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Top NASA Images Solar System Collection Ames Research Center. Seen in geological perspective, we are fossils in the making, to be buried and eventually exposed again for the puzzlement of creatures of later eras. Welcome to Wally World. No, not the one with Chevy Chase and a stiff relation on the car roof, the one that is a place of real literary wonder. Wallace Stegner is one of our great national treasures, and Crossing to Safety is a very rich read, a surprising look at the friendship between two couples, four friends. Stegner opens with Charity, a w Seen in geological perspective, we are fossils in the making, to be buried and eventually exposed again for the puzzlement of creatures of later eras.

Stegner opens with Charity, a wealthy New Englander in the last stages of cancer, bringing the foursome back together for one last hurrah. He dusts off this fossil and shows us where it came from. And in the process ponders the craft he is using to tell his story. How do you make a book that anyone will read out of lives as quiet as these? Stegner is up front about the challenge he has presented himself. How does one write an interesting book about friendship? I suppose one begins with being able to create real people with words. But Stegner might disagree. They invent only plots they can resolve.

They ask questions they can answer. And yet his characters do seem real and that is why we come to care about them. Wallace Stegner - image from Explore Big Sky Larry is a young teacher arriving at his first job in Madison Wisconsin. He is the hard-worker, always writing, articles, stories, a novel, using every spare minute to put words to paper. His wife, Sally, had given up her college career to help Larry through his education, and is pregnant when they set up shop in town. She and Larry barely scrape by. She is probably the least defined of the four, supportive to all, but ultimately the one most in need of the support of her friends.

She appears early on with canes and leg braces. We learn later how she acquired them. Sid and Charity are at the very opposite end of the financial spectrum. Sid, from Pittsburgh, inherited considerable family wealth. He is a dreamer, wanting to write his poetry, ponder the land, more of a transcendentalist than anything. Charity came from old New England money. She is the organizer, the one who must be in charge. This unlikely foursome become fast friends almost immediately, finding an Eden of mutual acceptance and admiration. The notion of Eden is one that recurs with some frequency. From the high porch, the woods pitching down to the lake are more than a known and loved place. They are a habitat we were once fully adapted to, a sort of Peaceable Kingdom where species such as ours might evolve unchallenged and find their step on the staircase of being. Paradise Lost and Paradise Regained arrive towards the end.

Although his setting is the Northeast, mostly, instead of his beloved West, Stegner pays close attention to place. The hemlocks like this steep shore. Like other species, they hang on to their territory much like Charity is grown from her New England soil. Larry hankers for his birthplace in the Southwest and winds up there, but Stegner satisfies himself with some description of Wisconsin and much of Battell Pond. As the land does in his other tales, this one challenges his characters. A long hike, perhaps standing in for a life journey, is fraught with unexpected impediments, an unmapped beaver pond, storm-downed trees that force unfortunate detours. In Wisconsin, a stormy lake threatens all their lives. Order is indeed the dream of man, but chaos, which is only another word for dumb, blind, witless chance, is still the law of nature.

But Charity takes it as her mission to prevail over entropy. Soon spring would thaw the drifts and reveal the disorder and scarred earth, and she would set to work to transform it into a landscape. We shift between the present and the past, following the friends through the stages of their lives. The two men, both teachers, struggle with getting tenure, finding professional fulfillment and success. We also get a look into the struggles each couple experiences within their relationships. Although all four are offered the stage it is the pairing of Sid and Charity that most lights it up. Stegner offers small details that illuminate and portend. Here Larry describes an interaction with Charity. the kiss I aimed at her cheek barely grazed her. She was not much of a kisser. She had a way of turning at the last minute and presenting a moving target. And what happens at the end of our lives, when this friendship comes to its final chapter? Here everything returns upon itself, repeats and renews itself, and present can hardly be told from past.

Stegner shows that there are always more shoots ready to seek the light as ancient woods bow with time, but we cross our lives to safety with the memories of our brief time here, the treasures of love and friendship. One of those treasures is having read this book. View all 40 comments. Sep 30, Melody rated it it was amazing · review of another edition Shelves: favorites , classics , wow-bookgroup. My dreams are affected, my relationships are affected, my perception of self is affected, and my writing style and speaking style change — all because of the fumes from this book seepage. And Crossing to Safety has seepage. And I walked the hundred-mile back roads behind the horse named Wizard wondering if there were two stashes of tea in his pack. I spent time in an iron lung with my dearest friend by my side assuring me that life was worth living even though I wished it was over.

But most of all — what this gaseous cloud of literary filter did for me - was to confirm that good and bad make the whole; that friends, husbands, children and oh yes! This is a move-to-the-top-of your-list book! View all 49 comments. Nov 25, Swrp rated it it was amazing · review of another edition Shelves: favourites. A miracle of a book. A magical tale, in a different and real sort of way. A real, intense and impactful story that is so human. Indeed, a once in a lifetime read and a book of a lifetime.

Brilliantly written and narrated. Vivid and descriptive - the emotions, the characters, the nature and the landscape. Wise, mature, powerful and fulfilling. A story of commitment, marriage, understanding and friendship. The story of two couples, the Morgans, Sally and Larry, and the Langs, Charity and Sid. An elderly Larry narrates this story of their relationships and life long friendship. The characters will remain in memory, even after the book is done, for a long time to come. A humble advice to all those who may have not 'understood' this book : kindly read this book again after a few years. Crossing to Safety is a kind of story that gets better with time. If you have not read this book yet, then do it right now. You will see your tomorrow and the life going forward in a totally different perspective.

And, this is nothing short of a miracle. This is a not to be missed book. View all 47 comments. Jan 21, Candi rated it it was amazing · review of another edition Shelves: favorites , contemporary-literary , book-i-own. They ask the questions they can answer. Novels or biographies, it makes no difference. It seemed a clever trick to say such a thing and then to go ahead and prove just the opposite. Larry and Sally, Sid and Charity. Stegner depicted them with such clarity, I just had to believe in them. I had no choice really. There they form an unlikely friendship with the Langs whose backgrounds are worlds apart from their own. Stegner goes on to describe a bond that goes beyond blood and family ties.

It is one based entirely on the conscious decision of both couples to get to know one another and nurture that relationship. Long-lasting friendship is not a given once that initial connection is made. There is work to be done, and the effort needs to come from both sides. I found myself reflecting on my own friendships. Many of these are fleeting memories. Others have lasted at some basic level. Only the rare ones reach the level described by Stegner, especially that between Sally and Charity. Each is for the other that one unfailingly understanding and sympathetic fellow-creature that everybody wishes for and many never find. As unlikely as the friendship between the two couples may seem, it may also appear improbable that Sid and Charity are locked together in marriage. Unless you believe that opposites attract. I sure do. Whether opposites can stick it out for the long haul is another thing entirely. It sure makes for compelling reading though!

Holding back a loved one from his or her dreams in favor of safety and security. Poetry, books and the publishing industry. What they exploit is not intelligence or training, but a glorious gift that is also an obligation. Idyllic days spent in the woods of northern Vermont. An excursion to Italy. I can see that place in Vermont right now if I close my eyes and shut out the murmur of the television in the other room, the sound of a snowblower across the street. How do we reconcile ourselves to this reality? But the last section of this book?! Oh my! So much to mull over. I was thinking about it for days after finishing. Rereading certain passages. Asking myself, what would I do in these circumstances. Wallace Stegner really is everything my friends said he would be. No reason to partner with a bunch of duds when someone else has perfect grace and skill. Feb 26, BlackOxford rated it it was amazing Shelves: favourites , american.

A Lost World Once upon a time there was an American Republican President named Eisenhower. But he remained calm in his politics and civil to his political opponents. He set an example. People felt safe around other people. At that time there was a place called Vermont. It contained a smaller place called the Northeast Kingdom. There were no motorways then and this place wa A Lost World Once upon a time there was an American Republican President named Eisenhower. So if you were there, you meant to be there. It had quiet roads for children to walk along, forested hills that the same children could get lost among, and general stores that these children could count on for shady coolness when they found their way home. These smelled of smoke and sweet tobacco. It is of course the smells that are most memorable but the least describable.

Outside the general store, the repair crew works reeking tar into the cracks of the roadbed. The scent of the maples is only noticeable as you enter the stand of spruce, and theirs, only while coming back into the maples. The lake water smells of the rotting leaves on the bottom. Smell is the quickest sense to accept its environment as normal but also the one that makes the most dramatic effect when re-encountered. It was a good time even if not the best of times. There was this disease called polio. Anyone could catch it, almost anywhere. Many did; everyone knew someone who knew someone who had it. Remember President Roosevelt? A bit smarter than Eisenhower but he could only stand up straight with steel braces on his legs. He caught polio in Canada, just over the border. Sometimes it was dangerous. But it was never unexpected. Of course the good old days for us were the new unpredictable days of the mid-twentieth century for most of the country folk roundabout.

We, especially we children, were a problem. We made senseless noise; we had no predictable routines; we did nothing productive; we had no skills useful in the countryside; and we spoke out of turn. We lacked any hint of Methodist discipline or deference. We were therefore dealt with most harshly by the natives - with a stern scowl. This time is not 60 or 70 years ago; it is yesterday. And the chasm between yesterday and today is an entire life which has been expended. For good or ill, this life has dissipated and dispersed down that hole.

The chasm demands to be filled with meaning. Tragedy, fulfilment, success, sacrifice, regret are really equivalent rubble. But only when the gap is filled can a crossing be made safely. It is always surprising what the best fiction-writing raises from the psychic depths. Connections to others, and to oneself, abound in the most unlikely places during the most unlikely times. View all 42 comments. Jun 05, Robin rated it liked it · review of another edition Shelves: semi-autobiographical , american , , literary-fiction. How STRANGE. I assumed, based on the endless 5-star ratings out there for this book, that it was going to be a slam dunk for me. But this book, which is the story of two couples Larry and his wife Sally, and their friends Sid and Charity , bugged the heck out of me.

I'm SORRY! This is may be the sequel to my controversial Prince of Tides experience , in which I just couldn't find the love for a beloved classic. I'll start off by saying there's no denying that Wallace Stegner is a lovely and elegant How STRANGE. I'll start off by saying there's no denying that Wallace Stegner is a lovely and elegant writer. I wouldn't and couldn't critique him on that level. He is a Pulitzer prize and National Book Award winning writer, with an impressive literacy legacy. But and you knew there had to be one I wasn't in the least bit enamoured with the story. It was, in my view, 1 highly sentimental, 2 populated with annoying characters who were in unhealthy yet romanticized relationships, 3 just not that interesting.

Larry is a writer, Sally is his saintly, soft-spoken wife who doesn't seem to have much else going on. They meet and instantly fall under the spell of Charity and her husband Sid. Charity is strong willed see: pathologically controlling and Sid is deferential see: spineless. Sid wants to be a poet but Charity forbids his writing poetry in favour of growing a successful career at the university. The book follows the two couples as Larry rises to success and Sid stays under Charity's thumb. Both relationships are described as "addictions" and it's hard to see either couple as happy.

But Stegner celebrates them, oddly. I found myself tiring of wealthy Sid and Charity, their boisterous generosity. And of Larry and Sally, constantly extolling them for being so boisterous and generous. I tired of the delightful idealized escapades they enjoyed together. I tired of the decades long fight between Charity and Sid over Sid's wanting to write poetry. Come ON, really? This was so weak, so hard to believe or care about. He can't write a few poems and be a professor? Sid's like a whipped dog, right to the bitter end. I have to wonder what Stegner has to celebrate about these relationships other than the sheer tenacity of the couples. Is this the wisdom he came to in his old age? What exactly is he advocating? Stay with your spouse until you die, even if you are unhappy, co-dependent and resentful? Or is this what he decided marriage was?

I know I'm completely on the outside here, and I'm treading on hallowed ground - once again I'm wearing my slippers as to not leave a trace. Please ignore me, lovers of Stegner's last and adored novel. I'm just one lowly reader who probably should stick to McCarthy and his ilk. Jun 07, Jaline rated it it was amazing Shelves: xxcompleted , x-favourites. Can you imagine reading an entire book about the long friendship between two couples and being left gasping at the end, longing for more? The characters in this book primarily Larry and his wife Sally, and their friends Sid and Charity Lang have personalities that are indelibly etched in my heart. I know these people — not just from the outside but because parts of each one are, or have been parts of me, too — at one point or another in my life. At the very least, I was definitely them and they were me during the course of reading this book.

The places I have never been that are described in this book are places as familiar to me now as they would be had I grown up there. The trees, the smells, the weather changes, the variants in the sky — I know them all intimately from reading this book. Wallace Stegner does not need plot devices at all to draw his readers in close enough to live in the book. I definitely want to read more of Mr. This book was a lovely gift to myself and I plan to repeat the action over the coming months. View all 97 comments. Nov 17, Mary rated it it was amazing · review of another edition. Stegner did it. We follow two married couples from their bright eyed s youth to their retirement years. There's no razzle dazzle, no shocks or mysteries, no scandals or horrors.

Their hurts are subtle and familiar. The writing is solid and reflective and downright beautiful. I found the story to be mostly about acceptance. Loving people even when you don't like them. Finding satisfaction in life even when your plans f How do you make a book that anyone will read out of lives as quiet as these? Finding satisfaction in life even when your plans fall through. Not settling, not feeling trapped or resentful, but just learning to be OK with your life and appreciating what you have instead of wasting your life obsessing over what you don't have. A curiously ordinary yet elusive concept. View all 11 comments. May 25, Regina rated it really liked it. I need to recenter my priorities and remember what it can be like to disconnect with electronics and reconnect with humanity. I want to take something to read, similar to the incomparable Stoner by John Williams, that will remind me why I fell in love with literature. A quiet book where I can derive pleasure from the beauty of the words on the page and the images they conjure.

Had it not been for the inclusion of some plot points I try to avoid, it might have been one of mine. View all 65 comments. Jul 10, Kevin Ansbro rated it it was amazing Shelves: human-imagery , coming-of-age , nature , literature-for-grown-ups , inspirational , great-outdoors. Then as I dipped into the lavish reviews, it became the godlike voice that boomed at me through thun "Something will have gone out of us as a people if we ever let the remaining wilderness be destroyed; if we permit the last virgin forests to be turned into comic books and plastic cigarette cases…" —Wallace Stegner As with A Gentleman in Moscow and The Heart's Invisible Furies , the inescapable popularity of this book on Goodreads was the white flash of a rabbit's tail that first caught my eye. Then as I dipped into the lavish reviews, it became the godlike voice that boomed at me through thunder clouds: "Do thyself a favour, mortal, and REEEAD THIS BOOOOK!

I would just like to add at this stage that a plethora of five-star reviews isn't always a reliable indicator of a book's calibre. The story spans several decades and is told by genial culture vulture, Larry Morgan, a writer who marries during the Great Depression; a man prepared to suffer for his art so long as he has his wonderful wife, Sally, by his side. He remarks that it was beautiful to be young and hard up if you had the right wife. There is a 'let's get it all out in the open' honesty to Stegner's writing. His direction though is steered by optimism. This is an urbane version of Steinbeck: An erudite, glass-half-full Steinbeck. He is highbrow yet humble, scholarly yet folksy. Back of the net, Stegner! In a scene reminiscent of an episode of Frasier , Larry and his wife are beguiled by like-minded aesthetes, the Langs, who invite them to their fancy schmantzy dinner party.

The foursome become lifetime friends and the thrust of the story is as much about them as it is the Morgans. Despite his literary success, Larry is often embarrassed at being able to enjoy a comparatively comfortable lifestyle without ever needing to roll up his sleeves and commit to a 'proper' job his father was a farmer. He also recognises that there is more to life than the tinsel of literary praise so true! Stegner was clearly at one with nature and a charming aside about Achilles the Tortoise immediately reminded me of dear old Gerald Durrell. Oh, and the women in this book are given equal billing to the men, which is always a good thing in my view. Because this human story was capably written and wonderfully realised, it didn't need any flash bang wallop or bells and whistles. It's ostensibly a book where a seasoned author has taken his time and allowed his love of words to drive the narrative.

View all 53 comments. Feb 17, Debbie rated it really liked it · review of another edition Shelves: reads , great-depression , geriatrics , classics , american-midwest , broke-my-heart , american-northeast , historical-fiction , audiobook. Why I chose to listen to this book: 1. since I enjoyed listening to Stegner's Angle of Repose , a couple of GR friends recommended that I read some of his other books, including this one; and, 2. considered by many to be an American classic, I thought it would be a great addition to my "Classics Month"! Positives: 1. Oh, my heart! I felt like I was listening to a story about real people, not just characters in a book! Following the decades-long enduring friendship between Larry our narrator and Sal Why I chose to listen to this book: 1. Following the decades-long enduring friendship between Larry our narrator and Sally Morgan, along with Sid and Charity Lang, I couldn't help but feel emotionally connected to these married couples' joyful moments, work issues, marital discord, tragic events - all revolving around their intense loyalties for each other; 2.

in case I didn't make myself clear, this is an exceptional character-driven novel! One gets the sense of some strong personalities, especially Charity's. Although I most likely wouldn't be a part of these people's social circle, sometimes I felt a kinship towards Charity, but at other times, a powerful frustration for her martyr-like behavior; 3. some parts of this story were so heartbreaking for me that they had me crying long after the story was done! I just had to walk around outside for a while, letting it all soak in; 4. This PDF book is become immediate popular in Fiction genre. Crossing to Safety is written by famous author Wallace Stegner and Ready to Download in ePUB, PDF or Kindle formats. Released by Modern Library in Click Download Book button to get book file and read directly from your devices. Here is a quick description and cover image of Crossing to Safety book.

Tracing the lives, loves, and aspirations of two couples who move between Vermont and Wisconsin, it is a work of quiet majesty, deep compassion, and powerful insight into the alchemy of friendship and marriage.

Author: Wallace Stegner Submitted by: Maria Garcia Views Request a Book Add a Review. Crossing to Safety PDF book by Wallace Stegner Read Online or Free Download in ePUB, PDF or MOBI eBooks. Published in the book become immediate popular and critical acclaim in fiction, classics books. Suggested PDF: The Big Rock Candy Mountain pdf. Crossing to Safety is a beautiful novel written by the famous author Wallace Stegner. The book is perfect for those who wants to read classics, literary fiction books. Crossing to Safety pdf book was awarded with National Book Critics Circle Award Nominee for Fiction , Premi Llibreter de narrativa Nominee The main character of the story are Sally Morgan, Larry Morgan, Sid Lang, Charity Lang. The book was first published in and the latest edition of the book was published in April 9th which eliminates all the known issues and printing errors.

by Wallace Stegner. BooksVooks Genres Fiction Wallace Stegner Crossing to Safety pdf. FREE Crossing to Safety PDF Book by Wallace Stegner Download or Read Online Free Author: Wallace Stegner Submitted by: Maria Garcia Views Request a Book Add a Review Crossing to Safety PDF book by Wallace Stegner Read Online or Free Download in ePUB, PDF or MOBI eBooks. Crossing to Safety PDF Details Author: Wallace Stegner Book Format: Paperback Original Title: Crossing to Safety Number Of Pages: pages First Published in: Latest Edition: April 9th Language: English Awards: National Book Critics Circle Award Nominee for Fiction , Premi Llibreter de narrativa Nominee Genres: Fiction , Classics , Literary Fiction , Book Club , Literature , Main Characters: Sally Morgan, Larry Morgan, Sid Lang, Charity Lang Formats: audible mp3, ePUB Android , kindle, and audiobook.

Popular Books Page Views. Related Books Reads. National Book Critics Circle Award Nominee for Fiction , Premi Llibreter de narrativa Nominee Fiction , Classics , Literary Fiction , Book Club , Literature ,. The Big Rock Candy Mountain pdf by Wallace Stegner. Angle of Repose pdf by Wallace Stegner. Recapitulation pdf by Wallace Stegner. All the Little Live Things pdf by Wallace Stegner. The Spectator Bird pdf by Wallace Stegner. Beyond the Hundredth Meridian pdf by Wallace Stegner. Big Rock Candy Mountain pdf by Wallace Stegner.

Better World Books. We made senseless noise; we had no predictable routines; we did nothing productive; we had no skills useful in the countryside; and we spoke out of turn. A curiously ordinary yet elusive concept. Another 'GREAT' book club discussion book why hasn't our book club picked this one to read?? com Crossing to Safety in Richmond Virginia. Not settling, not feeling trapped or resentful, but just learning to be OK with your life and appreciating what you have instead of wasting your life obsessing over what you don't have. Level Crossings.

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