Rating: 
Summary: Yikes! What a book!
Review: Honestly, I thought the first 400 pages were more compelling than the conclusion. However, this book is quite remarkable. The Biblical theme of Cain/Abel with Charles/Adam and Caleb/Aron is a haunting revelation into the complex balance between good and evil that defines us as human beings. Cathy (Kate) is without a doubt the most devious and evil literary character I've encountered EVER in literature. Every scene she was in I couldn't wait to see what happened!I do recommend this book, despite its flaws, because the glimpse into humanity is powerful. It did concern me a bit
too when I realized that 3 of my 4 children are named Adam, Caleb and Kate!
Rating: 
Summary: KEEEEEEEEEELAR
Review: this here book about the virtues of man and the contrast of good and evil as paralled through characters better known as "Adam and Eve" is good, but not as good as one we all know as "West of Hell" and that is the bible! Stieinbeck is the debil!
Rating: 
Summary: Beauty and love
Review: The power of the written word to express the deepest emotions of life is evidenced beautifully in this classic story of love,jealousy, and redemption. Wonderfully complex characters seeking to understand their place in the world. Excellent, excellent story.
Rating: 
Summary: tedious reading
Review: whats all the hype about this voluminous novel that says absolutely nothing. It was hard reading--too many characters--two many families-and -insignificant families ,as well , to the plot. It was a waste of my precious time.
Is it because it is Steinback's work that this material got praised. No fair-the book was not worthy. The message was scanty if their even was a message or plot. The writing itself was not worth mentioning . An outstanding author he is not (in my opinion). No more Steinback for me.
Rating:
Summary: Rich language, beautiful imagery and heavy symbolism
Review: By the time Steinbeck wrote "East of Eden," (EOE) he had already written several American classics including "Of Mice and Men," "The Grapes of Wrath," and "Cannery Row" to mention only a few. By then, he was a recognized master of the use of language. He could and did create complex images that evoked a wide range of thoughts and emotions. The first chapter of EOE - where he describes the setting of the Salinas Valley - lets any doubter know that they are reading the product of a magnificent writer. I have sampled a few scholarly reviews of EOE, and I was dumbfounded by the negative tone that critics have used in reference to this novel. Their problem seems to be with the heavy-handed use of symbolism. There are one-sided characters that can be nothing more or less than the idea that they are representing. Cathy is probably the clearest example of this, evil and nothing but evil. Steinbeck also portrays two sets of "Cain and Abel" brothers who act out variations of the themes of brotherly murder and being a "brother's keeper." So, this is an interesting and valid observation. However, the wonders of the book clearly overshadow all else. In addition to the imagery, which is arguably unsurpassed in American writing, he has used the story of his mother's family, the Hamiltons of Salinas Valley, to serve as an historical backdrop for the story of the symbolically challenged Trasks. He has painted a picture of his own beginnings with flair and insight while interweaving the morality tale that creates the tension and vehicle that moves the plot along. This feat is handled seamlessly. Each family is colorful and interesting. Each individual is fully developed. As a result, each page is anticipated and savored. In the end I would say that the "scholars" need to be careful. Like all subjective evaluations, the judgement of the quality of John Steinbeck's work is relative. Perhaps he did not surpass his greatest accomplishments with EOE. On the other hand, very few novelists have come close to the artistry that flows through this book from beginning to end.
Rating:
Summary: East of Eden
Review: East of Eden draws from the biblical story of Cain and Abel, reliving the age-old theme of good versus evil. The similarities between the brothers in this novel and the biblical brothers are numerous. First, note the "C" in Cain, Charles and Cal, and the "A" in Abel, Adam and Aron. The fathers in the book represent God and Cathy (Kate) plays a very convincing Satan.
In Genesis Chapter four, Cain and Abel both offer gifts to God, and Abel's is respected and accepted while Cain's is not. Similarly, in East of Eden, Charles gives his father a knife and Adam gives him a puppy; Cyrus loves the puppy but does not use the knife.
Years later, Cal and Aron are in the same situation with their father, Adam. Adam wants nothing more than the gift of pride that Aron gives him through his scholarly endeavors, and rejects the gift of money from Cal. There are many similarities between Cal, Charles and Cain, but also one major distinction that sets Cal apart from the other two evil characters. Cal recognizes the malevolence in himself and hates it. On that basis, a part of him is as good as Aron, Adam, and Abel. In the end, Cal is redeemed because he can bring himself to ask for forgiveness.
Rating:
Summary: Excellent novel
Review: The prose sparkles and the characters mesmerize in John Steinbeck's masterpiece "East of Eden." The main character's name is Adam Trask. He has several conflicts with his brother and his life is quite rough. The book also brings in the author's family, and features much wisdom about life. The only reason not to read this book would be the fact that prostitution does play a major role in it, so younger children might not be able to handle it. Still, all in all, an excellent book.
Rating:
Summary: An allegorical masterpiece
Review: John Steinbeck's East of Eden, which was a late, great masterpiece in the author's career, is also one of the greatest American novels of all-time. The book is unique in many ways, with many idiosyncrasies, some of them quite out of Steinbeck's usual style. To start with, many of Steinbeck's works are overtly political; among these are some of his best and best-known works. East of Eden is not among them. As the title suggests, and almost every mention of the book points out, the book is a modern retelling of the Biblical Cain and Abel story. Contrary to what such proclamations -- not to mention Oprah -- might lead one to think, however, this is not a theological, a religious, or a Christian book: the Cain and Abel allegory is the bare bones that Steinbeck uses to prop up his own visionary, allegorical masterpiece. Aside from its non-political nature, Eden is also distinctive in the Steinbeck canon for other reasons. For one, it features almost no dialect, unlike most of his other famous works; Steinbeck's deceptively simple prose is at its best here, clear and yet philosophical. It also has a much different structure than, say, The Grapes of Wrath: though it tells the parallel and intersecting stories of two families, it does not feature alternating chapters; it also tends to be quite discursive. It also proves to be quite distinctive for other reasons: as an allegory, this is not a psychological novel. The actions of the characters in the novel are presented, more or less, per se, without their actions being unduly analyzed and without their inner thoughts being much probed. Their actions are not explained: they simply ARE. In the case of the perpetually evil Cathy, this can be somewhat frustrating; much of the novel's criticism has focused upon her believability as a character. On that note, it is worthwhile to remember that, in keeping with the book's Biblical bent, she symbolizes Satan. Cathy sees only the bad in people and exploits it for her own purposes. Her downfall comes because she fails to ever see the other side of the coin. And the fact that there are two sides of the coin is the point of the book. The novel is Steinbeck's wake-up call to everyone drifting toward a determinist future. Yes, we have evil coursing through our veins -- but we also have good. Which one we choose to make use of is our own choice -- and no one's but our own. No matter whom our parents are, no matter what our circumstances may be, no matter what others may think of us -- the choice, in the end, resides with us, and us alone. Steinbeck also explores some of his other favorite themes in this monumental work. One of these is the inexplicability of love, symbolized both for Adam's apparently-unfounded yet mysterious love for Cathy and by Cyrus and Adam's preference for one son over another. Another is the consequences of not being loved -- of rejection. Charles and Cal believe that their respective fathers do not love them; they use this thought to justify much of their sometimes questionable behavior. This would seem to be the message of the book for many: that parents must love their children equally, that rejection and favoritism have, sometimes quite literally, murderous consequences and can lead to cruelty and hatred. With such an interpretation, the doctrine of original sin has its origins not in the Fall of Adam and Eve, but in God's rejection of Cain's gift. Such is the reading on the novel's glossy surface. However, it is well to remember that Cathy IS loved; and yet, not only does she does not love back, she carries out her evil deeds all the more -- not IN SPITE of her being loved, but perhaps even BECAUSE of it. This relates back to Steinbeck's true message: it the end the choice between good and evil, right and wrong, love and hate -- regardless of rejection, regardless of whether or not we are loved -- is ours, and ours alone. Timshel!
Rating:
Summary: The best book I've read
Review: It's always difficult reading a book that has been praised to the skies without expecting too much, and that's why it usually fails to deliver. Those who read it after this book became an Oprah Book Club selection seem to have come to it with just such expectations. Try, however, to always approach a book or movie, however much it has been praised, as any other. Simply pick it up and read it without any expectations. This is how I read it, and gosh, was I pleasantly surprised. The characters are people I wish I could know personally--especially Samuel, I wished I could be one of his many children just to have him as a father; Lee, so taciturn yet wise and always there, such a comfort to have and know such a person; and Caleb, whom we tend to identify with in so many ways. True, the story might have extremes, and be predictable if you were able to keep yourself so uninvolved in the story. Those who commented on the 'plot', perhaps such a book is not what you ought to read. Pick up a Grisham or some other fast-paced 'plotty' book. East of Eden is for those who think, who care about who they are and who they want to be or ought to have been. People have talked of its being depressing. It's not. I hate depressing books myself. At least it's not a meaningless depression in which you can't identify with the story at all, but it simply sucks you down. This book made me cry at many points--from empathy or sympathy for the characters, from the beauty of the language, and from appreciating the wisdom in it. I admire passages, descriptions, dialogues so much in this book that I re-read them, and re-read the entire novel already, and may do so again. I'm not the kind who likes to re-read books either. There's simply so much wisdom and simplicity and reassurance in here that it's a treasure--for me, at least. I think I'm lucky to have a book that means so much to me.
Rating:
Summary: A story?
Review: I thought this book was a waste of my time. it may have emotion... but it is riddled with chapters that contain little relevance to the plot! Save yourself and don't bother.
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