This is a long, long sermon masquerading as a novel. Its aim seems clear- to be the great American novel. In spite of, or maybe because of this overreach, it is completely unsatisfying. The characters are mere symbols. Most of the themes pertain to the characters’ moral dilemmas, but it is difficult to be drawn into these since the characters lack any real complexity. The men are various superlatives (greatest, kindest, wisest). There are two women characters, one evil and exaggerated to the point of absurdity, and the other just a plot device. And the ‘chinaman’ has to be one of the most ridiculous characters in all of literature.

The weak characters are further undermined by the stilted and unnatural dialogue, which in no way resembles conversation as I have experienced it. The characters take turns giving soulful, melodramatic speeches on the human condition. The ‘chinaman’ is especially painful in this regard.

English (East of Eden) / Italiano

«The Salinas Valley is in Northern California. It is a long narrow swale between two ranges of mountains, and the Salinas River winds and twists up the center until it falls at last into Monterey Bay»

"East of Eden" is a powerful novel, thick with biblical reference, in which the characters seem real and not fictional, protagonists of a generational saga about good and evil. About pure hatrded and unconditional love. You will love all the characters of the novel, every last one of them. You will love the storytelling power of John Steinbeck. You will love his way of representing hope, falsehood, sadness. And you will hate, as if you were under the effect of a sick addiction, the moment you finish the book.

In my humble opinion this is the best Steinbeck. And also according to the author opinion, since he said that everything he did before was in preparation to this novel. "East of Eden" is the Great American Novel.

Vote: 10

«La Valle del Salinas, nella California settentrionale, è una lunga gola stretta tra due catene montuose: il fiume si snoda e serpeggia nel centro, finchè non si getta nella baia di Monterey»

“La Valle dell'Eden” è un libro potente, denso di riferimenti biblici, nel quale muovono i passi personaggi che sembrano reali e non di finzione, protagonisti di una epopea generazionale sul bene e sul male. Sull’odio puro e sull’amore incondizionato. Amerete tutti i personaggi di questo romanzo, dal primo all’ultimo. Amerete la capacità narrativa di John Steinbeck. Amerete il suo modo di rappresentare la speranza, la falsità, la tristezza. E odierete, come foste sotto l’effetto di una morbosa dipendenza, il momento in cui avrete finito di leggere.

A mio modesto parere il miglior Steinbeck. E anche a detta dello stesso autore, visto che affermò che tutto quanto fatto prima era solo in preparazione a questo romanzo. E' la "Valle dell'Eden" il Grande Romanzo Americano.

Voto: 10

„Обичам лошата миризма на старите книги и сладостния аромат на задълбочената мисъл.“


За мен, „На изток от рая“ е едно от най-великите и незабравими литературни преживявания! Дори да беше създал само този шедьовър, Стайнбек спокойно щеше да се нареди сред най-значимите писатели на 20-ти век... а той е написал още много стойностни творби!

Романът е изграден на основата на различни препратки към сюжети от Библията, но същевременно е многопластова история, която далеч не се изчерпва с интерпретацията на религиозни текстове. Авторът има изключително философски поглед върху живота и умело е вплел своите задълбочени размисли върху непреходната тема за доброто и злото, както и по други важни обществени въпроси, майсторски описвайки съдбите на различни поколения хора. Персонажите в този огромен епос са сложни и интересни личности, които определено предизвикват емоции и се помнят дълго след прочита на книгата. Абсолютен фаворит от тях ми е забележителният китаец Ли!

Достойнствата на това книжно съкровище са всеобхватни, та каквито и отзиви да напиша за него, биха били оскъдни... Струва ми се, че точно в „На изток от рая“ Стайнбек е намерил „златната среда“, в която пълноценно се допълват идиличната му визия от „Улица Консервна“ и мрачната от „За мишките и хората“.






„— Старият Сам Хамилтън бе разбрал накъде вървим. Казваше, че вече не могат да съществуват всестранни философи. Бремето на познанието е твърде голямо, за да може да го възприеме един-единствен мозък. И предвиждаше, че ще дойде ден, когато отделният човек ще знае само една малка част, но ще я владее добре.
— Да — каза Ли от вратата, — но не го одобряваше. Презираше този ден.
— Наистина ли? — попита Адам.
Ли влезе в стаята, стиснал в дясната си ръка големия черпак и подложил лявата си шепа отдолу от страх да не капне на килима. Но вече в стаята, забрави това, размаха черпака и по пода покапа пуйча мазнина.
— Сега, като ме питаш, не съм сигурен — каза той. — Не зная той ли го презираше, или аз го намразих покрай него.
— Не се вълнувай толкова — рече му Адам. — Вече ми се струва, че щом се захванем да обсъждаме нещо, ти го приемаш като лична обида.
— Може би знанието става все по-огромно, а хората се смаляват — каза Ли. — Може би от това, че са коленичили пред атомите, душите им добиват атомни размерчета. И навярно тесният специалист не е нищо друго освен един страхливец, който се бои да надникне извън своето кафезче. Помислете си само какво загубва тесният специалист — целия свят отвъд неговата ограда!“

Those who are hurt most have the tremendous ability to heal, but what if a bruised heart defies to heal and turns indifferent by the time, what if a hand castoff once never advances again, what if a child lulled fallaciously to sleep never believes in fairies again, what if Cain abandoned God who rejected his sacrifice and preferred Abel over him. God was rejected in exchange and rightly so!

East of Eden might be taken leisurely as the re-telling of biblical tale of original sin, or a family biography , the tone of author in throughout this elephantine volume (took me eternity to wind up) is of a lover who longs for his lost love, Steinbeck’s California is more like a character than the mere setting, it breaths and reeks and bleeds like other characters of the tale, they are prone to trust and betrayed, to love and befooled, fallible figures with all the flaws a perfect human can come with, the wars they wage within themselves on the daily basis does little to crack the outer shell, some are exhausted by the instinctive meanness in them, to be good is an effort sedulous:
Released in September of 1952, the reading public certainly confirmed the merits of Steinbeck’s masterpiece. East of Eden is arguably his most problematic work, an attempt to weave together the history of Steinbeck's family and an invented story that is a modern parallel to that of Cain and Abel, the structural flaws of the story, the intrusive narrative, forced text, lack of unity between the tales of two families the Hamiltons and Trasks, and sheer evil in the form of only female character is what makes us doubt its high merits, but yet it echoes through ages and to this day is not out of print.
We might acclaim this magnum opus of Steinbeck, for its breadth and scope, we eventually come to condemn the seemingly incoherent structure of the tale, the people who populate the story are writhed and broken, rejected and dismayed, abandoned and repudiated, and every one of them is chained in his own hell, pondering over the only one colossal confusion that ever struck human mind, what the potent victor in His rage can else inflict, do I repent, or change, and they are given answer in “thou mayest”
Amid the cacophony of its uneven tone and structure, the tale has never ceased to fascinate our relentless hearts, who identify these characters, know them, and have been them at some point of time, Steinbeck’s characterization of the main antagonist in the text, Cathy Ames Trask. Simultaneously a prostitute and a mother, a masochist and a coward, a manipulator and a loner, Cathy is the catalyst for the plot of the novel. Her actions wreak havoc on the lives of everyone, she is a monster in true sense of the word, and she delights in causing destruction. Cathy’s behavior is indeed diabolical, and she is introduced to us as a congenital monster who has always been evil.

But then, there is this hope a thing with feathers, even inborn monsterity can be placated with words of love, Love the godforsaken epidemic that makes us uniquely vulnerable, the power we give someone to completely mess up with our heart and hurt it in the places, where no other can reach: this fragility and defenselessness makes it a fortress unconquerable, love never aims to achieve anything, nor even love in return, paradise might not exist, might there not be God, as long as we breathe love, the world is a place worth living even for monsters, because all is not lost!

East of Eden, John Steinbeck

East of Eden is a novel by Nobel Prize winner John Steinbeck, published in September 1952.

The story is primarily set in the Salinas Valley, California, between the beginning of the twentieth century and the end of World War I, though some chapters are set in Connecticut and Massachusetts, and the story goes as far back as the American Civil War.

In the beginning of East of Eden, before introducing his characters, Steinbeck carefully establishes the setting with a description of the Salinas Valley in Central California.

Then he outlines the story of the warmhearted inventor and farmer Samuel Hamilton and his wife Liza, immigrants from Ireland.

He describes how they raise their nine children on a rough, infertile piece of land. As the Hamilton children begin to grow up and leave the nest, a wealthy stranger, Adam Trask, purchases the best ranch in the Valley.

Adam's life is seen in a long, intricate flashback. We see his tumultuous childhood on a farm in Connecticut and the brutal treatment he endured from his younger but stronger half-brother, Charles.

Adam and Charles's father, Cyrus, was a Union Civil War veteran who was wounded in his very first battle and unable (or perhaps unwilling) to return to service; he nonetheless becomes an expert "armchair general" who uses his intellectual knowledge of military affairs and wounded-veteran status to become a military adviser in Washington, D.C.

As a young man, Adam spent his time first in the military and then wandering the country. He was caught for vagrancy, escaped from a chain gang, and burgled a store for clothing to use as a disguise. Later, he wires Charles to request $100 to pay for his travels home.

Adam later sends money to the store to pay for the clothes and damage. After Adam finally makes his way home to their farm, Charles reveals that Cyrus had died and left them an inheritance of $50,000 each. Charles is torn with fear that Cyrus did not come by the money honestly.

Characters: Mr. Edwards, Ethel, Lee, Faye, Tom Hamilton, Cyrus Trask, Mrs. Trask, Alice Trask, Adam Trask, Charles Trask, Aron Trask, Caleb Trask, Samuel Hamilton, Liza Hamilton, George Hamilton, Will Hamilton, Joe Hamilton, Lizzie Hamilton, Una Hamilton, Dessie Hamilton, Olive Hamilton, Mollie Hamilton, Cathy Ames, Abra Bacon, Joe Valery.

تاریخ نخستین خوانش: ماه آگوست سال 1984میلادی

عنوان: شرق بهشت؛ نویسنده: جان ارنست اشتاین بک؛ مترجم: بهرام مقدادی؛ مشخصات نشر تهران، بامداد، 1361-1362، در سه جلد، چاپ دیگر، تهران، اسطوره، 1389؛ در 992ص؛ شابک 9789648332414؛ موضوع داستانهای نویسندگان ایالات متحده آمریکا - سده 20م

عنوان: ش‍رق‌ ب‍ه‍ش‍ت‌؛ نویسنده: ج‍ان‌ اش‍ت‍ای‍ن‌‌ب‍ک‌؛ ت‍رج‍م‍ه‌ پ‍روی‍ز ش‍ه‍دی‌؛ تهران، گهبد، 1384؛ در 784ص؛ شابک 9648766010؛ چاپ دوم 1385؛ چاپ دیگر نگارستان کتاب، 1387، در دو جلد؛ شابک دوره 9789648155723؛ چاپ دیگر تهران، مجید، چاپ سوم 1392؛ در 784ص؛ شابک9789644531019؛ چاپ چهارم تهران، مجید به سخن، 1395؛ در 784ص؛ چاپ ششم 1400؛

عنوان: شرق بهشت؛ جان اشتاین‌بک‏‫؛ مترجم: کیومرث پارسای؛ تهران، روزگار، 1389؛ در 808ص؛ شابک 9789643741891؛

عنوان: شرق بهشت؛ نویسنده: جان اشتاین‌بک‏‫؛ مترجم: شهناز کمیلی‌زاده‬‏‫؛ ویراستار: سپیده رضوی؛ تهران، انتشارات ناژ؛ 1397، در دو جلد؛ شابک دوره9786006110325؛ ‬

زندگی پیچیده دو خانواده «ترسک» و «همیلتون» و داستان‌های در هم گره خورده ی آن‌ها را، به تصویر می‌کشد؛ «اشتاینبک» این رمان را در خطاب به دو پسر کوچکش، «تام» و «جان» بنوشتند، که در آن زمان به ترتیب شش و نیم، و چهار و نیم ساله بودند؛ ایشان می‌خواستند جزئیات دره «سالیناس» را برای آن‌ها توصیف کنند

شرق بهشت داستان دو نسل در دو بازه ی زمانی گوناگون را بازگو می‌کند؛ خانواده «سایروس تراسک»، و خانواده‌ ی دوم «همیلتون»‌ها هستند؛ در هر دو خانواده ی داستان، پدران به یکی از فرزندان خود، بیشتر توجه دارند؛ در خانواده «تراسک»، «سایروس»، «آدام» را به «چارلز» ارج می‌نهد، و «آدام» هم، زمانی‌که که پدر می‌شود، بهمانند پدرش «سایروس»، به یکی از فرزندان خود، به نام «آرون»، نسبت به آن دیگری توجه بیشتری دارد؛ در همین جای داستان، زمینه‌ های ناتوریستی کتاب، شتخص می‌شود، و کتاب تبعیض بین فرزندان را؛ وراثتی نشان می‌دهد

اگر «جان اشتاین بک» در سراسر عمر ادبی خویش، جز همین «شرق بهشت»، کتاب دیگر ننوشته بودند، باز هم شایسته و سزاوار همه ی شهرت و افتخاری بودند، که نصیبشان شده است؛ حماسه ی فلسفی و انسانی بزرگواری که داستان بشریت را، از آغاز آفرینش تا به امروز در خود گنجانیده است؛ ماجراهایی که پس از خوردن میوه ی درخت خرد، بر سر فرزندان آدم آمده بود، و تا ابدیت نیز ادامه خواهد یافت؛ «شرق بهشت» به رغم گذشت سالها از نگارش و نخستین انتشار آن، هنوز هم، جزو «پرخوانشگرترین ده کتاب» در «ایالات متحده آمریکا» است

نقل از برگردان جناب «کیومرث پارسای»: (دره دراز و باریک سالیناس در شمال کالیفرنیا واقع شده و در میان دو رشته کوه قرار گرفته است؛ رودخانه سالیناس در مرکز آن جریان دارد که به خلیج مانتری منتهی می‌شود؛

نام‌هایی را که در دوران کودکی برای گیاهان و گل‌های پر رمز و راز انتخاب می‌کردم، هنوز به خاطر دارم؛ یادم می‌آید که قورباغه‌ها در کجا زندگی می‌کردند و پرندگان چه وقت در بهار بیدار می‌شدند و نیز به خاطر می‌آورم که از درختان در فصول گوناگون چه رایحه‌ ای به مشام می‌رسید، مردم چه قیافه‌ هایی داشتند و چگونه راه می‌رفتند و حتی چه رایحه‌ ای از آن‌ها برمی‌خاست؛ خاطراتم همه سرشار از چنین رایحه‌های دلپذیری است

کوه‌های «گاییلان» را در بخش شرقی دره به یادم می‌آورم که سبکبار و پر از نور خورشید و شادی بودند، انگار انسان را با آغوش باز پذیرا می‌شدند تا جایی‌که هر کس آرزو می‌کرد به دامنه گرم آن‌ها پناه ببرد و احساسی همچون استراحت در دامن دایه‌ ای مهربان داشته باشد؛ گیاهان قهوه‌ ای رنگ همین ‎‌ها به انسان خوش آمد می‌گفتند؛ کوه‌های «سانتالوسیاس» در بخش غربی، سر به فلک می‌ساییدند، و دره و دریا را از هم جدا می‌کردند، دامنه های این کو‌ه‌ها تیره و متفکر، ناآشنا و خطرناک، به نظر می‌رسیدند

همواره نسبت به غرب، احساس وحشت و نسبت به شرق، احساس عشق و علاقه داشتم؛ نمی‌دانم چنین احساساتی از کجا به ذهن من رسیده بود، ولی شاید دلیل آن تنها طلوع خورشید از قله های سرفراز «گاییلان» و غروب آرام آن در خط راس کوهستان «سانتالوسیاس» بوده باشد)؛ پایان

تاریخ بهنگام رسانی 05/07/1399هجری خورشیدی؛ 29/05/1400هجری خورشیدی؛ ا. شربیانی

Una de las grandes de uno de los más grandes. No tengo más que decir.

Wow! I just don't know how to express the overwhelming power of this inspirational story! It is one of those novels that really isn't over when you finish reading it as it stays with you inside your head and heart forever. There is so much to ponder: Just a simple question like, "What am I here for?" or to feel the story of Cain and Abel come to life; and gosh, I don't think I will ever forget the meaning of the Hebrew word Timshel (thou mayest) a very important symbol in this book meaning we have a choice to choose between good and evil.

Each and every one of the character's in this novel are engaging and memorable, but for me Samuel Hamilton and LEE outshine them all; and while reading this UNPUTDOWNABLE classic, I was trying to remember a book I've EVER read that had such an evil villainous bitch as Cathy (Kate) who executes absolutely despicable and unforgivable acts of harm to just about everyone in her acquaintance. (believe me when I say, Serena was an angel compared to this nasty piece of work), and yet....by the end of the story, I actually felt myself feeling a teeny bit sorry for her. (go figure)

Anyway, EAST OF EDEN will forever be a favorite book of mine and one I already look forward to reading again. Very Highly Recommend!

This is my first John Steinbeck book and I am rating it as excellent. This book explores the human emotions, particularly the emotions of pain and sadness. The plot is simple and follows the lives of two families, the Trasks and the Hamiltons. The setting is the Salinas and Monterey area of California. The characters are all well-developed and relatable due to emotions we all have experienced. I saw throughout the book underlying pains of jealousy and acting out when feeling emotionally hurt.

The title is taken from Genesis 4:16, 'And Cain went from the presence of the Lord, and dwelt in the land of Nod, on the east of Eden.' Themes throughout the book include the mystery of identity, the inexplicability of love, and the murderous consequences of love's absence.



I think the book can be summed up with "The greatest terror a child can have is that he is not loved, and rejection is the hell of fears. And with rejection comes anger, and with anger comes some kind of crime in revenge for the rejection, and with the crime guilt--and there is the story of mankind." pg. 270

Overall the story is well-written, full of emotion, and very captivating. If you have not read this, I would definitely recommend it. Thanks!

‘There's more beauty in truth, even if it is dreadful beauty.’

Simply a masterpiece! Steinbeck is a masterful storyteller! I feel that this will benefit from rereading and it will only get better through the passage of time!

5/5

. Book club re-read. Even better second time around.

East of Eden by John Steinbeck is a wonderful read.

I believe that Steinbeck wrote this book for his sons Thorn and John who were just small boys when it was written. Steinbeck hoped that as they grew up the novel would show them their roots in California’s Salinas Valley and guide them through their lives . What a wonderful book with just about all the elements a good story needs, we have father son relationships, and sibling rivalry, murder, greed, sex, love and lust and throughout all this we find a values of life in the real world and the struggle between right and wrong.

Why have I not read this novel years ago? For some reason I have been ignoring it on my book shelf and am so glad I finally took the time to read and enjoy this novel. It took me longer to read this novel than normal but that was my choice as I wanted to take my time to savour and enjoy it.

I loved the characters and the depth which Steinbeck forms his characters, I love the description of people and places and the warmth of his writing. This is a sweeping, dramatically told story which captures images of the land and its people but mostly you get a story of good and evil of which people are capable, I especially loved the character of Samuel and what he and his family stood for.

Excellent book club read and I think this book has great discussion topics.

This is my 4th Steinbeck novel and so far my favourite.

One of the most appropriate epithets that apply to this novel is ‘monumental’. Indeed East of Eden stands as a monument to the entire epoch and those people that lived in those troubled days. This is a chronicle of generations – of parents and children.

When a child first catches adults out – when it first walks into his grave little head that adults do not have divine intelligence, that their judgments are not always wise, their thinking true, their sentences just – his world falls into panic desolation. The gods are fallen and all safety gone.

And like all colossal books East of Eden is a book of good and evil, a tale of God and man.

Maybe we all have in us a secret pond where evil and ugly things germinate and grow strong. But this culture is fenced, and the swimming brood climbs up only to fall back. Might it not be that in the dark pools of some men the evil grows strong enough to wriggle over the fence and swim free?

And by the power of his words John Steinbeck forces us not to read the story but to live among those he wrote about.

This is my Book Of the Month- May- June 2017, with GR group- The Reading For Pleasure Book Club, Category: Classic Group Read.

When I read the blurb and started this book, I thought I am going to be reading about two feuding families but then I was absolutely wrong. This book is not anything as simple as a feuding families dynamics can be and I do not say this lightly. It in fact is a complex book with wide range of human emotions and behavior.

n  "To a man born without conscience, a soul-stricken man must seem ridiculous. To a criminal, honesty is foolish. You must not forget that a monster is only a variation, and that to a monster the norm is monstrous."n

Even though I may not have met people with the nature and behavior as of the characters in this book in my life, after reading this book I felt I know all these people personally. I was able to understand their reactions and their decisions in many instances as if they were my own.

It also made me sit back and think about each person's choices and their journey in life. The ultimate end is the same but it's all about the life you live and the choices you make to get there.

n  "When a man comes to die, no matter what his talents and influence and genius, if he dies unloved his life must be a failure to him and his dying a cold horror. It seems to me that if you or I must choose between two courses of thought or action, we should remember our dying and try so to live that our death brings no pleasure to the world."n

And then how with the same beginnings and the same upbringing siblings have different lives. One may become successful and the other may lead a normal life whereas the third can be a failure. Life sure can be unpredictable at times.

This book also has one of the most evil characters I have ever met and I was never sure what she will do next. But then there are some amazing characters in this book that balance everything out. Just like in real life we meet all kinds of people, few good and some not as much.

There are no major twists and turns or ups and downs but it is more like real life, there can be some surprises in life but the start and end for everyone remains the same.

I know I am not able to do this book justice in this review. But to all folks out there who want to read a story with varied set of characters that makes us realize how life can be and how it can change at any given time, this is a perfect read.