Books like Lincoln in the Bardo by George Saunders
Set amid the Civil War’s early turbulence, George Saunders reimagines the death of President Lincoln’s son Willie—an eleven‑year‑old who falls ill in the White House and is buried in a Georgetown cemetery—through the lens of a Tibetan purgatory, the bardo. In this liminal space, Willie encounters myriad ghosts: some tormented, some quarrelsome, others engaging in bizarre acts of penance. Saunders elevates the historical moment of personal bereavement into a surreal, haunting tableau that mixes humor and terror as a monumental struggle determines the fate of Willie’s young soul.
First publish date: 2017
Genre: Historical Fiction/19th Century Historical Fiction
Authors: George Saunders
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