Sinclair devoted his writing career to documenting and criticizing the social and economic conditions of the early twentieth century. He exposed his view of the injustices of capitalism and the overwhelming impact of the poverty.
In
The Jungle (1906), Sinclair gave a scathing indictment of unregulated capitalism as exemplified in the meatpacking industry. His descriptions of both the unsanitary conditions and the inhumane conditions experienced by the workers shocked and galvanized readers. Domestic and foreign purchases of American meat fell by half. The novel carried such influence that it spurred government regulation of the industry, as well as the passage of the Pure Food and Drug Act.
The Lanny Budd series
Between 1940 and 1953, Sinclair wrote a series of 11 novels featuring a central character named Lanny Budd, the son of an American arms manufacturer who moved in the confidence of world leaders, not simply witnessing events but often propelling them. The protagonist has been characterized as the antithesis of the "Ugly American", a sophisticated socialite who mingles easily with people from all cultures and socioeconomic classes.
The series covers in sequence much of the political history of the Western world, particularly Europe and America, in the first half of the twentieth century. Out of print and almost totally forgotten today, the novels were all bestsellers upon publication and were published in 21 countries. The third book in the series,
Dragon's Teeth, won the Pulitzer Prize in 1943.
The novels in the Lanny Budd series are:
- World's End, 1940
- Between Two Worlds, 1941
- Dragon's Teeth, 1942
- Wide Is the Gate, 1943
- The Presidential Agent, 1944
- Dragon Harvest, 1945
- A World to Win, 1946
- A Presidential Mission, 1947
- One Clear Call, 1948
- O Shepherd, Speak!, 1949
- The Return of Lanny Budd, 1953