♑︎♑︎♑︎’s review of Vigil > Likes and Comments
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Totally agree with your review. Can I just cut and paste it? :)
i like your review too! although it wasn’t feel-good for me, because i was busy feeling disappointed. it really is a big question to me though whether writers should put out whatever is ‘good enough,’ by some reasonable measure of goodness, or if they should wait for genius to strike again. The second strategy sometimes leads writers to self-censor themselves into never writing another book again.
Lincoln in the Bardo is one of my favorite contemporary books. Shatteringly imaginative -- oh yes. Thanks for managing my expectations about what to expect from Vigil.
Jill wrote: "Lincoln in the Bardo is one of my favorite contemporary books. Shatteringly imaginative -- oh yes. Thanks for managing my expectations about what to expect from Vigil."
I may have been extra critical because it's another story that takes place in the space between life and death, and it's just not as amazing as his last bardo book. I guess Saunders has more bardo thoughts to share with us--including rumors of a 3rd book on the subject of life/death spaces--but to me it's a topic he has covered perfectly already, so.
Yes, I agree with this review. My first foray into George Saunders was A Swim in the Pond in the Rain. Oh my! I’m not a big “classics” fan, but I couldn’t put this down! I wished I had a professor like him when I was in college. I also really liked The Brief and Frightening Reign of Phil. A masterpiece! Tenth of December was also fabulous. This book just didn’t hit the mark for me.
I fully agree with you! "Lincoln in the Bardo" was amazing, why add this half-baked, undercomplex afterthought? Saunders is capable of so much more.
Carl wrote: ""Slapdash" is unhyphenated."
But “slap-dash” is an entirely different word from “slapdash,” with a different meaning, possibly known only to me.
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Erin
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Nov 19, 2025 11:39AM
Totally agree with your review. Can I just cut and paste it? :)
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i like your review too! although it wasn’t feel-good for me, because i was busy feeling disappointed. it really is a big question to me though whether writers should put out whatever is ‘good enough,’ by some reasonable measure of goodness, or if they should wait for genius to strike again. The second strategy sometimes leads writers to self-censor themselves into never writing another book again.
Lincoln in the Bardo is one of my favorite contemporary books. Shatteringly imaginative -- oh yes. Thanks for managing my expectations about what to expect from Vigil.
Jill wrote: "Lincoln in the Bardo is one of my favorite contemporary books. Shatteringly imaginative -- oh yes. Thanks for managing my expectations about what to expect from Vigil."I may have been extra critical because it's another story that takes place in the space between life and death, and it's just not as amazing as his last bardo book. I guess Saunders has more bardo thoughts to share with us--including rumors of a 3rd book on the subject of life/death spaces--but to me it's a topic he has covered perfectly already, so.
Yes, I agree with this review. My first foray into George Saunders was A Swim in the Pond in the Rain. Oh my! I’m not a big “classics” fan, but I couldn’t put this down! I wished I had a professor like him when I was in college. I also really liked The Brief and Frightening Reign of Phil. A masterpiece! Tenth of December was also fabulous. This book just didn’t hit the mark for me.
I fully agree with you! "Lincoln in the Bardo" was amazing, why add this half-baked, undercomplex afterthought? Saunders is capable of so much more.
Carl wrote: ""Slapdash" is unhyphenated."But “slap-dash” is an entirely different word from “slapdash,” with a different meaning, possibly known only to me.
