Staff Pick
George Saunders definitely couldn't let his first novel be ordinary, not run-of-the-mill, not average. In fact, Lincoln in the Bardo is one of the most unusual novels I've ever read: the format, the plot, and the characters are all completely unique. Abraham Lincoln, in the midst of the Civil War, mourns the death of his son, Willie, and sneaks away in the night to spend a few more solitary minutes with his boy. In the cemetery, Willie is caught in the "Bardo" — the space between transitions — waiting for whatever comes next. Tapping the myriad other cemetary dwellers as a sort of Greek Chorus, Saunders holds forth on life, death, and everything in between. His quiet take on parental mourning is heartbreaking, and Lincoln's grief is gorgeously depicted.
Throughout the novel are excerpts from original source materials — some real, some fiction — the identification of which is part of the fun of this wholly original story. Recommended By Dianah H., Powells.com
Synopses & Reviews
Synopsis
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 Bardois 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 Bardois an astonishingfeat 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 weknow 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 Diaz
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"
Synopsis
The long-awaited 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
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 Bardois an astonishingfeat 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 weknow 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 Diaz
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"
Synopsis
***WINNER OF THE 2018 AUDIE AWARD FOR AUDIOBOOK OF THE YEAR***
The long-awaited 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
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?
The 166-person full cast features award-winning actors and musicians, as well as a number of Saunders' family, friends, and members of his publishing team, including, in order of their appearance:
Nick Offerman as HANS VOLLMAN
David Sedaris as ROGER BEVINS III
Carrie Brownstein as ISABELLE PERKINS
George Saunders as THE REVEREND EVERLY THOMAS
Miranda July as MRS. ELIZABETH CRAWFORD
Lena Dunham as ELISE TRAYNOR
Ben Stiller as JACK MANDERS
Julianne Moore as JANE ELLIS
Susan Sarandon as MRS. ABIGAIL BLASS
Bradley Whitford as LT. CECIL STONE
Bill Hader as EDDIE BARON
Megan Mullally as BETSY BARON
Rainn Wilson as PERCIVAL "DASH" COLLIER
Jeff Tweedy as CAPTAIN WILLIAM PRINCE
Kat Dennings as MISS TAMARA DOOLITTLE
Jeffrey Tambor as PROFESSOR EDMUND BLOOMER
Mike O'Brien as LAWRENCE T. DECROIX
Keegan-Michael Key as ELSON FARWELL
Don Cheadle as THOMAS HAVENS
and
Patrick Wilson as STANLEY "PERFESSER" LIPPERT
with
Kirby Heyborne as WILLIE LINCOLN,
Mary Karr as MRS. ROSE MILLAND,
and Cassandra Campbell as Your Narrator
Praise for the audiobook
"Lincoln in the Bardo" sets a new standard for cast recordings in its structure, in its performances, and in its boldness. Now, let's see who answers the challenge." - Chicago Tribune
"Like the novel, the audiobook breaks new ground in what can be accomplished through a story. It helps that there's not a single bad note in the cast of a whopping 166 people. It's also the rare phenomenon of an audiobook being a completely different experience compared to the novel. Even if you've read the novel, the audiobook is worth a listen (and vice versa). The whole project pushes the narrative form forward." - A.V. Club
"The result is an auditory experience unlike any other, where the awareness of individual voices disappears while the carefully calibrated soundscape summons a metaphysical masterpiece. This is a tour de force of audiobook production, and a dazzling realization of Saunders' unique authorial structure."--Booklist
"The finished audiobook's tapestry of voices perfectly mirrors the novel."--Entertainment Weekly
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 D az
"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
George Saunders on PowellsBooks.Blog
Years ago — maybe in the '90s — we were visiting my wife's cousin in DC. We were driving by Oak Hill Cemetery. She pointed out that there's a certain crypt that Willie Lincoln had been buried in back in the 1860s. That was news to me. I didn't even know that the president's son had died then. Then she just added this little throwaway detail...
Read More»