«Margaret Jones finds in the novels of the 1930s by five California writers a common tendency toward utopian social ideals and parody of the American, Edenic myth. A valuable analysis of the Edenic myth in its final stronghold in the United States, her book ofers a fresh and original reading of this topic and these novelists.» (Steve Olson, Central Washington University) «'Prophets in Babylon' is a discerning, morally engaged study. Its combination of cultural criticism and formal analysis and its illuminating constellation of Steinbeck, Huxley, West, Sinclair and Armstrong make it not only one of the best books ever written on California fiction, but also an important contribution to the scholarship on American fiction of the 1930s.» (Leonard Neufeldt, Purdue University) «The study is well researched and a welcome addition on California's literary heritage.» (D.W. Madden, Choice).