Brain Snacks: Tasty Tidbits of Knowledge
When it was published, Tortilla Flat generated lots of critical buzz, good and bad, but mostly good. A lot of people have talked about the ending and about Steinbeck's portrayal of paisanos (source).
Tortilla Flat is a real, live place, and Steinbeck's not the only author to find inspiration there (source).
Not too shabby. Tortilla Flat was awarded the Commonwealth Club of California Gold Medal for Best Novel by a Californian in 1936 (source).
John Steinbeck went to college at Stanford but never finished (source).