"Tom Mangelsdorf's first book, A History of Steinbeck's Cannery Row, grew out of a life-long interest in John Steinbeck and the street in Monterey, California he made famous. The book is a rich blend of both the real-life history of the characters Steinbeck wrote about and the history of the sardine canneries that sprouted up along Cannery Row. It has become one of the most authoritative and widely quoted histories of the area and Steinbeck's characters."