Event

Steinbeck Festival

In the 1930s, John Steinbeck told the story of the millions of Americans suffering through the Great Depression and the Dust Bowl, giving voice to families and individuals who struggled every day to transcend devastating hardships. Steinbeck's novel The Grapes of Wrath put these stories on the national stage. Today we face many of the same challenges: great financial insecurity, unemployment, foreclosures, and drastic environmental change. What are our sources of resilience? Who is giving voice to these stories now?

In 2014, the National Steinbeck Center will celebrate the 75th anniversary of The Grapes of Wrath by convening a national dialogue, seeking out the experiences of individual Americans today, and bringing them into the light.

The 34th Annual Steinbeck Festival: Onward will explore and celebrate these stories from May 2-4, 2014. The Steinbeck Festival is a three-day festival in Salinas and throughout Monterey County featuring talks, tours, films, food and the visual and performing arts. This year's speakers include Susan Shillinglaw, University of Virginia professor Stephen Railton, and economist Rick Wartzman. The Steinbeck Festival draws Steinbeck scholars, students and enthusiasts from all over the world to Monterey County to learn more about Salinas' native son, John Steinbeck, and to celebrate his legacy. The 34th annual Steinbeck Festival will also showcase the 2013 Journey from Oklahoma to Weedpatch Camp, and will highlight the artists' work and oral histories collected along the route.