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<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/68210.Gilead_A_Novel?utm_medium=api&amp;utm_source=blog_review" style="float: left; padding-right: 20px"><img alt="Gilead: A Novel" border="0" src="http://s3.amazonaws.com/photo.goodreads.com/books/1170687634m/68210.jpg" /></a> <a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/68210.Gilead_A_Novel?utm_medium=api&utm_source=blog_review">Gilead: A Novel</a> by <a href="http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/7491.Marilynne_Robinson">Marilynne Robinson</a> 
 <a href="http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/7400390?utm_medium=api&utm_source=blog_review"><h3>My review</h3></a>
 rating: 5 of 5 stars I really loved this book. One of my favorite parts reminds me of a scene in Willa Cather's My Antonia . There is this lovely image when John Ames is a child and he and his father are at his grandfather's grave. They found the grave out on the prairie somewhere near a place the grandfather had been ministering. John's father is saying a prayer before they say their final goodbyes, as the grave is nowhere near where the family lives:
 
 "... At first I thought I saw the sun setting in the east; I knew where east was, because the sun was just over the horizon when we got there that morning. Then I realized that what I saw was a full moon rising just as the sun was going down. Each of them was standing on its edge, with the most wonderful light between them. It seemed as if you could touch it, as if there were palpable currents of light passing back and forth, or as if there were great taut skeins of light suspended between them. I wanted my father to see it, but I knew I'd have to startle him out of his prayer, and I wanted to do it the best way, so I took his hand and kissed it. And then I said, "Look at the moon," And he did. We just stood there until the sun was down and the moon was up. They seemed to float on the horizon for quite a long time, I suppose because they were both so bright you couldn't get a clear look at them. And the grave, and my father and I, were exactly between them, which seemed amazing to me at the time, since I hadn't given much thought to the nature of the horizon.
 My father said," I would never have thought this place could be beautiful. I'm glad to know that."
 
 This little scene was so evocative I just had to put the book down and sigh. There were many points as I was reading this book that made me feel that way. It was just wonderful.
 <a href="http://www.goodreads.com/review/list/447544?utm_medium=api&utm_source=blog_review">View all my reviews.</a>

Nora's review
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I really loved this book. One of my favorite parts reminds me of a scene in Willa Cather's My Antonia . There is this lovely image when John Ames is a child and he and his father are at his grandfather's grave. They found the grave out on the prairie somewhere near a place the grandfather had been ministering. John's father is saying a prayer before they say their final goodbyes, as the grave is nowhere near where the family lives:

"... At first I thought I saw the sun setting in the east; I knew where east was, because the sun was just over the horizon when we got there that morning. Then I realized that what I saw was a full moon rising just as the sun was going down. Each of them was standing on its edge, with the most wonderful light between them. It seemed as if you could touch it, as if there were palpable currents of light passing back and forth, or as if there were great taut skeins of light suspended between them. I wanted my father to see it, but I knew I'd ha...more

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message 1: by Kim

10/08/2007 09:41AM

Wow. What amazing writing. I remember Kevin reading this book & telling me how good it is. But I haven't read it yet...