Published in September 1952,
East of Eden is regarded by many to be
Steinbeck's most ambitious novel and by Steinbeck himself to be his magnum opus. Steinbeck stated about
East of Eden: "It has everything in it I have been able to learn about my craft or profession in all these years," and later said: "I think everything else I have written has been, in a sense, practice for this."
East of Eden brings to life the intricate details of two families, the Trasks and the Hamiltons, and their interwoven stories. The Hamilton family in the novel is said to be based on the real-life family of Samuel Hamilton, Steinbeck's maternal grandfather. [Source]
