These are just a few of my favorites!!! East of Eden by John Steinbeck – Published 1952 To me, a truly great book is organic, meaning it changes as the reader changes.I first read this book when I was in my 20s.I loved it then, but for different reasons.Re-reading it in my 50s was a completely different experience.Steinbeck takes the reader from the Civil War era to early 20th century California in this story about the lives of two generations of brothers in this family saga.