Thursday, December 28, 2006

Gilead* - Marilynne Robinson (Halfway)

http://www.powells.com/biblio/2-031242440x-5 - Earlier this year I made a rule: If I wasn't in to a book after 100 pages, I'd just set it to the side and give up. There are too many books to read to slog through ones I'm not enjoying. After 80 pages of Gilead, I wanted to just lie down and die. While very well written, this is an incredibly slow moving book - a letter from a dying preacher to his seven year old son. The narrative walks through the lives, not only of the preacher himself, but of his grandfather and father. It reminded me of a slower moving Cold Mountain, but not as interesting. The book is only about 200 pages, so I thought I'd give it more of a chance. After 120, I was done. I will not be finishing this one.

(* - Winner of the 2005 Pulitzer)

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