Steinbeck (John) Autograph Manuscript draft of Preface, essay intended for The Short Novels of ...

Steinbeck (John) Autograph Manuscript draft of "Preface" for The Short Novels of John Steinbeck, collected as "My Short Novels," 4 pp. only (lacking final leaf), lower left corner bumped to all leaves, toning at extremities, small folio, 1953.*** At the request of Viking in 1953, John Steinbeck yielded to the prospect of revisiting his short novels – The Red Pony, Tortilla Flat, Of Mice and Men, The Moon is Down, Cannery Row, and The Pearl – to reissue them in a collected anthology.He begins this draft "I have never written a preface to one of my books before, believing that the work should stand on its own feet even if its ankles were slightly wobbly. When I was asked to comment on the five short novels of this volume, my first impulse was to refuse. And then, thinking over the things that have happened to these stories since they were written, I was taken with the idea that the things that happen to a book are very like those that happen to a man." The commissioned preface goes on to describe the personal nature of each work, the all-absorbing creative process, and the feeling of loss after finishing a book, only to be forgotten as a new work consumes him.The text of the present manuscript closely aligns with the published essay, but with some substantive deviations: the initial "five short novels" evolves into "six short novels," and most notably, Steinbeck’s more self-deprecating tone in this draft is later excised. For example, an entire and more effuse section which leads into his discussion of the works is cut from the final version: "... all of [my novels] have been experiments. That is why no two are remotely alike. And experiments are rarely accepted all at once. / My stories have been slow starters almost like shy young men who do not make friends quickly. Indeed most of my books have succeeded without trying in making quick and fierce enemies at first. It is pleasing to me that in time they do make lasting and loyal friends."Steinbeck first discusses The Red Pony, "written a long time ago when there was desolation in my family. The first death had occurred—and the family which every child believes immortal, was shattered." Facing challenges in publication, it finally found a home in the North American Review for a modest $90 (see lot 120), only to see the magazine going under shortly thereafter. Transitioning to Tortilla Flat, Steinbeck recounts its controversial reception in Monterey, where readers denounced the work, stating "no such disreputable people lived in that neighborhood" - a statement (though seemingly damning) that would unwittingly boost book sales. He also describes the precarious genesis Of Mice and Men: "I had nearly finished it when my setter pup ate it one night—literally made confetti of it. I had to start fresh. I don't know how close the first and second versions would prove to be."Steinbeck curiously deems his shorter works as “exercises for the longer ones”, and throughout World War II, he crafted The Moon is Down “as a kind of celebration of the durability of Democracy", musing on his portrayal of Germans as "men, not supermen". The final version goes on to discuss Cannery Row and The Pearl, which takes up half a printed page (and not present in this manuscript). In a letter to David Heyler dated August [1953], Steinbeck mentions writing a preface to the anthology as one of the projects he is currently working on (see note to lot 120 for details on Heyler).Overall a fantastic piece of Steinbeck’s work in manuscript form, and a unique example of his quintessential self-deprecatory tone.Provenance: The Mary Steinbeck Dekker Family Collection.