Gilead

Paperback, 387 pages

English language

Published Jan. 10, 2006 by Large Print Press.

OCLC Number:
63167306

View on OpenLibrary

4 stars (30 reviews)

Gilead is a novel written by Marilynne Robinson published in 2004. It won the 2005 Pulitzer Prize for Fiction and the National Book Critics Circle Award. It is Robinson's second novel, following Housekeeping (1980). Gilead is described as an epistolary novel, as the entire narrative is a single, continuing, albeit episodic, document, written on several occasions in a form combining a journal and a memoir. It comprises the fictional autobiography of the Reverend John Ames, an elderly, white Congregationalist pastor in the small, secluded town of Gilead, Iowa (also fictional), who knows that he is dying of a heart condition. At the beginning of the book, the date is established as 1956, and Ames explains that he is writing an account of his life for his seven-year-old son, who will have few memories of him. Ames indicates he was born in 1880 and that, at the time of writing, he …

18 editions

Review of 'Gilead' on 'Goodreads'

5 stars

This book redefined lyrical prose for me. It is a rare example of a very unusual style of writing which enhances the story rather than detracting from it in a hey-look-at-me-I'm-a-WRITER way such as David Eggers.

The characters are real, the story is immediate. I felt like my imagination had been expanded by it.

A splendid book.

Review of 'Gilead' on 'GoodReads'

4 stars

Consistently paced and very engrossing, this is a moral tale told of a small town in Iowa in the 1950s, but also of the idea of ethical codes and contemplation on life in general - as if someone took a Flannery O'Connor story and stretched it out. Appreciably simple use of language.

Review of 'Gilead' on 'Goodreads'

4 stars

This is a book that is ultimately difficult to rate. One one hand it is kind of boring. It's the musings of an old man looking back on a simple life dedicated to his congregation, his small town, his close friends and family. Nothing much by way of plot or great character development. The prose, to me was simple and quiet and reflective. But on the other hand this story is very powerful because it is about what a life well lived should feel like in the end. The regrets should be few and small. The power of forgiveness and empathy should never fade even as, alas, we fade. The grace of faith is a powerful gift, the one who is blessed with it should be eternally grateful.

I might add that I am someone who like Jack Ames Boughton has struggled mightily with things like faith and God and …

Review of 'Gilead' on 'Goodreads'

2 stars

Maybe it just reflects poorly on me as a Gen Y-er, but I simply couldn't get out of first gear with this book. Having read and enjoyed Housekeeping, and myself being "the son of a preacher man", I hoped I could get as much out of Gilead as well. Sadly not — although there were some delightful turns of phrase, I simply couldn't keep reading. Maybe when I'm older, and wiser…

Review of 'Gilead' on 'Goodreads'

4 stars

Gilead, by Marilynne Robinson, had me hanging on every word. It's not the kind of novel I could read bits and pieces of during stolen moments; it demanded my undivided attention because of its earnestness and introspection.

This novel is a long letter written by an elderly man, The Reverand John Ames, to his young son, whom he will not see into adulthood. I found Reverand Ames to be a fascinating character because he knew himself so very well, exploring his feelings with rare objectivity and honesty. Ames lived through some very hard times, had a couple harrowing experiences, and lived through a long period of loneliness. Then, in his old age, he encountered unexpected joy, which served as his motivation for writing his story.

His many lonely years set in after his young wife died in childbirth, and though his congregation surrounded him always, providing meals and such, there …

Review of 'Gilead' on 'Goodreads'

4 stars

Mostly we discussed the spiritual aspects of the book - John Ames' crisis of faith, and how the town of Gilead turned out to be a refuge for so many different people through the years. It was difficult to know how truthfully the narrator was presenting the world around him, or how much his narration was being colored by his own perceptions. The voice of the narration, that of an old man in the 1950's, rang very true. And the writing was beautiful. (And John Ames' denomination was never specified - probably kept intentionally vague.)

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