So just when I thought I had the Pulitzer books figured out, I came to this book. All the books until now have been about the shaping of America, the wars, politics, and social issues. This book so far is the exception.
The book centers on a bridge (obviously The Bridge of San Luis Rey) in Peru. It is a very old and sacred bridge that the people in Lima love and respect. One day the bridge suddenly falls and no one understands why. There is a priest who witnesses the bridge falling and decides it is an act of God. Five people were on the bridge and fell to their death. The priest wonders why these five people were chosen to die by this act of God and so he does great research into each of these people. That is what the book is about, it's about the lives of the five people and what was happening in their lives leading up to their death. It ends with a look into the life of the priest.
When I understood what the book was going to be about, I was excited. I love learning about people's lives. Unfortunately, the writing was a little abstract for me and a bit hard to understand. I got most of the stories, but I failed to feel a connection with the characters because the writing didn't flow for me. I felt that the writing was supposed to be deep and make you ponder and think about life and death and if there really are accidents or acts of God. I did think about it, but not long and hard. It didn't move me to do that, it just made me wonder.
It was an interesting book and a good way to have a look into the Peruvian culture, something I don't know a lot about; maybe if I did know more about it then I would appreciate this book more. It's a short book and one I would recommend, but not highly.
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