Bridge of Clay
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4.0 • 9 Ratings
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- $10.99
Publisher Description
The unforgettable, New York Times bestselling family saga from Markus Zusak, the storyteller who gave us the extraordinary bestseller THE BOOK THIEF, lauded by the New York Times as "the kind of book that can be life-changing."
NAMED ONE OF THE BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR BY ENTERTAINMENT WEEKLY • THE WALL STREET JOURNAL
"One of those monumental books that can draw you across space and time into another family’s experience in the most profound way." —The Washington Post
"Mystical and loaded with heart, it's another gorgeous tearjerker from a rising master of them." —Entertainment Weekly
“Devastating, demanding and deeply moving.” —Wall Street Journal
The breathtaking story of five brothers who bring each other up in a world run by their own rules. As the Dunbar boys love and fight and learn to reckon with the adult world, they discover the moving secret behind their father’s disappearance.
At the center of the Dunbar family is Clay, a boy who will build a bridge—for his family, for his past, for greatness, for his sins, for a miracle.
The question is, how far is Clay willing to go? And how much can he overcome?
Written in powerfully inventive language and bursting with heart, BRIDGE OF CLAY is signature Zusak.
APPLE BOOKS REVIEW
It’s been 12 years since Markus Zusak released the international bestseller The Book Thief, but it was worth the wait. Bridge of Clay introduces us to the five irrepressible Dunbar brothers, who are raising themselves after their mother’s death led their grief-stricken father to abandon them. As the boys struggle with loss, grief, and forgiveness, this sprawling Australian saga explores the beauty and violence of life. We were completely captivated by the charming and hotheaded Dunbar family, whom we won’t soon forget.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
This exquisitely written multigenerational family saga by Zusak (The Book Thief), his first novel in 13 years, weaves the story of a missing father and a bridge-building brother. The five Dunbar brothers are beholden to only themselves after the death of their mother and abandonment by their father ("Our mother was dead./ Our father had fled"). Matthew, the eldest, puts their story to paper by way of "the old TW," a typewriter: "Let me tell you about our brother./ The fourth Dunbar boy named Clay./ Everything happened to him./ We were all of us changed through him." Slipping back and forth in time, the book maps a complex history: grown and married with two children, Matthew recounts their mother's immigration to the United States at age 18, their father's upbringing and first marriage, and young life in the chaotic, loving Dunbar household of five boys then devastation after their father disappears. The deftly woven threads build tension as Zusak's skillful use of foreshadowing and symbolism brings long-held secrets to the surface. With heft and historical scope, Zusak creates a sensitively rendered tale of loss, grief, and guilt's manifestations. Ages 14 up.
