Angle Of Repose
by Wallace Stegner
Award: Pulitzer Winner 1972
Date Read: August 6, 2017
Angle Of Repose is an absolute gem of a novel. Wheelchair-bound historian Lyman Ward, estranged from his family and largely on his own, sets to the task of researching the life of his grandmother, Susan Burling Ward. Ward is a fictional character that is based on the actual letters of Mary Hallock Foote, as published in A Victorian Gentlewoman in the Far West. Stegner's liberal use of these letters in his text, albeit with permission, caused many scholars consternation as Stegner blurs the lines between fact and fiction.
Nevertheless, the incorporation of these letters helps paint a vivid picture of a fearless woman who takes on uncertainty and rural surroundings with fearlessness and a sense of adventure as their travels took them to Grass Valley, Leadville, New Almaden, Idaho and Mexico. Being a California native, I particularly enjoyed the sections set in California, which painted a picture of the landscape before it became burdened with the Silicon Valley banner.
I have read some reviews that have lamented how slow this novel is but I find that to be part of it's charm, setting a pace that is not to the march of modern times. Weaving between past and present, this novel is touching, well-realized and an important addition to the 20th century novel lexicon.
Ranked #82 in the Modern Library's 100 Best Novels.
Looking Forward: Crossing To Safety, The Spectator Bird
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