{"product_id":"obscene-in-the-extreme-the-burning-and-banning-of-john-steinbecks-the-grapes-of-wrath-9781586487676","title":"Obscene in the Extreme: The Burning and Banning of John Steinbeck's the Grapes of Wrath","description":"Few books have caused as big a stir as John Steinbeck's \u003ci\u003eThe Grapes of Wrath\u003c\/i\u003e, when it was published in April 1939. By May, it was the nation's number one bestseller, but in Kern County, California -- the Joads' newfound home -- the book was burned publicly and banned from library shelves. \u003ci\u003eObscene in the Extreme\u003c\/i\u003e tells the remarkable story behind this fit of censorship. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e When W. B. \"Bill\" Camp, a giant cotton and potato grower, presided over its burning in downtown Bakersfield, he declared: \"We are angry, not because we were attacked but because we were attacked by a book obscene in the extreme sense of the word.\" But Gretchen Knief, the Kern County librarian, bravely fought back. \"If that book is banned today, what book will be banned tomorrow?\" \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003ci\u003eObscene in the Extreme\u003c\/i\u003e serves as a window into an extraordinary time of upheaval in America -- a time when, as Steinbeck put it, there seemed to be \"a revolution . . . going on.\"\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eAuthor:\u003c\/b\u003e Rick Wartzman\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eBinding Type:\u003c\/b\u003e Paperback\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublisher:\u003c\/b\u003e PublicAffairs\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublished:\u003c\/b\u003e 09\/01\/2009\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePages:\u003c\/b\u003e 320\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eWeight:\u003c\/b\u003e 0.92lbs\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eSize:\u003c\/b\u003e 8.90h x 5.60w x 0.90d\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eISBN:\u003c\/b\u003e 9781586487676","brand":"PublicAffairs","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":42710681780361,"sku":"9781586487676","price":21.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0636\/9240\/6921\/files\/img_e2f11193-f9a8-42e5-9aff-fada2fab98a0.jpg?v=1719542778","url":"https:\/\/sonsanddaughtersbooks.com\/products\/obscene-in-the-extreme-the-burning-and-banning-of-john-steinbecks-the-grapes-of-wrath-9781586487676","provider":"Sons and Daughters Books","version":"1.0","type":"link"}