The Octopus: A Story of California by Frank Norris

[Image description: a political cartoon depicting a giant, smiling octopus with "railroad monopoly" written on it. Its tentacles are wrapped around a bank, a ship, a truck, and several farmers. On the bottom of the page are several graves, with "mussel slough" written beside it.]

The first part of a planned but uncompleted trilogy, The Epic of Wheat. It describes the raising of wheat in California, and conflicts between the wheat growers and a railway company. Norris was inspired by the role of the Southern Pacific Railroad in events surrounding the Mussel Slough Tragedy - Wikipedia

"Norris's antagonists are not cardboard heavies but conflicted, complex characters, who often resort to blaming the very system they thrive in...Nor are the novel's farmers always long-suffering victims, but often headstrong and ill-tempered figures, whose pride precipitates violence." - Zola in San Francisco


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