Of Mice and Men In the beginning of the story, two men named George Milton and Lennie Small are trying to make their way to a small ranch in Salinas Valley, California. George is the leader of their two man tribe, despite Lennie’s intimidating size. George is filled with determination and confidence while Lennie is a simple man with a big heart. Up north, they had recently been run out of a town called Weed on account of Lennie. First of all, Lennie is not very smart, and becomes frightened and confused easily. Also, he enjoys petting animals and feelingthings that grab his attention. One night in Weed, Lennie and Georg