. George always tells Lennie that he can’t have animals because he always kills them, but feels bad afterwards.

The ending was not what I expected it to be. I thought that the outcome would have been way different, but it was an interesting turn of events. Overall, it was an awesome book with an interesting ending.