The Bridge Of San Luis Rey

THE BRIDGE OF SAN LUIS REY
by Thornton Wilder

Award: Pulitzer 1928

 Dates Read: November 29, 2007 & March 23, 2019

 Some books fall into your hands accidentally and you are so happy they did. Others, not so much. This is one of the not so much for me. I have given this more than a fair shake, having read it twice. A second chance didn't improve my previous opinion. Yet, this novel is widely considered "one of the towering achievements in American fiction." 

 In 1714, a precarious rope bridge in Peru breaks and the five travelers crossing fall fatally into the gulf below. A monk, Brother Juniper, witnesses this tragedy and embarks on a "quest to prove that it was divine intervention rather than chance that led to the deaths."

"Either we live by accident and die by accident, or we live by plan and die by plan," so resolves Brother Juniper, who undertakes a thorough examination of the lives of those who perished. Rather than answering this very question, I found this novel to be a brief character sketch of each person who died without any true conclusion as to whether it was an accident or divine intervention.

 I found it difficult to identify with the characters and narrative of this story, although I truly appreciate a thorough examination of the afterlife, divine intervention and the meaning of tragedy. Unfortunately, this book is just lost on me.

 Ranked #37 in the Modern Library's 100 Best Novels.

 Looking Forward: The Eighth Day

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