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3.7 AVERAGE
3.7 AVERAGE
reflective
emotional
funny
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
N/A
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
In The Bridge of San Luis Rey, Wilder as the narrator-voice says that in literature, it is the expression of the heart that matters; style is merely the vessel. That precisely accounts for the missing star in my rating, as someone whose greatest delight in literature is the way, the manner of the expression of the heart. Make no mistake: Wilder is tender, funny, and at times, unexpectedly and beautifully moving with his expression. But the book is rather plot-heavy, and for me that doesn’t make for the most enchanting experience.
For a while I also had difficulty reconciling the expectations created by the misleading blurb versus what the book really is. The blurb makes it sound very much like it’s the story of a friar surveying the life circumstances of the five people who die when a bridge collapses before his eyes. That’s not what happens. The friar is only ever mentioned; the stories of the five are told by a different narrator, who by the addressing of the reader as ‘you’ seems to be the author himself. Once you accept it’s the blurb and not the book that’s misleading, you get to like the book for what it is.
The ending finally moved me to tears, so it’s safe to say Wilder accomplished what he believed to be good literature: baring the heart. All along the story his respectful, loving, and tender treatment of women was a pleasant surprise, and when the book ended with three very different women coming together, I was in awe. After reading a review claiming the book is sarcastic and not appreciative of love, I felt the need to read Wilder’s Wikipedia page. What I found out about his life provided for me an explanation behind this attitude towards women that was beyond his contemporaries’ stance: he had three sisters, all of whom had strong careers. Things we love to see.
Also, Wilder remarked that the book stemmed from debates with his father who, in the Puritan tradition, believed in a swiftly punitive God, which Wilder believed totally ignored God’s caritas. He said he only asked the question in The Bridge of San Luis Rey, but from the ending I believe it safe to say: this is a book about the everlasting power of love, whether it be secular or divine. It’s not the sort of approach to the theme of grief that I usually read, but to be fair, it’s by far the most comforting.
For a while I also had difficulty reconciling the expectations created by the misleading blurb versus what the book really is. The blurb makes it sound very much like it’s the story of a friar surveying the life circumstances of the five people who die when a bridge collapses before his eyes. That’s not what happens. The friar is only ever mentioned; the stories of the five are told by a different narrator, who by the addressing of the reader as ‘you’ seems to be the author himself. Once you accept it’s the blurb and not the book that’s misleading, you get to like the book for what it is.
The ending finally moved me to tears, so it’s safe to say Wilder accomplished what he believed to be good literature: baring the heart. All along the story his respectful, loving, and tender treatment of women was a pleasant surprise, and when the book ended with three very different women coming together, I was in awe. After reading a review claiming the book is sarcastic and not appreciative of love, I felt the need to read Wilder’s Wikipedia page. What I found out about his life provided for me an explanation behind this attitude towards women that was beyond his contemporaries’ stance: he had three sisters, all of whom had strong careers. Things we love to see.
Also, Wilder remarked that the book stemmed from debates with his father who, in the Puritan tradition, believed in a swiftly punitive God, which Wilder believed totally ignored God’s caritas. He said he only asked the question in The Bridge of San Luis Rey, but from the ending I believe it safe to say: this is a book about the everlasting power of love, whether it be secular or divine. It’s not the sort of approach to the theme of grief that I usually read, but to be fair, it’s by far the most comforting.
emotional
reflective
medium-paced
challenging
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
challenging
emotional
reflective
sad
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Short little jewel of character study. So many ways to love and to suffer. Quick and powerful.
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
This read wasn’t exactly what I expected. I thought I was getting a philosophical novel about a monk wrestling with existential angst as he tries to reconcile his faith with the reality of a random disaster that kills several people. There is a little bit of that, bookending the narrative, but the bulk of the book is actually a handful of vignettes illuminating the victims’ interlinked lives, in all their complexity and moral ambiguity.
How much you enjoy this book will depend on how taken you are (or aren’t) with Wilder’s lyrical prose and subtle wit. He does, ultimately, take a stance on the question of meaning in a seemingly meaningless, brutal world, not via the actions of the misguided Brother Juniper but via the tireless, selfless work of the abbess Madre Maria del Pilar. Still, it all felt a bit slight; perhaps my expectations were too high going in.
How much you enjoy this book will depend on how taken you are (or aren’t) with Wilder’s lyrical prose and subtle wit. He does, ultimately, take a stance on the question of meaning in a seemingly meaningless, brutal world, not via the actions of the misguided Brother Juniper but via the tireless, selfless work of the abbess Madre Maria del Pilar. Still, it all felt a bit slight; perhaps my expectations were too high going in.
Content Warnings
Minor: Child death
emotional
reflective
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
challenging
dark
reflective
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
funny
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes