John Steinbeck (1902 – 1968) was the winner of the 1962 Nobel Prize in Literature. The novella 'Of Mice and Men' (1937) is the story of two migrant field workers in California during the Great Depression. Two friends, George Milton and the strong but simple-minded Lennie Small, share a dream of owning their own piece of land. When they get jobs on a ranch in the Salinas Valley, the fulfilment of their dream seems to be within reach. Then tragedy strikes. The themes include kindness, the bonds of friendship and the cruelty of this world.