Agatha Christie and John Steinbeck Follow

I am having some trouble. I have been reading a lot lately and have been astounded by some of the work that Christie and Steinbeck have published. The Pearl by Steinbeck as well as And Then There Were None by Christie. Another Marine asked me the other day who was my favorite author and I couldn't give him a straight answer. Could someone please compare these two in more detail other than I like their symbolism in their books? Thanks a lot...

Agoge

They have nothing in common.

Christie is a crime author, one of the pioneers of the genre. While her books can also be a window into the social life of her time, her books are mostly about intrigue, supsense, and denouement. She's, in some ways, the predecessor to PD James, or Mary Higgins Clarke.

Steinbeck, on the other hand, is something else. He is the heir to people like Zola, who are almost scientific in their description of a time, of an era, in Steinbeck's case, the Great depression. He relates the struggles of workers, of ordinary people, during that extraordinary time.

I'm not really into crime novels, though I have enjoyed a few of Christie's books.

Steinbeck, on the other hand, I absolutely love. The Grapes of Wrath, and ofc course, Of Mice and Men, are absolutely beautiful, and almost "historical" in their accuracy and depiction of a certain era.