Study of Steinbeck's Life and Works

Sketchbook studies of Steinbeck by Ellwood Graham, circa 1940, after JS’s return from Mexico and the Sea of Cortez.

Benson, Jackson J. Looking for Steinbeck's Ghost. Norman: U of Oklahoma P, 1988. Rpt. in Reno: U of Nevada P, 2002.

The True Adventures of John Steinbeck, Writer: A Biography. New York: Viking, 1984. Republished as John Steinbeck, Writer. New York: Penguin, 1990.

DeMott, Robert J. John Steinbeck: A Checklist of Books By and About. Bradenton, Florida: Opuscula, 1987.

Ditsky, John. John Steinbeck Life, Work and Criticism. Fredericton, Canada: York Press, 1985.

French, Warren. John Steinbeck's Fiction Revisited. New York: Twayne Publishers, 1994.

John Steinbeck's Nonfiction Revisited. New York: Twayne Publishers, 1996.

Owens, Louis. John Steinbeck's Re-Vision of America. Athens: University of Georgia Press, 1985.

Parini, Jay. John Steinbeck: A Biography. New York: Henry Holt, 1995.

Simmonds, Roy. John Steinbeck: The War Years, 1939-1945. Lewisburg: Bucknell University Press, 1996.

Steinbeck, Elaine and Robert Wallsten. Steinbeck: A Life in Letters. London: Pan Books, 1979.

Timmerman, John H. The Dramatic Landscape of Steinbeck's Short Stories. Norman: University of Oklahoma Press, 1990.

Kiernan, Thomas. The Intricate Music: A Biography of John Steinbeck.  Boston: Litltle, Brown, & Co., 1979.

St. Pierre, Brian. John Steinbeck: The California Years. San Francisco: Chronicle Books, 1983.

Valjean, Nelson. John Steinbeck: The Errant Knight. San Francisco: Chronicle Books, 1975.

(For other bibliographical resources in the study of Steinbeck's life and works, search the Secondary Bibliography )