Tags
Summary
One day, diving to the seabed, he chances upon an enormous pearl—hope flares, and desire begins to stir.
He means to trade the pearl for a better life, but finds himself watched, deceived, and hunted.
The brighter the pearl, the darker the human heart.
He wants to protect his family, only to find that fate has already drawn them quietly into its whirlpool.
Editor's review
Who it's for
A good fit for
- Readers who enjoy parable-like short fiction and a tight reading experience
- Readers drawn to themes of human nature, desire, and family fate
- Readers who want an introduction to Steinbeck's narrative style through a short work
- A good pick for book clubs, easy to build discussion around its themes
Not a good fit for
- Readers expecting a light, comforting story with a happy ending
- Readers who prefer long, complex structures and multi-strand narratives
- Readers who find the parable form too direct and lack patience for it
Reading tips
- Try to read it in one continuous sitting to keep the tension intact; pausing midway weakens the parable's impact.
- Note the contrasts in Kino's family life before and after the pearl appears, and feel how the change unfolds.
- After finishing, spend ten minutes writing down your understanding of what the "pearl" symbolizes, then exchange views with fellow readers.
- If used for a book club, prepare two or three discussion questions around "the boundary between hope and desire."
About the publisher
Shaanxi Normal University Press is a comprehensive publisher that gives equal weight to humanistic scholarship and general reading, with publishing directions covering law, world classics, social psychology, classic works, mystery and detective fiction, and foreign literature. In law, it offers theoretical translations such as Hegel's Philosophy of Right; in literature, it publishes Chinese and foreign classics including Gone with the Wind, Pride and Prejudice, Don Quixote, Six Records of a Floating Life, and The Complete Sherlock Holmes, with translators such as Jia Wenhao, Jia Wenyuan, and Jia Lingyi. It also publishes in social psychology and biography, such as The Neurotic Personality of Our Time and Beethoven. The library currently holds 210 titles; public information is limited, yet the overall profile shows a publishing character that balances academic depth with popular readability.
Contents
- 版权信息
- 一
- 二
- 三
- 四
- 五
- 六
- 译后记
FAQ
Is this book very different in style from Steinbeck's longer works?
Is the ending suitable for young readers?
What does the pearl mainly symbolize in the book?
Comments
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About the author
John Steinbeck (1902–1968) was an American novelist born in Salinas, California. He attended Stanford University but did not earn a degree. His fiction often centers on working-class laborers and social injustice, with characters struggling amid economic hardship and changing times; his style is plain and deeply sympathetic. His major works include Of Mice and Men, The Grapes of Wrath, and East of Eden. He won the Pulitzer Prize in 1939 for The Grapes of Wrath and the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1962. His books are categorized as foreign literature, classics, inspirational coming-of-age stories, and social novels, and the collection includes 34 of his works.
Letu is an author about whom little public information is available. The library currently holds only one work by this author, The Pearl. Since basic details such as nationality, dates of birth and death, and English name are unknown, it is not yet possible to outline the author's life or creative development; only a brief note on the existing work can be given. The Pearl is classified under foreign literature, a category that suggests the work may have an exotic setting or a cross-cultural narrative perspective, though its specific plot, characters, and themes remain for readers to discover from the text itself. Judging from the limited bibliographic information, the name Letu carries a plain and gentle connotation that echoes the image of the pearl, perhaps hinting at writing that favors delicate observation and understated expression. On the basis of the materials currently available, it is not yet possible to judge the full range of the author's style or literary influence. Readers are advised to rely primarily on the work itself, and this note may be supplemented or revised should more complete information about the author become available.
