Bridge of Sighs
by Richard Russo
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Book Summary Information
Author: Richard RussoEdition: Hardcover
Audio: English (Original Language); English (Unknown); English (Published)
Published: 2007-09-25
ISBN: 0375414959
Number of pages: 544
Publisher: Knopf
Book Reviews of Bridge of Sighs
Book Review: Been A Long Time Crossing Bridge of Sighs
Summary: 5 Stars
"The sun don't shine
The moon don't move the tides,
to wash me clean
Sun don't shine
The moon don't move the tides,
to wash me clean
Why so unforgiving and why so cold
Been a long time
crossing Bridge of Sighs"
Robin Trower, 'Bridge of Sighs'
Richard Russo has written a novel of a small town, Thomaston, NY, and the lives of three main characters that intertwine throughout. The story is told from the outlook of Lou C Lynch or Lucy as he is called. He begins by writing a novel of which we take part. There is Lucy, from a loving family but with differing opinions from each parent; Bobby from a verbally abusive family that shapes his life, and Sarah, the only child of a divorced family. Characters enter and leave and give us differing perspectives of life in a small town NY to Long Island to Venice.
We are privy to class strata in each vicinity, racism and societal images. The shape of our future we come to believe may focus on our optimism or pessimism and how we view life. Do we leave small town America and strike out for gold, or do we live our lives in the same town of which we are born? In either locale Richard Russo tells us, "This, is "the narrative of our family, its small, significant journey. Is this not an American tale?"
This is a long involved novel, overwhelming at times. As the story moves along, Bobby takes over the narrative and at age 60, a successful artist, living in Venice, he reviews the time of his adolescence and how the memory shaped or mis-shaped the views he held. Sarah, after being married for 30 years takes time of reflection to tell her tale. She says, "Odd, how our view of human destiny changes over the course of a lifetime. In youth we believe what the young believe, that life is all choice. We stand before a hundred doors, choose to enter one, where we're faced with a hundred more and then choose again. We choose not just what we'll do, but who we'll be."
Richard Russo has given us much insight with these characters, and it is up to us to make of it what we will. The view of Bobby, as the artist has upon his world, brings us to 'The Bridge of Sighs'. Does our view of life impede us, bring us down before we can move on? It depends, I think from our personal view on the bridge.
"The Bridge of Sighs (Italian: Ponte dei Sospiri) is one of many bridges in Venice built in the 16th century. It passes over the Rio di Palazzo and connects the old prisons to the interrogation rooms in the Doge's Palace. The view from the Bridge of Sighs was the last view of Venice that convicts saw before their imprisonment. The bridge name, given by Lord Byron in the 19th century, comes from the suggestion that prisoners would sigh at their final view of beautiful Venice out the window before being taken down to their cells." Wikipedia
This novel left me with a feeling of ease. We may leave our home and traverse the world, but in the end most of us can return to the place we know and the people we love the best. As Lucy says, "We will leave this small, good world behind us with the comfort of knowing it'll be here when we return."
Highly, Highly Recommended. prisrob 10-13-07
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