Lincoln in the bardo [electronic resource] : A Novel. George Saunders.
In his long-awaited first novel, American literary master George Saunders delivers his most original, transcendent, and moving work yet. Unfolding in a graveyard over the course of a single night, narrated by a dazzling chorus of voices, Lincoln in the Bardo is an experience unlike any other—for no one but Saunders could conceive it.February 1862. The Civil War is less than one year old. The fighting has begun in earnest, and the nation has begun to realize it is in for a long, bloody struggle. Meanwhile, President Lincoln's beloved eleven-year-old son, Willie, lies upstairs in the White House, gravely ill. In a matter of days, despite predictions of a recovery, Willie dies and is laid to rest in a Georgetown cemetery. "My poor boy, he was too good for this earth," the president says at the time. "God has called him home." Newspapers report that a grief-stricken Lincoln returns, alone, to the crypt several times to hold his boy's body.From that seed of historical truth, George Saunders spins an unforgettable story of familial love and loss that breaks free of its realistic, historical framework into a thrilling, supernatural realm both hilarious and terrifying. Willie Lincoln finds himself in a strange purgatory where ghosts mingle, gripe, commiserate, quarrel, and enact bizarre acts of penance. Within this transitional state—called, in the Tibetan tradition, the bardo—a monumental struggle erupts over young Willie's soul.Lincoln in the Bardo is an astonishing feat of imagination and a bold step forward from one of the most important and influential writers of his generation. Formally daring, generous in spirit, deeply concerned with matters of the heart, it is a testament to fiction's ability to speak honestly and powerfully to the things that really matter to us. Saunders has invented a thrilling new form that deploys a kaleidoscopic, theatrical panorama of voices—living and dead, historical and invented—to ask a timeless, profound question: How do we live and love when we know that everything we love must end?Praise for George Saunders "No one writes more powerfully than George Saunders about the lost, the unlucky, the disenfranchised."—Michiko Kakutani, The New York Times "Saunders makes you feel as though you are reading fiction for the first time."—Khaled Hosseini"Few people cut as hard or deep as Saunders does."—Junot Díaz "George Saunders is a complete original. There is no one better, no one more essential to our national sense of self and sanity."—Dave Eggers "Not since Twain has America produced a satirist this funny."—Zadie Smith "There is no one like him. He is an original—but everyone knows that."—Lorrie Moore "George Saunders makes the all-but-impossible look effortless. We're lucky to have him."—Jonathan Franzen "An astoundingly tuned voice—graceful, dark, authentic, and funny—telling just the kinds of stories we need to get us through these times."—Thomas Pynchon
Record details
- ISBN: 9780812995350 (electronic bk)
- Physical Description: 1 online resource
Content descriptions
Reproduction Note: | Electronic reproduction. New York : Random House, 2017. Requires Adobe Digital Editions (file size: 5 KB) or Kobo app or compatible Kobo device (file size: N/A KB). |
Search for related items by subject
Genre: | Electronic books. |
Other Formats and Editions
Electronic resources
- Baker & Taylor
Traces a night of solitary mourning and reflection as experienced by the sixteenth president after the death of his eleven-year-old son at the dawn of the Civil War. - Baker & Taylor
A long-awaited first novel by the National Book Award-nominated,New York Times best-selling author of Tenth of December traces a night of solitary mourning and reflection as experienced by the 16th President after the death of his 11-year-old son at the dawn of the Civil War. - Random House, Inc.
#1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER ⢠WINNER OF THE MAN BOOKER PRIZE
The âdevastatingly movingâ (People) first novel from the author of Tenth of December: a moving and original father-son story featuring none other than Abraham Lincoln, as well as an unforgettable cast of supporting characters, living and dead, historical and invented
Named One of Pasteâs Best Novels of the Decade ⢠Named One of the Ten Best Books of the Year by The Washington Post, USA Today, and Maureen Corrigan, NPR â¢Â One of Timeâs Ten Best Novels of the Year ⢠A New York Times Notable Book â¢Â One of O: The Oprah Magazineâs Best Books of the Year
February 1862. The Civil War is less than one year old. The fighting has begun in earnest, and the nation has begun to realize it is in for a long, bloody struggle. Meanwhile, President Lincolnâs beloved eleven-year-old son, Willie, lies upstairs in the White House, gravely ill. In a matter of days, despite predictions of a recovery, Willie dies and is laid to rest in a Georgetown cemetery. âMy poor boy, he was too good for this earth,â the president says at the time. âGod has called him home.â Newspapers report that a grief-stricken Lincoln returns, alone, to the crypt several times to hold his boyâs body.
From that seed of historical truth, George Saunders spins an unforgettable story of familial love and loss that breaks free of its realistic, historical framework into a supernatural realm both hilarious and terrifying. Willie Lincoln finds himself in a strange purgatory where ghosts mingle, gripe, commiserate, quarrel, and enact bizarre acts of penance. Within this transitional stateâcalled, in the Tibetan tradition, the bardoâa monumental struggle erupts over young Willieâs soul.
Lincoln in the Bardo is an astonishing feat of imagination and a bold step forward from one of the most important and influential writers of his generation. Formally daring, generous in spirit, deeply concerned with matters of the heart, it is a testament to fictionâs ability to speak honestly and powerfully to the things that really matter to us. Saunders has invented a thrilling new form that deploys a kaleidoscopic, theatrical panorama of voices to ask a timeless, profound question: How do we live and love when we know that everything we love must end?
âA luminous feat of generosity and humanism.ââColson Whitehead, The New York Times Book Review
âA masterpiece.ââZadie Smith - Random House, Inc.
#1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER ' WINNER OF THE MAN BOOKER PRIZE
The 'devastatingly moving' (People) first novel from the author of Tenth of December: a moving and original father-son story featuring none other than Abraham Lincoln, as well as an unforgettable cast of supporting characters, living and dead, historical and invented
Named One of Paste's Best Novels of the Decade ' Named One of the Ten Best Books of the Year by The Washington Post, USA Today, and Maureen Corrigan, NPR ' One of Time's Ten Best Novels of the Year ' A New York Times Notable Book ' One of O: The Oprah Magazine's Best Books of the Year
February 1862. The Civil War is less than one year old. The fighting has begun in earnest, and the nation has begun to realize it is in for a long, bloody struggle. Meanwhile, President Lincoln's beloved eleven-year-old son, Willie, lies upstairs in the White House, gravely ill. In a matter of days, despite predictions of a recovery, Willie dies and is laid to rest in a Georgetown cemetery. 'my poor boy, he was too good for this earth," the president says at the time. "God has called him home.' Newspapers report that a grief-stricken Lincoln returns, alone, to the crypt several times to hold his boy's body.
From that seed of historical truth, George Saunders spins an unforgettable story of familial love and loss that breaks free of its realistic, historical framework into a supernatural realm both hilarious and terrifying. Willie Lincoln finds himself in a strange purgatory where ghosts mingle, gripe, commiserate, quarrel, and enact bizarre acts of penance. Within this transitional state'called, in the Tibetan tradition, the bardo'a monumental struggle erupts over young Willie's soul.
Lincoln in the Bardo is an astonishing feat of imagination and a bold step forward from one of the most important and influential writers of his generation. Formally daring, generous in spirit, deeply concerned with matters of the heart, it is a testament to fiction's ability to speak honestly and powerfully to the things that really matter to us. Saunders has invented a thrilling new form that deploys a kaleidoscopic, theatrical panorama of voices to ask a timeless, profound question: How do we live and love when we know that everything we love must end?
"A luminous feat of generosity and humanism.''Colson Whitehead, The New York Times Book Review
'A masterpiece.''Zadie Smith