This varying dynamic, polar in its nature, is touching in its realism.

Between each set of brothers stands the unequal love of a father, a darkness within a man's heart, and the recurring scar which comes to mark those who are 'darker.' From Adam and Charles to Aron and Cal, both sets of brothers face trials in their relationships, between the dichotomy of love and hate. It details the lives of the Trask and Hamilton families, particularly of Adam and Charles Trask-the first generation, and Aron and Cal Trask-the second. Like a good 90% or more of Steinbeck works, East of Eden takes place primarily in the Salinas Valley of northern California. The characters, if anything else, make this a fantastic read. However, I was pleasantly surprised by this masterpiece, a great retelling of two classic biblical tales. After having read Steinbeck's other work, The Pearl, I thought that East of Eden might end up being a long, overly drawn-out description of some vines running along a white wall.

It is through the popularization of East of Eden that the Salinas Valley was truly transformed into “the valley of the world” a place where everyone is able to find a piece of themselves in the golden, rolling hills.On first picking up East of Eden, I wondered if I would or could like such a book. Tinged with biblical echoes of the fall of Adam and Eve and the rivalry of Cain and Abel, this sprawling saga has captivated audiences everywhere for generations. Part allegory, part autobiography, and part epic, East of Eden was an ambitious project from the start – a gift to Steinbeck’s sons that was meant to teach them about identity, grief, and what it means to be human. From this plot emerged some of Steinbeck’s most fascinating characters – many of whom are modeled after people in his own life. In his journal, Journal of a Novel (often read as a companion to the novel) he notes that “this is the book I have always wanted and have worked and prayed to be able to write Set primarily in the Salinas Valley in the early twentieth century, the novel traces three generations of two families – the Trasks and the Hamiltons – as they grapple with the ever-present forces of good and evil. Steinbeck considered East of Eden to be his masterpiece.

East of eden penguin classics