East of Eden
First published 1952 · English · 602 pages
- Novels
- Historical fiction
- Love and romance
- Family saga
A large novel set mainly in California's Salinas Valley, following two families, the Trasks and the Hamiltons, from the nineteenth century into the early twentieth. Steinbeck draws on his own family background and echoes the biblical story of Cain and Abel, as brothers and fathers and sons struggle over love, approval and rivalry. At its heart lies the question of whether people are bound by their inheritance or free to choose how they live. Ambitious and rich in character, it was one of the author's own favourites among his books.
Quotes
Eventlessness has no posts to drape duration on. From nothing to nothing is no time at all.
The proofs that God does not exist are very strong, but in lots of people they are not as strong as the feeling that He does.
Is it true that when you love a woman you are never sure — never sure of her because you aren’t sure of yourself?
What freedom men and women could have, were they not constantly tricked and trapped and enslaved and tortured by their sexuality! The only drawback in that freedom is that without it one would not be a human. One would be a monster.