Tall Tales from Kansas

I recently finished listening to Vigil by George Saunders. It is read by a cast of narrators, which was initially a bit off-putting to me, but I got used to it fairly quickly. I wasn’t sure I was going to read it, after the rather less than favorable (to put in kindly) review in the NYT Book Review, but then Sharron, my trusty literary sidekick, gave it a thumbs up and I had to dive in. Let me also say that I really liked Lincoln in the Bardo – his previous work. If you didn’t, you may not like this.

As with Lincoln in the Bardo, it revolves around death. This time a man is dying, and Jill “Doll” Blaine is sent from the afterlife to comfort/console, and generally ease him into whatever his next chapter entails. I really liked the character Jill “Doll” Blaine and the dialogue written for her. The guy dying has been a not so nice person and other characters from his past also visit for a variety of reasons.

The story makes you ponder if we are inevitable. A great topic for a spring porch book club meeting complete with icy cold gin and tonics and leftover tuna salad from the fridge scooped up with mini saltines. Don’t knock it till you’ve tried it.