In 2006, Marilynne Robinson published Gilead, which won the Pulitzer Prize. It was an exceptionally worthy recipient. It is the story of a congregationalist minister (John Ames) in the small town of Gilead. He has long lived a bachelor, though with a quiet longing for children and companionship. When he marries and has a child in his old age, the realization that he will not see his child enter adulthood compels him to write his son a letter about his life. This writing forces him to look at his righteous life and see the small frustrations within it. It also forces him to look at this relationship with Robert Boughton and his family. Robert is the Presbyterian minister in town, and he is John Ames closest friend since childhood. He is married and has eight children who are all grown at the time of both books. Two of Reverend Boughton's children have come back home. His daughter, Glory, who has come home to take care of her aged father after the demise of her long engagement. Jack Boughton has also come home. Jack Boughton is described as "one of the great characters in recent literature. A bad boy from childhood, an alcoholic who cannot hold a job, he is perpetually at odds with his surroundings..." Home is told from the perspective of Glory Boughton as she struggles to care for her father and encourage her wayward brother who has come home after a 20 year absence, because he has nowhere else to go.
The struggles in this book deal with predestination and how to start over again when your actions have condemned you over and over. In both books, the crippling love of children, the perpetual goodness of the Lord, and the small interactions with all walks of humanity that profoundly affect our lives are poignantly addressed and examined.
Both of these book are a must read. They are companion novels, so they should be read in tandem beginning with Gilead. I can honestly say that no books have affected my worldview more than these. I encourage you to let them do the same for you!!!
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