Colum McCann
Published in 2009
The book “Let The Great World Spin” by Colum McCann is a story wrapped into 4 separate sections or “books” and features multiple different perspectives. The book represents how many different lives and people can all be connected without realizing it. The book is set in New York City and follows a tightrope walker who walks between the Twin Towers which is based on the real event done by Philippe Petit on August 7, 1974. Each perspective tells the story of what they were doing on this day during this walk and how everybody in the book is connected in some way. The book has gotten recognized for the 2009 U.S. National Book Award for Fiction and the 2011 International Dublin Literary Award. In each story you learn about the characters’ separate lives, situations, emotions, and how they deal with love, loss, addiction, societal shifts, and more.
The book begins by following the brothers’ perspective of Corrigan. His brother goes to the Bronx, where Corrigan is living, and we learn about his personal struggles such as his relationship with God, guilt, and his desire to help others. Other perspectives include Claire, who deals with grief over her son’s death and difficulty moving on; the tightrope walkers risking his life to create a moment of “wonder” for those below him; Gloria who deals with racism, an abusive past, and trying to rebuild her life with children; and two prostitutes who are mother and daughter and deal with addiction, poverty, and feeling trapped. The book does a really good job at making you think and understand new ways of grief and understanding and is definitely a story to remember. – Cali Ferndelli
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