Ethan Allen Hawley has lost the acquisitive spirit of his wealthy and enterprising forebears, a long line of proud New England sea captains and Pilgrims. Scarred by failure, Ethan works as a grocery clerk in a store his family once owned. But his wife is restless and his teenage children troubled and hungry for the material comforts he cannot provide. Then a series of unusual events reignites Ethan`s ambition, and he is pitched on to a bold course where all scruples are put aside… Steinbeck`s searing examination of the evil influences of money, immorality, greed and ambition in America drew acclaim from the Nobel Committee who hailed him as an `independent expounder of the truth`.