Book Beginnings: Gilead

  Today I am linking up to Book Beginnings hosted by Rose City Reader where readers share the first sentence of the current book they are reading.

Gilead by Marilynne Robinson begins with these words:

"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. And you put your hand in my hand and you said, Your aren't very old, as if that settled it. I told you you might have a very different life from mine, and from the life you've had with me, and that would be a wonderful thing, there are many ways to live a good life."

Gilead is the story of a father in ailing health writing a letter to his young son, wanting to leave an account of his life and his regrets. From the opening sentences, the reader can sense that this is going to be an emotional journey, a soul-searching tale, and will likely cause reflection on one's own life and choices.

Have you read Gilead or any of Robinson's other works?

Happy Reading!
Rebecca