Tortilla Flats is a sort of retelling of King Arthur and knights of the Roundtable, except "King Arthur" is a drunk migrant worker with a heart of gold and so are all the "knights." They live in chicken coops in hills above Monterey. It's a short book, but has one of the best alcoholic quotes in it:
"Do you know, Danny, how the wine of your life is pouring into the fruit jars of the gods?"
I used to love Steinbeck. He's not really taught anymore except in high school, which is a crying shame, as his characters are still some of the most complex and interesting ever created in American literature.
