They want to have a cup of coffee and a piece of toast, put in their eight hours, and wrap up the day with a bottle of beer in front of the TV set. After orphaned 18-year-old Emmett Watson is released from a juvenile detention facility in the 1950s, he heads home to the foreclosed family farm in Nebraska. He seems to be saying that our personal journeys are never as linear or predictable as an interstate highway. . Thanks for visiting the Gates Notes. I wanted to hear other people's thoughts about the end though. It is hard for me to rate this book because I loved the first third and was extremely disappointed by the rest. It's 592 pages long, but the story takes place over a period of only ten days. Towles' previous book A Gentleman in Moscow published in 2016I loved that novel and thought it was such a warmhearted tale. Duchess is a smart guy so I think he would have waited for the wind to push him back to the other side of the lake. So Emmett will not get pushed around any longer and is willing to do whatever it takes to get him and Billy to safety. (He doesn't kill Duchess because he had made a promise to Billy not to lash out again.) With this ominous cue you may sense some very unpopular review is on its way! THE LINCOLN HIGHWAY is a gem. Born and raised in the Boston area, Amor Towles graduated from Yale College and received an MA in English from Stanford University. So, maybe he didnt actually kill Woolly but he also didnt help to prevent the overdose. . Their Plans are thwarted by the appearance of two friends who cause a major disruption which leads to multiple detours on the journey. It might only be the first week of 2022, but I have a feeling this will be my favorite book of the year. Er lebt mit seiner Frau und seinen beiden Kindern in Manhattan. In the endtime is a precious resource. . The Lincoln Highway by Amor Towles is a thought-provoking work of historical fiction, one which tends to take its time but rewards us with a compelling world populated by a vivid cast of colourful characters with memorable sequences of their own. The appearance of two of Emmett's friends Woolly and Duchess, who stowed away in the trunk of the Warden's car, results in a change of plans. I finished it last night on audio no wonder it was nominated for an Audie award - at midnight and had to wait until this morning to talk about the ending with my husband who was reading the print version (he finished it at 5:30 this morning having to also wait until I awoke at seven to talk about it). Publishers Weekly [A] playfully thought-provoking . Having worked as an investment professional in Manhattan for over twenty years, he now devotes himself fulltime to writing. The story is far fetched and almost ludicrous, but the characters who are portrayed come alive and I did not wish the book to end. It would have avoided the constant eye roll from me, because sometimes he felt a precocious little twirp, but still adorable when his innocence shone through. In no sense is this book a thriller and yet tension does exist as the end approaches. I am a fan of this author. . The second event I want to discuss is the fact that Duchess makes it seem like this trip is an effort to get revenge at his father for framing him and sending him to the work camp. None of this is a shock to Emmet, he has planned for new beginnings, to pick up his 8 year old brother, Billy, driving in his 1948 Studebaker, to start a more secure future in California, where it appears their mother went after abandoning them years ago. Sorry, we were unable to unsubscribe you at this time. From there, we follow Emmett and Billys journey to regain the car and they meet an interesting cast of characters along the way. He seems to be saying that our personal journeys are never as linear or predictable as an interstate highway. One of my new favorite storytellers is the writer Amor Towles. Instead it left me feeling like the boys let me down after I invested a lot of time getting to know them. : Bill may send you a welcome note or other exclusive Insider mail from time to time. Reviewed in the United Kingdom on November 13, 2021. I found it to be a really wonderful book; light-hearted most of the way through with some really impactful character moments. Reviewed in the United States on February 9, 2023. Your recently viewed items and featured recommendations, and Barack Obamaas a Best Book of the Year, and master of absorbing, sophisticated fiction returns with a stylish and propulsive novel set in 1950s America, Switch between reading the Kindle book & listening to the Audible narration with, Get the Audible audiobook for the reduced price of $12.99 after you. I found them to be a delight. is filled with nostalgia as well as the gentle navet and hijinks of those who are young, optimistic, and on a mission. Superior! Advance praise for The Lincoln Highway : "Towles' third novel is even more entertaining than his much-acclaimed A Gentleman in Moscow . Beyond the picaresque, there are deeper questions of justice here. The time was June of 1954, the place was a bankrupt farm in rural Nebraska, and the two central characters in this work of fiction were the Watson brothers, Emmett who was eighteen and his little brother Billy, who was eight. Margaret M - Hiatus - I will respond when I can. for most people, it doesnt matter where they live. . Contrivances such as this detract from the more interesting interplay at the heart of the novel between Emmett, the thoughtful young man who resents the burden of responsibility on his shoulders, and Duchess, the charming chancer who appeals to the wild spirit in us all. Ironically I can see the NYC police finding her registration for her truck and tracking her down in Morgen to pay for the tickets and impounding fees she would have likely incurred. Unable to add item to List. Be sure to tell me your thoughts below! Their pondering of this Towles is an incredible storyteller. Likewise, the novel's opening chapters in 1954 Nebraska invoke not so . Ships from the UK. There's so much to enjoy in this generous novel packed with fantastic characters [] and filled with digressions, magic tricks, sorry sagas, retributions, and the messy business of balancing accounts., returns with an American picaresque destined to become a classic . Th final element of the conclusion has an element of theft from the ending of "The Italian Job" but I think that can be forgiven. . Of course he didn't want to continue a connection to Duchess but I'm not sure why (he seemed smart and to have sense) he couldn't have thought of a better way to leave him behind (safely). So I eagerly awaited receiving my copy, and I read it through to completion. . The acts of violence against the Cowboy & Ackerly come from an 18 yr old w/anger - being left by his father at 10, then being sent to the work farm unjustly. Up until about the last 60 pages or so, the story is fairly straightforward coming-of-age tale with vivid imagery of the time period and lots of pondering about the past and whats next. A wonderful novel - part road-trip, part coming-of-age story. We will never share or spam your email address. It is 1954, and 18-year-old Emmett Watson has just finished a spell at the Kansas work farm where he was sent after accidentally killing a bully. An ode to reading, travel and the family we have, the family we make. The Lincoln Highway, the first transcontinental road in the U.S.open for business in 1913has none of the pop-culture force of Route 66. Towles is an incredible storyteller. All you needed was a Howard Johnsons map. a month after 30 days. Potentially, Emmett laid the groundwork for Duchess to have to choose between the money or survival. This book had a promising beginning when 18 year old Emmett Watson returns from serving time for involuntary manslaughter. I am a fan of this author. The Lincoln Highway By Amor Towles Review by Alice Cary The pages of Amor Towles' novel are destined to be turnedand occasionally tatteredby numerous gratified readers. Its June 12th 1954 and Warden Williams is taking eighteen year old Emmett Watson home from Salina, a juvenile reform program after which Emmetts debt to society is paid in full. His new novel, THE LINCOLN HIGHWAY, will be released on October 5, 2021. For most book groups, this could be a wise pick. Perfect fitting for the history and the joy of learning. The hero of Amor Towless previous novel, the multimillion-selling A Gentleman in Moscow, spent 480 pages cooped up in a posh hotel, unable to leave on pain of death a luxury lockdown. In the novel The Lincoln Highway by Amor Towles,18-year-old Emmett Watson is just out of a juvenile reform facility. Founded in 1912, the Lincoln Highway Association was part of the early "Good Roads" movement to improve automobile roads in the United States. In 2019, I reviewed his book A Gentleman in Moscow, which was fantastic. So the brothers take their share of the money and plan to finally go to California. She will emerge as a powerful character in the book, driven by a fierce righteousness that has been provoked by finding herself constantly expected to look after men who scarcely even acknowledge her. I havent completely finished it yet but I couldnt wait to share my thoughts! The photo shows Salt Lake City, Utah, not Kansas City, Missouri, as an earlier version said due to an agency error. I like to leave a novel with a good feeling. Add back the onions, the white wine, and let simmer for a few minutes. . First, was this Woollys plan all alongto commit suicide and leave his friends his inheritance? If Emmett didnt stop Duchess, Emmett believes that Duchess would again get in the way of their plans. : Interesting at first then the characters and story start to wander all over the place - and I don't just mean as they develop their journey. That would have taken another day for sure. Please upload a .jpg or .png image that is under 25MB. Please check your email and click the link provided to verify your account. The two novels have collectively sold more than four million copies and have been translated into more than thirty languages. We dont know if she and Emmett fall in love; Towles doesnt give his story such a tidy narrative. . The present novel is the story of two brothers who plan to set off from their failed family farm in Nebraska and start a new life in California. 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