East of Eden

John Steinbeck called this his most important novel. Set in California’s Salinas Valley, it follows the Trask and Hamilton families across generations, retelling the story of Cain and Abel through fathers, sons, and brothers. At its heart is the Hebrew word timshel, thou mayest, and the idea that people are free to choose between good and evil. Sprawling and biblical in scope, it weighs inheritance against the possibility of change.