A review by aruarian_melody
East of Eden by John Steinbeck

challenging dark emotional informative reflective medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

It's rare for a classic to pull me in this completely and quickly. I absolutely loved the prose with the vivid descriptions of the environment and the many, many quotable reflections on war and personal choice. The characters and their relationships were very well developed and complex. I knew 30 pages in that this would be a 5 star read and nothing along this journey changed my mind. I really liked how the topic of generational trauma and patterns (and how they affect us) was handled. Lee was a surprising highlight of the book. Yes, there was some racism and misogyny and in a way some ace/arophobia in this book. I would have liked to see more women play a significant (and positive) role. But I was honestly surprised by how little of this there was (concerning the publication date) and the positive things about this book far outweigh the few complaints I personally had. What an excellent start to my reading year 2024. I can't wait to read more by Steinbeck and eventually returning to this one.