Franklin Library leather edition of John Steinbeck's "Tortilla Flat," "Of Mice and Men," "Cannery Row," Illustrated by Herbert Tauss, a Limited edition, one of the COLLECTED STORIES OF THE WORLD'S GREATEST WRITERS series, published in 1977. Bound in chocolate brown leather, the book has brown moire silk end leaves, acid-free paper, Symth-sewn binding, satin book marker, hubbed spine, gold gilding on three edges---in near FINE condition---'minor' imperfections to gilt and 'very minor' shelf wear. John Ernst Steinbeck, Jr., lived from 1902 – 1968. "Tortilla Flat," which was published in 1935, portrays a small band of errant friends enjoying life and wine in the days after the end of the World War I. Above the town of Monterey on the California coast lies the shabby district of Tortilla Flat, inhabited by a loose gang of jobless locals of Mexican-Indian Spanish-Caucasian descent. The central character DANNY inherits two houses from his grandfather where he and his friends go to live. Danny's house, and Danny's friends, Steinbeck compares to the ROUND TABLE, and the KNIGHTS of the ROUND TABLE. "Of Mice and Men" is the story of two migrant worker, GEORGE and LENNIE, who have been let off a bus miles away from the California farm where they are due to start work. George is a small, dark man with “sharp, strong features.” Lennie, his companion, is his opposite, a giant of a man with a “shapeless” face. Overcome with thirst, the two stop in a clearing by a pool and decide to camp for the night. As the two converse, it becomes clear that Lennie has a mild mental disability, and is deeply devoted to George and dependent upon him for protection and guidance. George finds that Lennie, who loves petting soft things but often accidentally kills them, has been carrying and stroking a dead mouse. George angrily throws it away, fearing that Lennie might catch a disease from the dead animal. George complains loudly that his life would be easier without having to care for Lennie, but the reader senses that their friendship and devotion is mutual. He and Lennie share a dream of buying their own piece of land, farming it, and, much to Lennie’s delight, keeping rabbits. George ends the night by treating Lennie to the story he often tells him about what life will be like in such an idyllic place. "Cannery Row." set during the GREAT DEPRESSION in Monterey, California, on a street lined with sardine canneries, revolves around the people living there: LEE CHONG, the local grocer; DOC, a marine biologist based on Steinbeck's friend ED RICEKTTS; and MACK, the leader of a group of derelicts. In 1962, Steinbeck was awarded the NOBEL PRIZE in LITERATURE. 448 pages. I offer Combined shipping.