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 This is a funny, charming and observant tale of the down and outs of California, the general message being that people at all levels of society have merit and worth and that joy and meaning can be found in lives that have nothing to do with money, property, success or power. The people in Cannery Row have ducked out of ‘society’ in a way, given up on having a job and a mortgage, and while they are not wealthy they have friendship and the beautiful Californian coast and they are happy.

Doc is the most interesting character in that he’s an educated man, someone who has been part of that other world and has chosen to leave it, bringing with him his poetry books, his classical music and his love of marine wildlife. He is the one who straddles the two worlds and it was him I felt I liked the best and could identify with.

The other characters, although not always as likeable, were vividly drawn and I felt I knew them well. What I love about Steinbeck is the vividness of his writing. It isn’t waffly or overly descriptive but the reader knows exactly how the air feels and tastes, how the various characters see their lives, and how the world of Cannery Row operates and is held together.

Into this arena he throws seemingly small lives and seemingly little events and through them tells us so much. What I loved best of all were the little quirks, especially the people sleeping by the pipes, the ice skater, and the bits with the frogs. The scene with the frogs in the pool will stay with me for a long time. It was funny but it was also haunting, there being more behind it than there at first seemed. I also loved the way that the frogs were used as currency, a currency that unfortunately managed to escape during a particularly wild party!

This was a very entertaining book and very readable though its apparent lightness is deceptive. Another recommended read.