Wiki: "In this novel, Steinbeck explores the relationship of man to his land. The plot follows a man, Joseph Wayne, who moves to California in order to establish a homestead. He is joined by his three brothers once his father dies, and they create a thriving ranch. When a drought strikes the land, however, Steinbeck analyzes how men respond to having their faith shaken."If I recall correctly, the novel takes place in the late 1800s and the Wayne families had moved to California from New England where the weather was more steady and predictable year after year. They were fortunate to arrive in California during the wet years and thrived.
Wiki: "While building [his house], he works with an Indian, Juanito, who offers to be his vaquero in exchange for friendship. Joseph hears about the "dry years", a lengthy drought that seems to be periodic, and is the bane of all the farmers in the area. He is convinced, however, that they will never come again."I've noticed that people move to California either 1) during the wet years and never expect to see a drought or 2) during the drought years and never expect to see torrential downpours and floods. This plays out over and over and over. It's not until you've lived in California many decades or are a multi-generational California family do you understand it is perfectly normal.
I moved to California during the drought years, having arrived in summer 1973. I remember hiking up to Yosemite Falls in January 1974 or 1975 on a 70 degree day and the falls were nearly dry. People were hiking in tee shirts, shorts and sandals. The papers were full of "DROUGHT!" scare stories every day and people were putting bricks in their toilet tanks to conserve water. At this moment, that same location at the top of Yosemite Falls is probably buried under 20 feet of snow.
Here's a chart of the Sierra snowpack depth (seven years out of date). The snowpack correlates with the rainfall. Look at the number of years between the big peaks on the chart.
