A review by casualblasphemy
Lincoln in the Bardo by George Saunders

2.0

i was so excited when mother purchased this for me at the local book seller! alas...
henry tompkins xxvii

she never opened it, did she? never bent a page to see what lie within?
monsignor billie bob caterwaul

Never bent a page. still, it’s not her fault.
henry tompkins xxvii

Not her fault.
mrs. fledermaus

Who could suspect? Not a reader, dearest mother. Not someone attuned to narrative arc, accustomed to a... certain kind of structure.

Structure. That’s the thing, the structure.
monsignor billie bob caterwaul

And the content.
mrs. fledermaus

Content.
henry tompkins xxvii

A bardo is...?
monsignor billie bob caterwaul

A bardo is!
mrs. fledermaus

And once you know—
henry tompkins xxvii

Once you know...well what else is there?
mrs. fledermaus

Little enough.
monsignor billie bob caterwaul

There are moments!
mrs. fledermaus

Yes, moments. There are moments that...
henry tompkins xxvii

That are tender. There’s tenderness. A man. A child. A loss.
mrs. fledermaus

Yes, but the structure?
henry tompkins xxvii

Structure.
monsignor billie bob caterwaul

And the arc!
mrs. fledermaus

Yes, arc! The arc!
henry tompkins xxvii

Faugh.
monsignor billie bob caterwaul