I loved this book. It was expertly crafted and filled with insight, wisdom, and hope for redemption ("thou mayest" really hit me). What satisfaction there is in a good old battle between good and evil. 
 I wonder if the landscape comes alive for other readers, or if having a familiarity with the area between Monterey County and San Francisco gives me a false sense of how expertly Steinbeck describes the physical setting of the novel.