American Novels Trivia Quiz

Answer: The Grapes of Wrath

"The Grapes of Wrath" follows the journey of the Joads, a poor family evicted from their farm in Oklahoma. They decide to travel west to California because it is rumored that there are more jobs there. The idea of going to California brings them hope for a brighter future, but many obstacles will face them along the way.

The book was a major success, both for its moving prose and for its sympathy for the working class during The Great Depression.

Answer: Invisible Man

"Invisible Man" was immediately hailed as a masterpiece when it was first published. It was Ralph Ellison's first novel and he won the National Book Award for it in 1953. Its portrayal of intense racial and civic struggles in the 1950s earned it the recognition of being a milestone in African-American literature.

Answer: Willa Cather

Willa Cather is known for her poetic descriptions of prairie life in Nebraska. Her novels are particularly characterized by their strong-willed female immigrants. "O Pioneers!" was the first book in a series that also included "My Antonia". She named it after a Walt Whitman poem, but some of the events in it more closely allude to Ovid's "Metamorphoses".

Answer: Moby Dick

Starbucks named their brand after the chief mate (not to be confused with Captain Ahab) in Herman Melville's classic, "Moby Dick". Panned by critics upon its released in 1851, "Moby Dick" was largely ignored until the 20th century. Now it stands as one of the greatest American novels ever to hit the shelves.

Answer: Lonesome Dove

Though being a western, "Lonesome Dove" reads more like a romance at times. It follows the journey of a couple of retired Texas Rangers as they move a cattle herd from Texas to Montana. McMurtry has a keen understanding of human emotions and his characters express them gracefully in "Lonesome Dove".

Answer: Gravity's Rainbow

"Gravity's Rainbow" is considered one of the most difficult novels of all time. Set in Europe during World War II, the novel follows the adventures of Slothrop, an American soldier seeking a rocket that has a mysterious power over him. It shared the 1974 National Book Award for fiction and nearly won a Pulitzer Prize before being rejected by the jury because of an obscene passage.

Answer: The Good Earth

"The Good Earth" was the best-selling American novel in 1931 and 1932. Set in China before World War I, it offered a view into Chinese life that few Americans had seen before. The book follows the life of a poor family of farmers that find themselves the victims of drought and social unrest. Even though it is set in China, the storyline was appealing to many Americans suffering from similar problems in The Great Depression.

A Pulitzer Prize was awarded to Pearl S. Buck for her work on the novel.

Answer: Absalom, Absalom!

Few novels are able to capture the passion, heat, and roughness of the American south as "Absalom, Absalom!" does. It takes place around the time of the American Civil War and chronicles the different points of view of a dysfunctional family. The book has a sentence that is 1,288 words long.

In 1983 the Guinness Book of World Records claimed that it was the longest sentence ever published.

Answer: Their Eyes Were Watching God

"Their Eyes Were Watching God" is Zora Neale Hurston's only popular novel. Hurston was a female Africa-American and she wrote the novel in the 1930s. It was largely rejected by her contemporaries (African-Americans among them), mainly due to her political affiliations. It wasn't until the 1970s that the novel gained its fame, which was long after her death.

Answer: Cormac McCarthy

"Blood Meridian" is more than a violent western. It explores the consequences of Manifest Destiny and imperialist expansion in the 1840s. Many critics have cited it as a masterpiece of modern literature, and some have even compared it to "Moby Dick".