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Summary: Was it fate?
Review: Thorton Wilder's "The Bridge of San Luis Rey" tells of the life,times and tragic deaths of five people. The character of Brother Juniper is witness to this catastrophy and decides to find out if it is simply an accident of punishment from god. The detail of the characters and their lives are phenominal and the characters themselves will be imprinted into the back of your mind for days. I would recomend this Pulitzer Prize Novel "The Bridges of San Luis Rey" to anyone who has ever been intrested in Spanish folklore. The reading may be difficult at times due to the translations, but it is well worth the time to go back and reread the passage. Although all the book is not clear you you still get a good grasp of the story.
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Summary: A Perfect Little Book
Review: The spare, lucid prose in this remarkable little book, offers a lyricism and richness of character and story that I have rarely come across. This is one that tugs at one's heart and mind. The beauty of this book is really something to cherish.
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Summary: the miracle of connections
Review: If you have ever wondered what would have happened had you left your house a few minutes earlier this is a book for you. Would the day have been different? Or would your life have been different? Maybe not, but in our minds we make connections about coincidences all the time. The beauty of this book is that it attempts to get at the heart of connections and why a particular group of people happen to all be on a bridge at the time it collapses. The best part of the book is the monk going in search of the people's past because -- being a man who believes in predetermination -- he wonders if indeed the people were fated to be on the bridge at that moment. Those who call this book boring simply don't get it. And those who call it unrealsitic don't have much of an imagination. This book is fiction at it's best because it has the ability to make us actively think about the connections in our lives. And amazingly for all that heady stuff it can be read in one day!
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Summary: Good to read if you have time to read slow
Review: I had to read this book for Sociology in high school. After reading this book, I found Monarch Notes on it and then I went back and reread the book which helped me to understand it alot. If you have trouble understanding this book, I suggest you do the same. It is interesting if you understand it.
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Summary: An Interesting Read
Review: Let me start by saying that I'm sixteen years old. I wasn't forced to read this book for school, but picked it up in the library because it looked interesting.The first chapter hooked me, and the others were just as fascinating. Though I knew what was coming at the end of each chapter, I still was saddened each time the end of the life was reached. The end of the book was unsatisfying, but I think it's meant to be. The question of why lives end when they do isn't exactly an easy one to answer, especially in a book as short as this one. I would recommend this book to anyone. As for the comments made by early reviewers who believe that is a classic 'for adults only', you're very wrong. Teenagers understand more than you give us credit for.
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Summary: Heady but thought-provoking.
Review: The difficulty level was beyond the 8th grader who was assigned to read this--but we, her grandmother and mother--reading aloud discovered the craft of a storyteller whose characters kept reappearing. We appreciated the suspense and there were surprise endings to the chapters. Hard to stay with all the descriptions and the classical references. We needed an encyclopedia and dictionary that weren't available to us as we read aloud in the car.
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Summary: Can u say horrible?
Review: I had to read this book for a sophomore english class and all I can say is what a very, very uninteresting book. Basically all that happens is 5 people die on a small bridge and then the author goes on to discuss these people's lives. What a BORE. Unless you're some philosophical nerd, you will not enjoy this book at ALL. If I was the author of this book I'd tell myself to get a grip on the real world.
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Summary: Bridge of Maturity
Review: Why any teacher would FORCE a student to read this very sophicated, mature, highly philosophical and densely poetic novella is a good cause for why kids begin to hate reading classics. To understand Wilder's work takes years of experience, contemplative analysis, and a great deal of maturity. The "bridges" of our lives involve incidences where the "crossing" speaks to the ambiguities of experience: the complexities of love, the injustice of the universe, the frailties of the human spirit, the insubstantiality of faith. Teachers, stick to "Our Town" if you must teach Wilder, and let's keep "Bridge of San Luis Rey" as a classic for adults only.
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Summary: A timeless classic
Review: Thornton Wilder's The Bridge of San Luis Rey won the Pulitzer Prize in 1927. It is easy to see why. This short (148 pgs) novel begins with the collapse of a footbridge in Peru, where several people die. Brother Juniper, a monk who witnesses their deaths, ponders whether their death is the result of divine providence or merely unseeing fate. After one reading, I confess I have not grasped all the meanings and subtleties which I know are present (This book definitely goes no my re-reading or "keeper" shelf). I do know that Wilder's prose borders on poetry, and that this book is a work of beauty and truth.
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Summary: Best audio-book I have ever listened to
Review: Having too little time to read these days, I listened to the text of The Bridge of San Luis Rey as read by Sam Waterston... and for the first time understood Wilder's genius. This book is only superficially about the ordinary aspects of a few barely intersecting lives. It really speaks more deeply of love and personal agony and human commitment and the powerful bonds/struggles within relationships. Every word rings true... and I often wanted to rewind the cassette and hear a sentence over again. This beautiful book needs to be read, slowly. However, listening to Waterston's gentle, compassionate voice really brings the characters and their tragedy to life. What a hauntingly gorgeous book!
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