Richard Hawley

We went to see midsummer nights dream there last year it was ace,the weather was boiling hot.....I really want to go back,maybe next year

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I agree, lovely! Read it when I was a teenager and it blew me away. Sobbed for days at the ending. Set me off on a Steinbeck thing and read all his books by the time I was 20. My favourite is Travels with Charlie, which is an autobiographical book about him going around America with his dog. His descriptions of the country are beautiful – the sea of Cortez, giant redwoods, being in the eye of a storm. Luscious.

And, the play really made me think. The book was published a couple of years after the depression began. It must've been such a political act, telling a story like that while hundreds of thousands were starving in shanty towns. And it was beautifully acted – I sort of didn't want to go, just in case it was shite! A bit like seeing Stevie Wonder! If it was am-dram bollocks, maybe it would sully my whole view. But the acting was really good and it just made me remember how I felt when I first read it.

And H, we are going to go back next year, we have the bug, for the theatre and the area. Thank you so much for telling me about it. The stormy picture of the cliff was taken from the Minack, looking across Porthcurno beach. My big boy has his GCSEs in May so it will be a good antidote to post revision madness. And I might get a kayak too but that's another story...

I feel it is sort of what we bought the camper for – I know being outdoors all weathers isn't everyone's cup of tea but it is magic watching the night fall over the sea, with nature coming to life all around you. We've never really been sunseekers – too pastey for that. So the wild west suits us fine.

Anyway, enough!! Before I break the internet. xxx

Have you read The Pearl by Steinbeck?......beyond the beyond of beautiful

Cannery Row
Tortilla flat

After the steel works shite happened with Dad I vowed never to work for"the man"but thank fuck I read these books at the same time, they kept my moral compass intact(mostly )and showed me another way

One of my boys is doing GCSEs too.....the pressure is horrific but it's got to be done

I hated everything at that age apart from rock n roll,pussy,beer,guitars and records




Hold on........I was FUCKIN RIGHT

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Yes, I agree about The Pearl. Beautiful. And as for Cannery Row and Tortilla Flat, Doc and Danny are probably my favourite Steinbeck characters. Always wanted to go to Monterey because of that.

Really, this whole thread has taken me back to my teenage years in so many ways. You're sitting with folk, discussing nature and literature, the beauty of the sea and Steinbeck, and the boy you're sitting next to starts talking about pussy! It's 1984, I'm right back there, my youth, wrapped up in a nutshell... It's the poetry and the contradiction that makes me like your music so. x

You people are speaking my language. This Steinbeck tour rocked our world, still not over it:

http://www.seemonterey.com/things-to-do/itineraries/steinbeck/

He could be a real jackass, true. Sometimes downright manipulative, violent, and dishonest. He's also a towering literary giant no one has yet surpassed. People are complex, what can you say?

Bonus points to the first one who uses "tortilla" and "pussy" in the same sentence. Go!

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Trying not to fuck shit up, since 1969

I ordered a tortilla in a dodgy restaurant and the filling tasted just like......


I'm soooooo sorry


But it's your fault


You dared me


Steinbeck is the master,I did a radio show a while back where I chose Cannery row can't remember exactly what it was though

Too much LDS is the 60's

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Laaaaame. Come on man, the answer was obvious. I can't believe your mind did not turn to tacos. And you're the writer. Pssshht, half points to Gryffindor.

Oh cool, I'd like to hear that at some point!

Although, extra points for somewhat obscure Star Trek reference. Nerd.

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Trying not to fuck shit up, since 1969

You've both completely lost me, I'm afraid. But nice to know that someone notices when I'm being sarcastic. x

That works out beautifully, because I frequently lose MYSELF, so you're in good company. I have a passing familiarity with sarcasm, too, so we are on the same page. I can't speak for the other guy.

By the way, I am loving your travelogues. Bewitching photos. More please! xo

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Trying not to fuck shit up, since 1969

http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b00qplyl

A Good Read is available as a podcast but I'm not sure if episodes as far back as 2010 are still active, worth checking out.

Says it's not available, I'm afraid. I remember listening to it though, when I still worked in the Big Shed. And it was actually Tortilla Flat you chose, Richard......

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The heartbeat doesn't change, only the faces surrounding it.

It was a long time ago sorry,both books are sort of intertwined in my addled mind

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At least you read them - I bought Travels With Charlie several years ago after Helen mentioned it here - and to this day it lies unread...

I am just crap at reading books.

It's a great book

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Thanks for trying to find it, fellas. I'll track it down eventually maybe.

Poppy, if you're interested, you know what's a good idea for that sometimes? Less, not more. If you're down, just give me a shout anytime with ideas or subjects that interest you, and I'd be happy to recommend some short stories or essays. Smaller chunks, but still very satisfying. It is what I do. xo

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Trying not to fuck shit up, since 1969