Susan Belgrave: The Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck

Susan Belgrave, founder of the literacy charity Beanstalk (originally Volunteer Reading Help), writes of her choice for Book of the Month:

My immediate choice of book is John Steinbeck’s The Grapes of Wrath.  I read it when I was about twelve and was completely captivated by the hardships endured, and survived, by the family as they pursued their determination to travel west. The odds were so against them from the start. It taught me a great deal about the size of the USA also and their very varied conditions on their travels, but above all about perseverance.

Others may get quite different messages from the book but I offer it as my amazing read at an impressionable age.

Susan set up Beanstalk 40 years ago to tackle literacy problems in primary schools the charity has now helped over 80,000 children with their reading. In 2013 she was a finalist in the Inspirational Women of the Year Award.