2011-XX - Gilead, by Marilynne Robinson

XX - Gilead, by Marilynne Robinson, 247 pages, Harper Perennial, 2004
WHY I PICKED IT: Nick Hornby wrote good things about it in one of his essays
ELAPSED TIME: 7 days
RATING: Not Good

This is the story of an old preacher in middle America writing the story of his life for his young child.  He writes about his father (who was a preacher), and about his grandfathers (both of whom were preachers).  He writes about the struggles of the Depression, and of his own life.

The (massive) problem is that it's written like an old man telling a story... it meanders, it jumps forward and backwards, and it doesn't really have a point (other than, "this was my life").  If I were his child I'd be interested, insofar as I am interested to know my background, but for the rest of us...?

A week in, and I've barely hit the half way point.

Pass!