East of Eden by Steinbeck, John - 1952

New York: The Viking Press, 1952. First edition. Fine/Near Fine. First state, with "bite" on page 281. A Fine book in a bright, unclipped, Near Fine jacket with trivial nicks to corners and crown of spine, and small closed tear to upper rear panel. In all, an exceptionally pleasing copy of a book that typically shows wear and sunning to its delicate colors. Steinbeck's classic tale of the Trask and Hamilton families set in the Salinas Valley. The Nobel Prize winning writer considered this his greatest work and, in fact, a young Steinbeck actually makes a small appearance in the novel as a character. East of Eden was a bestseller and became extremely popular upon its release. Steinbeck wrote a friend: "I am getting flocks of letters [ . . .] People write as though it were their book." The popularity of the book would undergo a resurgence in 2003, when it was an Oprah's Book Club pick. More famously, the book has been adapted into a 1955 film, directed by Elia Kazan and featuring James Dean in one of his few starring roles. The movie appears on AFI's list of the Top 400 American Films. "But no one can doubt its merits as the work of a great storyteller. It compels and holds the reader's fascinated attention from the first chapter to the last" (Contemporary review in the Washington Post). Fine in Near Fine dust jacket.