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Essential reading for the New Mexico devotee. Cather's exquisitely rendered tale recounts the spiritual and moral concerns of the two central characters, a bishop and vicar, but it also paints a remarkable portrait of the New Mexican landscape and its people. There's an incredible stillness to her writing that isn't inert -- it's alive and almost luminescent. Some have likened her writing to the paintings of Georgia O'Keefe, and certainly there is a resemblance. Both women drew inspiration from
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Update: I am going to borrow words from one of my friend's reviews and call this "a quiet book." I think that is important to know before you read it.
I have read quite a few books by Willa Cather now. I've always enjoyed reading a skilled author deeply, and I am so glad to finally have read this, her masterpiece.
Having grown up in Arizona, the setting of the Southwest bore all of the romance and beauty that Cather intended and more. She is masterful in her depiction of the sagebrush, the expansi ...more
I have read quite a few books by Willa Cather now. I've always enjoyed reading a skilled author deeply, and I am so glad to finally have read this, her masterpiece.
Having grown up in Arizona, the setting of the Southwest bore all of the romance and beauty that Cather intended and more. She is masterful in her depiction of the sagebrush, the expansi ...more

Originally this book was part of my required reading for a class on the American South West in university. I read it again and was captivated by how quickly the vivid imagery brings this old landscape, that few know the true history of, to life. A good story, it's also great for someone interested in American history and history of Native Americans.
Read this before your next trip to the southwest. ...more
Read this before your next trip to the southwest. ...more


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