Milwood Classics Book Club

John Steinbeck called East of Eden his magnum opus. Critics at the time found it overwhelming and heavy handed. Coming at the end of Steinbeck’s writing career, East of Eden has grown in popularity and remains one of his best-known works (alongside The Grapes of Wrath). This parable of good and evil is both a retelling of the story of Cain and Abel and a continuation of Steinbeck’s story of America in the early twentieth century.

Covering three generations, the actual story of East of Eden begins with the arrival of Adam Trask and his pregnant wife in the Salinas Valley (sometimes called America’s Breadbasket), California, where Steinbeck grew up. The book starts, however, in New England towards the end of the Civil War. This serves as a background to Adam Trask, giving a historical perspective to the work.

East of Eden is Steinbeck's longest novel and covers a span of history over 50 years. It is definitely Steinbeck’s most ambitious work, and one of the most ambitious American novels of the era. At around 600 pages, this book is an investment in time, but most readers find that it moves quickly once the reader is past the initial set up of the story.

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