East of Eden - Softcover

Steinbeck, John

4.41

538,046 ratings by Goodreads

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0140292942 ISBN 13: 9780140292947

Publisher: Penguin, 2001

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Set in the rich farmland of California's Salinas Valley, this sprawling and often brutal novel follows the intertwined destinies of two families - the Trasks and the Hamiltons - whose generations helplessly reenact the fall of Adam and Eve and the poisonous rivalry of Cain and Abel.

Here Steinbeck created some of his most memorable characters and explored his most enduring themes: the mystery of identity; the inexplicability of love; and the murderous consequences of love's absence.

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Review:

John Steinbeck knew and understood America and Americans better than any other writer of the twentieth century. ("The Dallas Morning News") A man whose work was equal to the vast social themes that drove him. (Don DeLillo)"
"A novel planned on the grandest possible scale...One of those occasions when a writer has aimed high and then summoned every ounce of energy, talent, seriousness, and passion of which he was capable...It is an entirely interesting and impressive book."
--The New York Herald Tribune
"A fantasia and myth...a strange and original work of art."
--The New York Times Book Review
"A moving, crying pageant with wilderness strengths."
--Carl Sandburg

"When the book club ended a year ago, I said I would bring it back when I found the book that was moving...and this is a great one. I read it for myself for the first time and then I had some friends read it. And we think it might be the best novel we've ever read!"
--Oprah Winfrey
"A novel planned on the grandest possible scale...One of those occasions when a writer has aimed high and then summoned every ounce of energy, talent, seriousness, and passion of which he was capable...It is an entirely interesting and impressive book."
--The New York Herald Tribune

"A fantasia and myth...a strange and original work of art."
--The New York Times Book Review

"A moving, crying pageant with wilderness strengths."
--Carl Sandburg

"When the book club ended a year ago, I said I would bring it back when I found the book that was moving...and this is a great one. I read it for myself for the first time and then I had some friends read it. And we think it might be the best novel we've ever read!"
--Oprah Winfrey
-A novel planned on the grandest possible scale...One of those occasions when a writer has aimed high and then summoned every ounce of energy, talent, seriousness, and passion of which he was capable...It is an entirely interesting and impressive book.-
--The New York Herald Tribune

-A fantasia and myth...a strange and original work of art.-
--The New York Times Book Review

-A moving, crying pageant with wilderness strengths.-
--Carl Sandburg

-When the book club ended a year ago, I said I would bring it back when I found the book that was moving...and this is a great one. I read it for myself for the first time and then I had some friends read it. And we think it might be the best novel we've ever read!-
--Oprah Winfrey

From the Back Cover:

'Our species is the only creative species, and it has only one creative instrument, the individual mind and spirit of a man.'

California's fertile Salinas Valley is home to two families whose destinies are fruitfully, and fatally, intertwined. Over the generations, between the beginning of the twentieth century and the end of the First World War, the Trasks and the Hamiltons will helplessly replay the fall of Adam and Eve and the murderous rivalry of Cain and Abel.

East of Eden was considered by Steinbeck to be his magnum opus, and its epic scope and memorable characters, exploring universal themes of love and identity, ensure it remains one of America's most enduring novels.

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