The Red Pony

Holy shit

Steinbeck can really gut a person with doom and gloom. I nearly cried throughout the whole thing. Short and emotional - a glimpse into the reality of growing up on a farm in the 1930's. While harsh by today's standards, I appreciate the lessons and the responsibilities kids learned back in the day, including the constants of death and the new life, and the importance of history of one's family.

Next time you decide to make a printing of The Red Pony, feel free to borrow one of these free blurbs. "Do you like people hanging around on a farm? Do you like horses and animals and stuff? Then you'll think this book is okay! It has horses, and grass, and farms and stuff, and is an easy read." Or: "John Steinbeck is a writer of amazing stature in American literature. He stands head and shoulders above just about anyone, wiping his feet on Faulkner, flicking Mark Twain out of his way like a little bug. He defacates on Edith Wharton's pillow, eats Henry Miller for breakfast, and he doesn't even know who Guy N. Smith is. He wrote this book." Or: "The epic saga of two families in the Salinas valley, and considered by Steinbeck himself to be his magnum opus, this is a novel that has changed literature, and made Steinbeck an iconic figure. Oh, wait, The Red Pony? I thought we were talking about East of Eden. I don't remember a goddamn thing about The Red Pony." Or (SPOILERS IN THIS ONE///SPOILERS IN THIS ONE///SPOILERS IN THIS ONE): "You call THIS The Red Pony? You got a lot of nerve. That's like changing the name of Star Wars: A New Hope to Greedo. It's like calling The Land Before Time something like Little Foot's Mom. It's like putting a picture of Drew Barrymore on the cover of the movie Scream. It doesn't make any fucking sense. What were you thinking, John?"

The Red Pony is, in essence, a coming of age story. It's about a boy named Jody Tiflis and how the getting and caring for a pony is a seminal event in his life, one that changes him from a child into a young man. This change can be seen as the initiation into the world of death, birth, and disappointment - which is the world of adulthood. As usual, this Steinbeck novella is poetically beautiful and brutally honest. As I reread this novella, I realized that it's not one of Steinbeck best works, but it is still moving and wonderful. And the message that maturation occurs only through the difficult experiences of life is one that is indeed universal.

I had to read this in 6th grade and I remember very little beyond the basic plot points: kids gets a horse, horse dies, some guy tries to take back the land, grandpa comes to town. There may have been more, but I don't recall it. Anyway, even then I hated it. I do have a copy though, so I may reread it to see if I still would hate it.

This book grew on me. The simplicity and relaxed pace of it. If you're looking for a book with adventure and excitement, this book definitely isn't it. It's a nice read. I liked the depth of his characters even with limited dialogue. I was a little put off by all of Jody's cruel tendencies, but Steinbeck didn't spend a lot of time on that. And I don't know if that's a typical character trait in kids that grew up around animals that were slaughtered for food. A certain level of indifference for animals and their pain. In the edition that I own there is a story of Junius Maltby in it and I honestly liked that short story more then The Red Pony. I want to read some more Steinbeck in the future.