Join us for West Branch's monthly book dis cussion group! We read a variety of contemporary fiction and non-fiction a nd meet once a month for a thought-provoking conversation.
\nPlease register for in-person\, as seating is limited. \;Contact discussion f acilitator Dani Linn at \;dtlinn@aurorapubliclibrary.org \;for more information or for a Zoom link to join us virtually if you're new to the group.
\nAsk at the West Branch Circulation Desk for print copies\; your copy will be on the hold shelf if you're registered.
\nLincoln in the Bardo by George Saunders
\nFebruary 1862. The Civil War is le ss than one year old. The fighting has begun in earnest\, and the nation h as begun to realize it is in for a long\, bloody struggle. Meanwhile\, Pre sident Lincoln's beloved eleven-year-old son\, Willie\, lies upstairs in t he White House\, gravely ill. In a matter of days\, despite predictions of a recovery\, Willie dies and is laid to rest in a Georgetown cemetery. "M y poor boy\, he was too good for this earth\," the president says at the t ime. "God has called him home." Newspapers report that a grief-stricken Li ncoln returned to the crypt several times alone to hold his boy's body.
\nFrom that seed of historical truth\, George Saunders spins an unforgettable story of familial love and loss that breaks free of its r ealistic\, historical framework into a thrilling\, supernatural realm both hilarious and terrifying. Willie Lincoln finds himself in a strange purga tory\, where ghosts mingle\, gripe\, commiserate\, quarrel\, and enact biz arre acts of penance. Within this transitional state&mdash\;called\, in th e Tibetan tradition\, the bardo&mdash\;a monumental struggle erupts over y oung Willie's soul.
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