Plot summary:
This book is from the point of view of Lila, a migrant drifter child, then woman who wanders into Gilead in her 30s. She is lonely and full of shame and has only known struggle and poverty. Lila enters the church that John Ames is pastor of and begins a friendship that turns to marriage. John is over twice her age and has been on his own since his young wife died in childbirth 40 years ago. The story is told through flashbacks of Lila’s life and the interactions between her and John. It is a story of redemption while we enter their pain and hardships. Lila struggles to find her place in ‘decent’ society and to understand God while John Ames faithfully and gently loves her through it all.
Series:
This is one of 4 books set in the town of Gilead in the Midwest of the US.
The other books in the collection are Gilead, Home and Jack. They are beautiful, haunting, thought-provoking books; each dealing with the point of view of a different character or family. They are in the psychological fiction genre
My Response:
Marilynne Robinson develops deep, complex characters dealing more with how they think and respond to the world than how others see them. Her characters are believable and very human, shaped by their experiences of the world.
This is a gripping story dealing with some very hard topics, eg.abandonment, neglect and poverty but with love woven in there too. Marilynne Robinson carries you along with Lila through her life. She enables you to enter into her pain and her tentative response to John Ames’ love and care.
I love Marilynne Robinson’s deep thinking and sensitive treatment of the fundamental questions of life: who am I? why am I here? How do I find meaning? What about people who are unfairly treated?
This book left me with much to ponder and a reminder that caring for those who have experienced trauma is a delicate and complex matter but love is the best place to start!
