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Gilead (Revised)
Gilead (Revised) | Marilynne Robinson
In 1956, toward the end of Reverend John Ames's life, he begins a letter to his young son, a kind of last testament to his remarkable forebears. Ames is troubled too by his prodigal namesake, Jack Boughton, his best friend's ne'er-do-well son, who seems to be a living contradiction of everything that Ames stands for.
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review
Bookwormjillk
Gilead | Marilynne Robinson
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Pickpick

I‘m glad I finally got around to reading Gilead. The story was different but the writing and the pace reminded me a lot of a favorite of mine- Crossing to Safety.

SamAnne Hoping to get to this one soon! 1mo
57 likes1 comment
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Bookwormjillk
Gilead | Marilynne Robinson
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Making soup and listening to this audiobook for #bodydouble #cozyreads Readathons. @PuddleJumper

Tamra I love soup all year, but it‘s that cozy time of year for it especially! 1mo
PuddleJumper Right time of year for soup 1mo
Aimeesue Soup season is my favorite season 🧡 1mo
59 likes3 comments
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annahenke
Gilead | Marilynne Robinson
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I‘ve been somewhat disillusioned as my life has run its course. It is the way of things, I suppose. Bad things happen, and we lose our way. But this book feels the way church used to feel for me. Like I‘m singing along to a favorite worship song, eyes closed, surrounded by a community in which I belong. Lights low, emotions high. It feels like coming home. It‘s a small glimpse of eternity, a little embrace of heaven. My heart echoes with it.

lil1inblue Beautifully said. This book made me feel closer to my grandfather, a man of great faith. I wished so much he was around to read it with me. 2mo
annahenke @lil1inblue I love that for you. What a beautiful thing when a book can feel like someone who‘s gone is right next to us, even just for a moment. 2mo
HeatherBookNerd Beautiful book 2mo
44 likes1 stack add3 comments
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BaBaBaBillyAndTheBooks
Gilead | Marilynne Robinson
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Mehso-so

There‘s not much going on in Gilead, Iowa, which leaves lots of time for reflection. Reverend Ames does just that, writing letters to his young son. The journal entries reveal his family history and current tensions with his visiting godchild who shares his name. Conflicts between father and son span generations here, but humans have a holy power that appears in the act of forgiveness—a miracle that turns life‘s doubters into believers.

Karisimo This was definitely a not-for-me book. I need plot! 3mo
BaBaBaBillyAndTheBooks I agree! I felt like it was peaceful and spiritual, like going to church, but not a lotta action! 3mo
BkClubCare I loved this, and I also understand readers who need plot. Not me! 😂 I was blown away by Gilead and it remains a top 10 for my entire life so far🌟 3mo
11 likes4 comments
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lil1inblue
Gilead | Marilynne Robinson
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Pickpick

This was a beautiful read. I was very moved. The protagonist and narrator reminded me a great deal of my grandfather, so I felt particularly drawn to this. It's the kind of book I wish I could discuss with him.

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Tamra
Gilead (Revised) | Marilynne Robinson
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Pickpick

“The sun was shining as well as it could onto that shadowy river, a good part of the shine being caught in the trees. And the cicadas were chanting, and the willows were straggling their tresses in the water, and the cottonwood and the ash were making that late summer hush, that susurrus.”

I knew I was going to love Robinson‘s writing, which is why I‘ve been hoarding this series on my shelves. It‘s mainly interior reflective monologue. 💙

Cathythoughts ♥️ 3mo
Suet624 Gorgeous writing. 3mo
jlhammar Love these books. Lila was my favorite, but all wonderful. Also remember loving Robinson‘s earlier novel, Housekeeping (read many years ago). 3mo
54 likes1 stack add3 comments
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Tamra
Gilead | Marilynne Robinson
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That sound is me squealing inside because I‘m going to spend the rest of the afternoon ignoring everything else I could be doing. 😊

dabbe 🤩😂🤩 3mo
Suet624 With a really good book. 3mo
67 likes2 comments
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BkClubCare
Gilead | Marilynne Robinson
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My favorite of the 52 I‘ve read. Lots already on my tbr, some I have never heard of. (Weirdly? I have read 52 books so far this year.) Lists are so fun!

Ruthiella Awesome! 52 !!! 4mo
BkClubCare @Ruthiella - a LOT can be attributed to ToB. 4mo
Allbymyshelf Nice!! Which are your favorites? 4mo
BkClubCare @readmyeyes - oh! Uh, lots? Bel Canto is one I‘m hoping to reread to see my reaction now. Middlesex, H is for Hawk, Olive Kittridge; I am forgetting now 4mo
Allbymyshelf @BkClubCare oooh, Bel Canto would be a good one to reread. Thanks for sharing! 4mo
31 likes5 comments
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porcelapin
Gilead | Marilynne Robinson
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Starting this tonight! Housekeeping, also by Marilynne Robinson, is one of my favorites. It was the first book I finished this year, and still the best fiction book I have read so far this year. So I'm hoping I will enjoy this as well!

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ImperfectCJ
Gilead | Marilynne Robinson
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#WondrousWednesday @Eggs

1) Tana French, Louise Penny, Ottessa Moshfegh, Mona Awad, Kevin Wilson.
2) I am awful at picking favorites. I'll go with the tagged (genre: literary fiction), but I'm not sure it's my favorite-favorite.
3) Beverly Cleary.

Eggs Thanks for joining in🥚🩵🥚 8mo
31 likes1 comment
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Bookwormjillk
Gilead | Marilynne Robinson
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Library book sale haul.

dabbe Great haul! 😊 2y
54 likes1 comment
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ClairesReads
Gilead | Marilynne Robinson
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Panpan

Unpopular opinion incoming: Reader, I hated it. 2 stars because it‘s objectively well written but this was an absolute snooze of a read for me. Let‘s chalk it up to a book-reader mismatch. Live, laugh, love fellow readers.

Graywacke Sorry, I've read this twice, and enjoyed both times, especially the second time. It is slow. 2y
Eva_B I read ‘Housekeeping‘ years ago and loved it. However, I could never finish ‘Gilead‘. I tried but just couldn‘t wade through it, 2y
Centique I tried this and bailed early on. I had heard absolute rave reviews but it just fell flat for me. 2y
39 likes3 comments
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CRR
Gilead (Oprah's Book Club) | Marilynne Robinson
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Pickpick

Enjoyable book that shared the life reflection of an old pastor to his young son. A friend recommended it to me and I enjoyed reading it. It was a beautiful slow moving thoughtful story.

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Smarkies
Gilead | Marilynne Robinson
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Pickpick

A beautiful quiet meditative read. I thought it lost my attention a few times but overall I think this is a book I will reread to fully sit in the world that the author weaves.

EvieBee I like this edition‘s cover! 2y
32 likes1 stack add1 comment
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sprainedbrain
Gilead | Marilynne Robinson
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#ManicMonday #LetterG

📖 Gilead by Marilynne Robinson

✍️ Diana Gabaldon, John Green, Neil Gaiman

🎥 Goonies, Gladiator

📺 Game of Thrones, Good Omens

🎤 Gorillaz, Grateful Dead, Green Day, Guns ‘n Roses

🎵 Georgia (Vance Joy), Ghost of You (My Chemical Romance), Glycerine (Bush), Goodnight Rose (Ryan Adams), Golden (Harry Styles), Golden Years (David Bowie), Good Riddance (Green Day), Gunslinger (Avenged Sevenfold), Gypsy (Fleetwood Mac)

AmyG ❤️ 2y
CBee Awesome answers as usual 😊♥️ 2y
48 likes2 comments
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merelybookish
Gilead | Marilynne Robinson
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A book about an aging Iowan minister writing a letter to his young son doesn't sound like it would be good. But it is. It's really, really good. ❤️
#LetterG #AlphabetGame @Alwaysbeenaloverofbooks

Brimful It‘s so good. And some of the rest in the series are even better! 2y
Alwaysbeenaloverofbooks Thank you for playing 📚🙌🏻 2y
Graywacke One of favorites too. 🙂 2y
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merelybookish @Brimful I've read then all but Jack. But this is probably my favourite. 2y
merelybookish @Graywacke I'm in good company. 2y
sprainedbrain So good. ❤️ 2y
46 likes6 comments
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TH3F4LC0N
Gilead | Marilynne Robinson
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Pickpick

So I read Gilead finally. I thought it was mostly really good. Very warm and humane. Lots of reflections on life and faith and such. Very poignant as well. Kinda lost steam in the 2nd half though I thought. Still, I liked it pretty well. Give it a B+. For my full review, see here:

https://youtu.be/mOQzHaZWa14

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MrsMalaprop
Gilead (Revised) | Marilynne Robinson
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Pickpick

A gentle, meditative read. Many reminders to notice & be thankful for all the beauty in the world. Just the ticket 🌅🌿🙏

mcipher And what a place to read! 😍 3y
50 likes2 stack adds1 comment
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Susanita
Gilead | Marilynne Robinson
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✨ I have several! One is to finish books that I‘ve started reading previously.
✨ ACTIVE
✨ Gilead is one of those languishing books. It‘s very meandering! That makes it perfect to dip in and out of while I wait for holds.
#ThoughtfulThursday

rockpools I think I may need to borrow your word! 3y
Kimzey Gilead is one of my all-time favorites. I may need to reread... 3y
36 likes2 comments
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Mdion1993
Gilead | Marilynne Robinson
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Pickpick

Gilead chronicles the thoughts of the fictional Reverend John Ames through letters to his son. Now at the end of his life and hoping to leave behind something meaningful, Ames reflects on the clashing ideals bestowed in him by his father, grandfather, and his wiley namesake, the prodigal son John Ames Boughton. This is a story that considers religion and atheism, war and peace, principle and forgiveness, and creates a town where all bear witness.

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Jen2
Gilead | Marilynne Robinson
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Pickpick

Really enjoyed it!

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cant_i'm_booked
Gilead | Marilynne Robinson
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Pickpick

Beautiful, meditative read. An elderly pastor, dying in the small town of Gilead, Iowa, 1956, begins to write letters to his 7-year old son, who he hopes someday will read them. The letters discuss his background and beliefs, the turbulent history of his preacher grandfather, and his doubts about a troubled neighbor man who moves back to town. Great theme: appreciate existence in all forms, for existence, in itself, is a sheer wonder.

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HeatherBookNerd
Gilead | Marilynne Robinson
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Pickpick

Just a beautiful book. Through an elderly preacher‘s letter to his son we observe a thoughtful contemplation of the breadth of the human experience - loneliness, faith, joy, heartbreak, awe, anger, helplessness, love. A rich and rewarding read.

Kimzey One of my favorites! ❤️ 3y
sprainedbrain Love this whole series. ❤️ 3y
Blaire Yes! I‘m rereading this whole series this year. It‘s such a beautiful set of books. 3y
47 likes1 stack add3 comments
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ChaoticMissAdventures
Gilead | Marilynne Robinson
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Mehso-so

Funnier then I expected. The musings of an old preacher. This feels a bit like The Alchemist, one of those books that can feel deep if you read it early in your life. I am too bitter, or jaded, and much to atheist for it to impact me in that sort of way. The writing is good, though the meandering of thought the storyline went through wasn't for me.
Sidenote when the character Glory came up all I could think of was the demon from Buffy 😆

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ChaoticMissAdventures
Gilead | Marilynne Robinson
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"I'm a traditionalist"

So.. jokes about drunk housewives secretly drinking? That is unexpected.

Is this book supposed to be funny? Maybe my dark humor is at play but so much of this book is a bit ridiculous and I keep hearing myself do one of those phsss laughs ?

BkClubCare Oh yea, Ms Robinson drops little bits of humor in every so often. I love her writing. (edited) 3y
12 likes1 comment
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ChaoticMissAdventures
Gilead | Marilynne Robinson
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Talk about the Flu Epidemic of 1918-20 is surreal now after the last year and a half. It is interesting to stumble across it in a book from almost 20 years ago, and to see masking and social distancing discussed.

Caterina Wow! What an amazing parallel in this passage to today. I read Gilead pre-pandemic, and I'd forgotten about this passage. Thanks for sharing it! 3y
14 likes1 comment
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ChaoticMissAdventures
Gilead | Marilynne Robinson
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I told you last night that I might be gone sometime, and you said, Where, and I said, To be with the Good Lord, and you said, Why, and I said, Because I'm old, and you said, I don't think you're old.

Well. That first line was a choice 😆
#FirstLineFriday @ShyBookOwl

review
Michael_Gee
Gilead | Marilynne Robinson
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Pickpick

Challenging book club disc. on this one today. It was my fault for not being focused enough with my questions. This is a dense, meditative book without a plot, really. You cld spend an hour talking about just a few pages.

Most interesting to me were the oblique looks at race in 1954 America & the tension between acceptance/appreciation & complacency. Though I was ambivalent for much of the experience, it would be a good book to re-read.

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ChaoticMissAdventures
Gilead | Marilynne Robinson
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Tagging my next read in a hope that it is picked for #bookspin and I can get #bookspinbingo off to a good start!

July List

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mjtwo
Gilead | Marilynne Robinson
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Pickpick

27-30 May 2021 (audiobook)
A beautifully written book, superbly narrated. Robinson‘s writing is poetic and the slow, steady pace was a calming antidote to this week - Melbourne entered Lockdown 4.0 just hours after my husband finally sat his last specialisation exams.

For an atheist, the theological sections were hard-going and I am uncertain whether to continue the series. Are the sequels, given they centre on other characters, less religious?

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Cathy_J
Gilead | Marilynne Robinson
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Pickpick

This book takes the form of a letter from a pastor to his young son. He intends for it to be read by the son after he has passed away and the son is grown. I loved the feeling of imparting wisdom, the family history is interesting and I liked the characters. It understandably strays into philosophical and theological ponderings (which on occasion lost me) but I did like it overall ⭐⭐⭐

Crazeedi Great book 4y
Crazeedi Have you read her others? 4y
LatrelWhite Beautifully written! 💕I have one more to read: Home 4y
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LatrelWhite Oprah has just finished Gilead and has a discussion on AppleTV!👍🏽 I believe she is reading another book but can‘t remember which one. 4y
Cathy_J @Crazeedi No I haven't but I think I will 😊 4y
Cathy_J Oh thanks @LatrelWhite , I will take a look! 🙂 4y
75 likes3 stack adds6 comments
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Curiouser_and_curiouser
Gilead | Marilynne Robinson
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Part 2 of my splurge at the OP shop recently.
Loving how big and diverse my collection is getting now but I must stick to reading my own books and stop borrowing from the library in order to chip away at my stacks.
So excited about all the possibilities I have to choose from though!

CoverToCoverGirl Choices are important! 📖📖📖📖 4y
curiouserandcurioser @Curiouser_and_curiouser i love The Secret Garden:) 4y
See All 6 Comments
Curiouser_and_curiouser @curiouserandcurioser oh cool, I've got another copy somewhere but this is a Puffin Classics edition and I am slowly building a small collection of these, so I'll be able to donate my other copy. I've never read it so I'm looking forward to reading it soon 😊 4y
curiouserandcurioser @Curiouser_and_curiouser I hope you enjoy it as much as i do-i love to reread it and revisit a favorite:) Yoyr edition is beautiful:) 4y
60 likes6 comments