the lincoln highway
the lincoln highway is a novel written by award-winning American author and financial director Amor Towles. This title comes after the writer published two titles that remained on the best-seller list for weeks. New York Times. And no, luck has not been different, since the text went back to becoming Amazon's book of the year, thus completing a triplet followed by successes.
This novel by Amor Towles has been available in Spanish since 2022 thanks to the translation by Gemma Rovira Ortega and the distribution by the Salamandra publishing house. According to some critics, the text reveals an initiation story, where the important thing lies in the development of the characters, in how they move through life and the way in which they face the difficulties imposed. the lincoln highway it's a trip.
Synopsis of the lincoln highway
How to survive away from home
The plot begins when Emmett returns to his family's farm after being admitted to a reformatory for a year. Upon arrival, he discovers that his father has just passed away., and that, from now on, he must take care of his younger brother, Billy, by himself.
Very soon they find themselves in trouble, They are not in the financial position to run the farm. So, se come forced a leave their roots and leave for california to find his mother.
Things get even more complicated when, suddenly, appear two of the brothers' friends: duchess and woolly. They all travel down the Lincoln Highway while, at the same time, living experiences that take them to unexpected emotional states.
The book is narrated from multiple points of view., so the reader can understand what each of the four young people thinks and feels at all times.
A novel of characters
As we mentioned earlier, the highlight of the lincoln highway are the characters: its four protagonists. Love Towles takes her time with Emmett, Billy, Duchess and Woolly. Each one of them has their own dreams, insecurities, traumas and ways of being and seeing the world. The fact that the author has taken such care in this construction creates an atmosphere of stillness in the narrative.
Between pages it may appear that nothing is actually happening. However, introspections and dialogues -very well done- serve as a resource that allows the gradual evolution of children, as well as the resolution of some of their conflicts.
About the setting
Amor Towles is a scholar and lover of the avant-garde of the early XNUMXth century. His passion for Jazz music, cars, certain places in New York, fashion... results in the concise setting of the lincoln highway: fifties.
Emmett, Billy, Duchess and Woolly live in a complex context. The work places them in a United States of great contrasts: prevailed the beauty and abundance —characteristic of the time—, but at the same time reigned the classism and marginalization against the poor.
Main characters
Emmett
Emmett is a boy who drags a tragic past. By accident, he was involved in an event that led him to spend a year in a juvenile corrections facility. Since then he has never been the same. While taking care of his younger brother, he must battle loneliness and guilt.
Billy
This is the Emmett's little brother. He is very smart and awake. He loves books and movies. He constantly makes references to popular culture, so his participation enriches the narrative with interesting details.
Duchess
duchess is one of those characters hurt by their absent parents, which, at the same time, must pay for a mistake that it did not commit.
wooly
Woolly is a boy with certain physical handicaps: he You need to be medicated and monitored at all times, so his friends can't leave him alone.
A future classic of youth literature?
the lincoln highway It is a novel with great symbolism. On the one hand, there is a journey This is a tangible fact, it occurs within the plot, but, in turn, is a metaphor on the growth of the protagonists.
The book highlights the need to leave the darkness of the past behind, showing beautiful places and others not so graceful on the way. Likewise, the end of the road is not happy in itself. However, it is loaded with hope.
En the lincoln highway, Love Towles raises the concepts of friendship, family, love and the importance of making the right decisions to achieve a more positive future.
Emmett, Billy, Duchess and Woolly they are endearing characters they learn —for the bad, sometimes— what are the differences between good and evil, and who are the people they can really trust.
About the author, Love Towles
Love Towles
Love Towles was born in 1964, in Boston, Massachusetts, United States. As a child, Towles became fond of literature. His favorite referent was Edward Stratemeyer, with his series of young adult books Hardy boys. Over time, he discovered other authors, such as JRR Tolkien. and ray bradbury, which made his passion for letters grow much more. Consequently, this love led him to study English Literature at Stanford University.
However, the beginning of his career had more to do with numerical areas, since he used to work as CFO. Even so, Amor Towles never outgrew his love of writing. Soon he posted his first novel, call Courtesy rules. This work was a great commercial success, becoming a bestseller and being praised by The Wall Street Journal y The New York Times.
Both newspapers declared the book one of the best of 2011. The public's affection for Amor Towles grew even more with the publication of his second novel: A gentleman in Moscow, also winner of the coveted number one position on the best-seller list of the The New York Times. It was with this work that the author finally emancipated himself from his financial career and definitively dedicated himself to letters.