Lincoln In The Bardo

Cover Type: Softcover
Book Condition: As New
Jacket Condition: None Issued
Publisher: Bloomsbury
Publisher Place: London
Publisher Year: 2017
Edition: First Edition

Description: 341 pages. Book appears to have hardly been read and is in As new condition throughout.

Publishers Description: It would be an understatement to call this novel an extraordinary tour de force Sunday TimesThe extraordinary first novel by the bestselling, Folio Prize-winning, National Book Award-shortlisted George Saunders, about Abraham Lincoln and the death of his eleven year old son, Willie, at the dawn of the Civil War The American Civil War rages while President Lincolns beloved eleven-year-old son lies gravely ill. In a matter of days, Willie dies and is laid to rest in a Georgetown cemetery. Newspapers report that a grief-stricken Lincoln returns to the crypt several times alone to hold his boys body. From this seed of historical truth, George Saunders spins an unforgettable story of familial love and loss that breaks free of realism, entering a thrilling, supernatural domain both hilarious and terrifying. Willie Lincoln finds himself trapped in a transitional realm called, in Tibetan tradition, the bardo and as ghosts mingle, squabble, gripe and commiserate, and stony tendrils creep towards the boy, a monumental struggle erupts over young Willies soul. Unfolding over a single night, Lincoln in the Bardo is written with George Saunders inimitable humour, pathos and grace. Here he invents an exhilarating new form, and is confirmed as one of the most important and influential writers of his generation. Deploying a theatrical, kaleidoscopic panoply of voices - living and dead, historical and fictional - Lincoln in the Bardo poses a timeless question - how do we live and love when we know that everything we hold dear must end Review by Ilse Scheepers How do we make sense of a world where everyone we love will die How can we navigate our way through - and out - of grief when the world around us demands we carry on How can a parent ever heal after burying a child And what if that parent is already encumbered with the weight of leading a nation that is tearing itself apart Saunders has taken these questions and woven a kaleidoscopic, dazzling novel based on the death of Abraham Lincolns son, Willie, in 1862. Lincoln visited the boys body several times after his interment and held him close, a man sunken in grief while the nation he lead was engaged in a violent and bloody Civil War. This image of a father cradling his sons body is so striking, and so private, that to read about it almost feels profane. If it werent for the obvious tenderness that is so clearly displayed in such an act, it would be verging on the morbid. The bardo of the title is a reference to the transitional realm of Tibetan tradition, where consciousness resides after death, but before being reborn. And in Saunders whirling, staggering first novel, it is a realm populated with souls who clamour to be heard and to connect after the shock of being ripped away from the mortal world. They ramble, pester, joke, chatter and clash in a cacophony of voices. Willie is in the bardo, and soon Lincoln becomes trapped in this liminal state, buffeted and encircled by the swirling sounds as he attempts to cope with his loss. Saunders has woven snatches of historical documents in amongst the tapestry of this novel. Letters from well wishers, contemporary accounts of his grief and more, all coalesce to create a novel that is utterly unlike any other. It is not an easy read - it constantly challenges the reader and leaves little room for the inattentive. But it is breathtaking, and I read it in a state of awestruck consternation - am I, as a reader, up to this Do I have the stamina Can I relax and just go, slip into the current of his storytelling and let it buffet and drag and push me along In the end, Im still not sure I have answers to those questions. But I do know this is a book I will revisit and re-read in an attempt to decode further. I am particularly looking forward to hearing how this reads on audio - there are apparently over 160 narrators who will bring it to life, and perhaps this will offer yet another angle by which to examine this bafflingly, beautiful work.

ISBN: 9781408871751