The book is a story of the Joad family, and their trip to California. It tells of the migration of thousands of homeless families from Oklahoma to California. It follows the Joad family, who, evicted from the land by the bank decide to head for the 'Golden West' to a land of plenty. When there they encounter poverty and oppression.
The book stirs emotion from deep within. It shows the strength of the human spirit under stress and the dreadful conditions the Joad family suffered. The Joad family began with Ma, Pa, Granpa, Granma, Tom, Al, Ruthie, Connie, Rose of Sharon, Winfield, Uncle John and Casey a former preacher. .
Whilst on the road they meet the Wilsons who let the Joad's use their tent when Granpa was dying. Many other characters drift in and out during the unfolding story. The character of Tom Joad is the most interesting. Tom is the oldest child and a paroled convict. He was sent to Pentridge when during a drunken fight he hit a neighbor's son over the head with a shovel killing him in the process. On release he hitches back to his parents' farm and on arrival finds the shocking truth - it is deserted with the doors ripped off. He finds out from a neighbor who is living off the land while hiding from the bank that, his family and many others were evicted from the land by the bank. He then walks to his uncle John's whereupon he finds his family loading up the truck to head for California. He is invaluable to his family, using the skills he learnt in prison - car repair, reading and writing.
He keeps the whole family moving at times. His younger brother Al who thinks he is god reveres him. A theme that comes through strongly is that a family is a family and should never be broken up either willingly or unwillingly. This can be seen in many places throughout the book. .
When they are about to leave Ma has still not heard from Tom whom she believes is still in Pentridge.
