The Bridge of San Luis Rey by Thornton Wilder: book review

The Bridge of San Luis Rey (1927) is set in Lima, Peru, in 1714.

At noon, on Friday 20 July 1714, ‘the finest bridge in all of Peru’ collapsed. Five people – pedestrians walking across the bridge – fell to their death. Who were these five hapless individuals?

Red-haired Franciscan monk, Brother Juniper, witnessed the harrowing incident. From northern Italy, he was in Peru, near the bridge, by chance. He vowed to learn about the identity of the five people, and to know of their lives, their characters, and their destinies.

The old woman, Dona Maria, Marquesa de Montemayor, originally from Spain, and her travelling companion, the little orphan girl Pepita from Lima, raised by the Abbess Madre Maria del Pilar, are the first two people he learns about. Then there is 22-year-old Esteban, the twin brother of Manuel, both orphan boys also raised by the Abbess of the Convent, Madre Maria del Pilar. Lastly, Brother Juniper reveals the lives of 50-year-old Uncle Pio, the aide to the famous singer Camila Perichole, friend of the Marquesa de Montemayor, and the singer’s young son Don Jaime.

Their lives were all connected in some way to each other. From the lives of five people, Brother Juniper learns a lot about himself, human nature, love and loss, and divine intervention.

My favourite chapter is the one about Esteban, a life so entwined with the life of his twin brother. A life of solemn silence and duty.

This short story is remarkable. Simply told, it is a profound account of the importance of life.

Thornton Wilder writes of this ficitonal bridge incident as if it were a true historical event. In 1929, two years after its publication it was made into a film (with Henry B Walthall as Brother Juniper), and again in 1944 (starring Donald Woods).

Most recently, the novel was depicted in the 2004 film, starring Kathy Bates, Geraldine Chaplin, Gabriel Byrne, Robert de Niro, Pilar Lopez de Ayala, and Harvey Keitel.

Despite bad reviews for the 2004 film version, the story is timeless.

MARTINA NICOLLSis an international aid and development consultant, and the authorof:- Similar But Different in the Animal Kingdom(2017), The Shortness of Life: A Mongolian Lament (2015), Liberia’s Deadest Ends (2012), Bardot’s Comet (2011), Kashmir on a Knife-Edge (2010) and The Sudan Curse (2009).

Comments

2016 update on Rike Park, Tbilisi: from construction to busy park

From a flat patch of uninteresting dirt, Rike Park in Tbilisi, Georgia, has transformed in four years (from 2014-2016) into a busy park full of trees, flower beds, sculptures, fountains, and events. Rike (Rikhe) Park is on the left bank of the Mt’k’vari River (the Kura River) near the Old City of Tbilisi. The Peace Bridge links the right bank to Rike Park. Rike Park is below the hillside Presidential Palace and, via cable car, it is the starting point for the ride to Sololaki Ridge (with the Narikala Fortress and the Mother of Georgia statue). The glass box-shaped cable car terminus was opened on 23 June 2012, and since then the park has continually developed into a ‘people’s park’ where people can walk around, eat at the nearby restaurants, sit next to the statue of American president Ronald Reagan, climb the steps to Avlabari district, and access the sights of Meidan Square, the Peace Bridge, the Metekhi Church, the Old City, the waterfall, the sulphur baths, and t...

Pir-E-Kamil - The Perfect Mentor by Umera Ahmed: book review

The Perfect Mentor pbuh (2011) is set in Lahore and Islamabad in Pakistan. The novel commences with Imama Mubeen in medical university. She wants to be an eye specialist. Her parents have arranged for her to marry her first cousin Asjad. Salar Sikander, her neighbour, is 18 years old with an IQ of 150+ and a photographic memory. He has long hair tied in a ponytail. He imbibes alcohol, treats women disrespectfully and is generally a “weird chap” and a rude, belligerent teenager. In the past three years he has tried to commit suicide three times. He tries again. Imama and her brother, Waseem, answer the servant’s call to help Salar. They stop the bleeding from his wrist and save his life. Imama and Asjad have been engaged for three years, because she wants to finish her studies first. Imama is really delaying her marriage to Asjad because she loves Jalal Ansar. She proposes to him and he says yes. But he knows his parents won’t agree, nor will Imama’s parents. ...

Hop on hop off bus tourism comes to Tbilisi, Georgia

City Sightseeing buses have arrived in Tbilisi. The iconic red double-decker buses, a feature of many cities around the world since the company was established in Seville, Spain in 1999, is now in six continents and almost 100 cities. The company established its Tbilisi business in November 2013, with its operations commencing in February 2014. The 90-minute tour stops at 11 major locations in Tbilisi (with 2 to 5 minute waiting times at each location): the Old City (where it commences), Freedom Square, Rose Revolution Square, Marjanishvili Square, the Dry Bridge, Konka, Avlabari, Metekhi, Akhundov Museum, the Sulfur Baths, and European Square. Passengers can hop off at any stop and see the sights, hopping back onto the next bus at any time. Alternatively, passengers can remain on the bus for the whole tour and take photographs when the bus stops at each location. There are one day (24-hour) passes (for 35 lari – about $20) and 48-hour passes for 55 lari, with family d...

FEAST OR FAMINE

Search This Blog