The pearl / Steinbeck, John

Kino, a poor Mexican pearl-diver, believes he has received the answer to his prayers when he finds a great pearl worth a fortune, but tragedy soon follows.

For the diver Kino, finding a magnificent pearl means the promise of a better life for his impoverished family. His dream blinds him to the greed and suspicions the pearl arouses in him and his neighbors, and even his loving wife cannot temper his obsession or stem the events leading to the tragedy.