Lincoln in the Bardo by George Saunders

Lincoln in the Bardo may be the strangest book I’ve ever read. It intersperses non-fiction excerpts from historical documents and memoirs and mixes it with fictional quotations to form the narrative. At first, I thought, “I don’t like this at all.” But strangely, it grew on me and I ended up reading the whole book in one sitting.

And I couldn’t stop thinking about what the book was saying.

In the fictional portion, Willie Lincoln, the young son of President Abraham Lincoln, dies and ends up in a world between this one and the next. And in this realm, other tortured souls are spending eternity tied to their hang-ups or traumas from their previous lives. A few of the more normal of this crowd wants to help Willie move on before something bad happens to him.

“Imagine our surprise, then, when, passing by an hour or so later, we found the lad still on the roof, looking expectantly about, as if waiting for a carriage to arrive and whisk him away.” pg 48, ebook.

The non-fiction part is about Abraham Lincoln’s struggle to mourn his son while conducting the Civil War. It contains criticisms of Lincoln from his contemporaries that I have never read prior to this book, which is shocking to me, living in “The Land of Lincoln” state and all that. You’d think with all of the books that have been written about Lincoln that I would have at least been exposed to it. So, that part was fascinating too.

But back to the fictional part… Lincoln in the Bardo is an examination of love and mortality. Everyone dies. Yet we live and love like we will live forever. What do we take with us beyond death? What awaits? A hell of our own creation or an eternal heaven?

I can see why some readers can’t stand this book. As I said, it is strange and can be, at times, vulgar and shocking. But at the same time, it is so unique and thought provoking. I can see why it was awarded The 2017 Man Booker Prize and why its rating on Goodreads is barely above three stars.

Only recommended for readers who enjoy weird books with completely novel narrative methods.

I’ll be thinking about this one for a long time. Thanks for reading!

Bring Up the Bodies by Hilary Mantel

Hilary Mantel’s brilliant and Man Booker Prize-winning books about Thomas Cromwell continue with Bring Up the Bodies.

Cromwell is the right-hand man of Henry the VIII. His masterful manipulation of people and circumstances to make the world as Henry wants it has brought Cromwell wealth and power.

Getting Anne Boleyn on the throne was a struggle. Now he has to get her off of it without losing his own head in the process.

Mantel doesn’t just tell history, she makes it come alive.

In one scene I can’t get out of my head: Henry has a temper tantrum because of the Spanish ambassador’s continued disrespect towards his new wife, Anne, and the repeated requests from the Spanish crown for money owed. The king blows his top at Cromwell and screams in his face.

He says he believes Cromwell has always manipulated him and laughed at him. But he is king and he will not be steered.

And, even though I knew the history, I thought for a moment Cromwell was going to be taken to the Tower in that instant.

Instead, he quietly apologizes to the king and dismisses himself, then goes to a different room to take a drink. With shaking hands, Cromwell spills a drop of the wine on himself and sits there, contemplating the small stain on his shirt.

Photo by Polina Tankilevitch on Pexels.com

And I said to myself, “Mantel is a genius.”

In that passage, it was as if I was in that room, living the moment. She makes you forget you’re reading a book. It’s so immersive. It’s almost magical.

Cromwell’s efforts to collect evidence against Queen Anne fills much of this book. As he tightens his net around her, you can almost feel it tighten around yourself.

Cromwell jokes with his sworn men to ease some of the tension, but it is always there, buzzing beneath the surface.

Highly recommended for historical fiction readers. Bring Up the Bodies is one of the best books I’ve read this year.

To see my review of Mantel’s Wolf Hall, click here.

If you enjoyed Wolf Hall or Bring Up The Bodies, you may also enjoy Elizabeth I by Margaret George.

Thanks for reading!

The Help Desk Book Blog

Sharing reviews and deep thoughts about life.

Tag: man booker prize