In 'Let the Great World Spin' by Colum McCann, the novel revolves around the lives of various individuals in New York City in 1974, all interconnected by the tightrope walk between the World Trade Center towers. The story captures the pulse of NYC life, describing the diverse characters, their struggles, and their connections to one another, all against the backdrop of a monumental event. The writing style weaves together multiple perspectives, showcasing fully developed and flawed yet likable characters, while delving into the historical time period and culture of life in NYC.
The book is a series of linked stories that center around troubled characters searching for something, all intersecting in New York City on the day of Philippe Petit's tightrope walk between the Twin Towers. McCann's beautiful writing captures the fragility of life, the delicate balancing act of the tightrope walker, and the complexities of human relationships post-9/11. The novel provides glimpses into different lives, intertwining narratives, and a deep exploration of the experience of New York City in the 1970s.
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Sensitive Topics/Content Warnings
Content warnings include themes of grief, loss of loved ones, drug addiction, prostitution, and the Vietnam War, which some readers may find distressing.
Has Romance?
There are elements of romance within the novel, particularly in the relationships explored among the characters, but romance is not the primary focus of the stories.
From The Publisher:
New York, August 1974. A man is walking the sky. The city stands still in awe. Between the newly built Twin Towers the man is striding, twirling and showboating his way through the air. One hundred and ten stories below him, the lives of eight strangers spin towards each other...
Corrigan, a radical, passionate Irish monk working in the Bronx with a clutch of prostitutes; Claire, a delicate Upper East Side housewife reeling from the death of her son in Vietnam; her husband Solomon, a cynical judge turning over petty criminals in a downtown court; Lara, a young artist struggling with a spiralling drug addiction and a doomed marriage; Fernando, a thirteen-year-old photographer chasing underground graffiti; Gloria, solid and proud despite decades of hardship; Tillie, a courageous hooker who used to dream of a better life; and Jazzlyn, her beautiful, reckless daughter raised on promises that reach beyond the high rises of New York.
Set against a time of sweeping political and social change, from the backlash to the Vietnam War and the lingering sceptre of the oil crisis to the beginnings of the Internet - a time that hauntingly mirrors the present time - these disparate lives will collide in the shadow of one reckless and beautiful act, and be transformed for ever.
Weaving together themes of love, loss, belonging, duty and human striving, Let the Great World Spin celebrates the effervescent spirit of an age and the small beauties of everyday life. At once intimate and magnificent, elegant and astonishing, it is a lyrical masterpiece from a storyteller who continues to use the wide world as his canvas.
Ratings (12)
Incredible (2) | |
Loved It (5) | |
Liked It (2) | |
It Was OK (3) |
Reader Stats (27):
Read It (15) | |
Currently Reading (1) | |
Want To Read (7) | |
Not Interested (4) |
1 comment(s)
Love. Fell head over heals in love with this book. I was listening to my favorite podcast, ‘My Favorite Murder’ and the hosts were asked, “if you could only read one book for the rest of your life what would it be?” Karin Kilgarith chose this book and I immediately got it on audible. This book is told by a host of characters whose lives are intricately connected. The story is beautiful but it’s McCann’s writing that is absolutely stunning. I’ll definitely be reading more of his novels. This might be one of my favorite books I’ve ever read/listened to. I highly recommend the audiobook bc there are so many characters telling their stories and having a different narrator for each character brings another level to experience the characters’ lives
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Let the Great World Spin?
About the Author:
Colum McCann is the internationally bestselling author of the novels TransAtlantic, Let the Great World Spin, Zoli, Dancer, This Side of Brightness, and Songdogs, as well as three critically acclaimed story collections and the nonfiction book Letters to a Young Writer. His fiction has been published in over…
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