Journal of A Novel: The East of Eden Letters

Journal of a Novel: The East of Eden Letters is a series of letters written by John Steinbeck to his friend and editor Pascal Covici, in parallel with the first draft of his longest novel. The letters were written between January, 29- October 31, 1951. They were not meant for publication, but an edited version was first published by Viking the year after the author's death in 1968.

Works by John Steinbeck
Novels and
novellas
  • Cup of Gold (1927)
  • The Red Pony (1933)
  • To a God Unknown (1933)
  • Tortilla Flat (1935)
  • In Dubious Battle (1936)
  • Of Mice and Men (1937)
  • The Grapes of Wrath (1939)
  • The Moon Is Down (1942)
  • Cannery Row (1945)
  • The Wayward Bus (1947)
  • The Pearl (1947)
  • Burning Bright (1950)
  • East of Eden (1952)
  • Sweet Thursday (1954)
  • The Short Reign of Pippin IV: A Fabrication (1957)
  • The Winter of Our Discontent (1961)
  • The Acts of King Arthur and His Noble Knights (1976)
Short story
collections
  • The Pastures of Heaven (1932)
  • The Long Valley (1938)
Screenplays
  • The Forgotten Village (1941)
  • La perla (1947)
  • The Red Pony (1949)
  • Viva Zapata! (1952)
Adaptations
Of Mice and Men
  • Of Mice and Men (1939 film)
  • Of Mice and Men (1969 opera)
  • Of Mice and Men (1992 film)
The Grapes of Wrath
  • The Grapes of Wrath (1940 film)
  • The Grapes of Wrath (1988 play)
  • The Grapes of Wrath (2007 opera)
Other
  • The Red Pony (1949 film score)
  • East of Eden (1955 film)
  • The Wayward Bus (1957 film)
  • Cannery Row (1982 film)
  • The Winter of Our Discontent (1983 film)
Non-fiction
  • Sea of Cortez: A Leisurely Journal of Travel and Research (1941)
  • Bombs Away: The Story of a Bomber Team (1942)
  • A Russian Journal (1948)
  • The Log from the Sea of Cortez (1951)
  • Once There Was a War (1958)
  • Travels with Charley: In Search of America (1962)
  • America and Americans (1966)
  • Journal of a Novel: The East of Eden Letters (1969)

Famous quotes containing the words journal of, east, eden and/or letters:

    The obvious parallels between Star Wars and The Wizard of Oz have frequently been noted: in both there is the orphan hero who is raised on a farm by an aunt and uncle and yearns to escape to adventure. Obi-wan Kenobi resembles the Wizard; the loyal, plucky little robot R2D2 is Toto; C3PO is the Tin Man; and Chewbacca is the Cowardly Lion. Darth Vader replaces the Wicked Witch: this is a patriarchy rather than a matriarchy.
    Andrew Gordon, U.S. educator, critic. “The Inescapable Family in American Science Fiction and Fantasy Films,” Journal of Popular Film and Television (Summer 1992)

    Ah! on Thanksgiving day, when from East and from West,
    From North and from South, come the pilgrim and guest,
    When the gray-haired New Englander sees round his board
    The old broken links of affection restored,
    When the care-wearied man seeks his mother once more,
    And the worn matron smiles where the girl smiled before.
    What moistens the lip and what brightens the eye?
    What calls back the past, like the rich Pumpkin pie?
    John Greenleaf Whittier (1807–1892)

    The flame from the angel’s sword in the garden of Eden has been catalysed into the atom bomb; God’s thunderbolt became blunted, so man’s dunderbolt has become the steel star of destruction.
    Sean O’Casey (1884–1964)

    ... all my letters are read. I like that. I usually put something in there that I would like the staff to see. If some of the staff are lazy and choose not to read the mail, I usually write on the envelope “Legal Mail.” This way it will surely be read. It’s important that we educate everybody as we go along.
    Jean Gump, U.S. pacifist. As quoted in The Great Divide, book 2, section 10, by Studs Terkel (1988)