The best (and biggest) book for 2020
East of Eden is undoubtedly a great book. A book I read with enormous interest and impatience to see what happens next.
It is classified as a family saga and is one of the major works by John Steinbeck. Based on the story of Cain and Abel, it explores brotherhood from different angles and views. It explores brotherly love as well as brotherly competition for the love of their father.
The author first gets us acquainted with the main setting - Salinas valley, California, where he himself was born. It tells us the history of the valley settlement, its climate, gives us a map of its fertile and futile areas. And when we are already well familiar with the place, he introduces us to the family of Samuel Hamilton. A man with good heart and bright mind. A farmer and inventor. A husband and a father of nine children. A man who shines with love and goodness. And who lives on one of those not so fertile pieces of land. One of those men, who have genius ideas, but never get rich. And yet, they own something beyond money, that is much more valuable. Wisdom and good spirits.
And then we meet Adam Trask. A rich heir, who buys one of the most desirable and fertile areas in Salinas. What follows is a retrospect, where we learn about Adam's childhood, the bumpy relationship with his brother Charles, his father and the sin behind theirfather's fortune.
Adam is one of the central characters. It is his family's story, that we learn in details. Samuel, in my opinion, plays the role of a background and contrast. Adam becomes the father of twin boys, and their love and rivalry is shown in details too. They are total opposites both physically and as personalities.
It is a story where men are the main characters. Most women, although shown clearly, remain in the background. Except for one. Cathy Ames - the twins' mother. Her story is given in details since childhood until ripe years. And this is one of the most interesting book characters I have met. She is a walking evil, but John Steinbeck has so masterfully depicted her and her life, that for me the episodes with Cathy Ames turned out to be some of the most interesting.
Adam and his brother, and then his own sons, and their relationships become the main pillars of the plot. A father, that favors one of his sons over the other. A son, that tries everything to earn his father's love. Brothers who act like enemies because of the same repeated mistake.
This is a tale about brotherhood, betrayal, fraud, envy, bitterness, broken and found hopes, the eternal battle of good versus evil; but to me it is mostly the search of happiness. And love. I, sadly as it is, didn't see a single happy person in the Trask family. Adam was so eager to settle with his wife and children in his new estate, but his life turns into something completely different.
My favorite character is Lee, a Chinese American, and servant of Adam. He is multi-layered, intelligent, good hearted fellow. He appears as a stereotype in which he himself has put and gradually opens broader and wider as one of the most interesting personalities someone can meet.
I read with interest about the Bible discussions between Samuel, Lee and Adam. I was touched by the conclusion they have reached about the meaning of "Timshel", which some say is not a real word, but a variation of the real Hebrew word. Nonetheless, the way Steinbeck puts it in the story, as well as the very ending of the novel are genuinely touching.
I am not a Bible reader and I abstain from discussing it, as I lack the knowledge about it, but it is always informative and enriching to read such passages.
Whatever feelings this novel brings in you, it is definitely among the must read books. And, even though, before reading it and having any idea about it, I believed it to be a heart-warming story full of love, coziness and comfort, I still immensely enjoyed it. It is one of those books, not easy to forget. Whatever aftertaste it leaves in you, it will not leave you indifferent.
Thank you for reading!
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