Leave a comment and share your thoughts: https://open.firstory.me/user/cln9oxg7r007d01xyhd0fadj5/comments
CostasNarrativeXP 2026 April feature
"East of Eden" by John Steinbeck
Published in 19 September, 1952
Distributed Proofreaders Canada Ebook

A sweeping family saga set in California’s Salinas Valley, exploring the timeless struggle between good and evil through generations of the Trask and Hamilton families.

Chapter 20-21
00:30 20 Cathy deceives Faye into trusting her as a daughter, gains inheritance of the brothel, and manipulates her further by distorting reality after turning cruel.
30:01 21 Cathy manipulates those around her, poisons Faye to death, and secures control of the brothel while maintaining a false appearance of grief and innocence.

Characters
Samuel Hamilton - warm, inventive Irish immigrant whose generosity, humor, and strong moral sense make him a beloved figure despite his lifelong struggle with poverty.
Adam Trask - gentle, idealistic, whose kindness and moral innocence shape his life, yet his naivety and favoritism toward one son bring quiet tragedy to his family.
Charles Trask - volatile, capable, whose violent temper and jealousy contrast with his honesty and loyalty, embodying a complex struggle between darkness and decency.
Cathy Ames - strikingly beautiful, deeply manipulative and instinctively exploits others, she reveals a chilling absence of empathy or moral restraint.

Costa's Wordbook
Crepe n a strong type of rubber with a rough surface, used especially for making the bottom of shoes; thin cloth with a surface that has wrinkles (= small, thin folds
Magnum n a large bottle for wine or champagne, typically holding 1.5 liters. Derived from the Latin word for "great" or "large" (magnus), it also refers to a firearm or cartridge with increased power, or signifies something of unusually large size, power, or importance.

Nux vomica - an extract of the seeds of the Strychos nux-vomica or strychnine tree used in traditional and homeopathic medicine with purported benefits for a wide range of conditions including heart disease and cancer
Cascara Sagrada - Spanish for "sacred bark," is the dried, aged bark of the Rhamnus purshiana tree, used primarily as a potent stimulant laxative to relieve constipation
Euchre - a popular four-player trick-taking card game, typically played in two teams using a 24 or 32-card deck, where the goal is to win at least three out of five tricks after naming a trump suit.
Botulism n a rare but very serious paralytic illness caused by a potent toxin produced by the bacterium Clostridium botulinum (Bot chew lism)

Selections of 2026
Brave New World, The Little Prince, Songs of a Dead Dreamer, Dr. Jekyll & Mr. Hyde, Anne of Green Gables, Wuthering Heights, East of Eden, The Stranger, The Godfather, The Murder of Roger Ackroyd, Inferno, The Two Towers, Den of Thieves, Winnie the Pooh, The House at Pooh Corner.

Milestones
2021: 0 Full soundtrack, no editing, wife commentary, summary outline, irregular release
2022: 2.0 DaVinci editing, wordbook, book intro, AI host + illustration, chapter summary, scheduled release
2023: 2.1 Descript, CapCut, Suno score, character intro, weekly release
2024: 2.2 Standard condenser mic, Audacity, ChatGPT annotation + illustration, timestamp, 1-hour content

Platforms
YouTube, Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Reddit, Amazon Music, Firstory, Pocket Casts, KKBOX, Castbox, Noice, Podcast Addict, SoundOn, Castro, Player FM