Which John Steinbeck novel was banned in some U.S. cities for its portrayal of migrant workers?

The John Steinbeck novel banned in some U.S. cities for its portrayal of migrant workers is The Grapes of Wrath.

Published in 1939, the Pulitzer Prize-winning novel follows the Joad family as they leave Oklahoma during the Dust Bowl and travel to California in search of work. There they encounter crowded camps, low wages, labor exploitation, hostility toward “Okies,” and the unequal power of landowners and growers. Steinbeck’s sympathetic portrayal of displaced families and his criticism of economic injustice made the book politically explosive when it appeared.

Some communities reacted by restricting or banning it. Kern County, California, where the Joads arrive, banned the novel from county libraries and schools in 1939, while copies were also burned in Steinbeck’s hometown of Salinas. Critics objected to its language, sexual material, politics, and what they considered an unflattering depiction of California residents. The 1940 film adaptation softened some political elements, so it should not be treated as identical to the novel.