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Comments (34)

What did you think about this title?
1 to 25 of 34 items
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May 05, 2023
"In this book, a slew of ordinary lives become extraordinary in this stunningly intricate portrait of a city and its people. I love it!" - Raven P.
Feb 24, 2023busymom51 rated this title 3 out of 5 stars
In 1974, Phillipe Petit strung a cable between the two towers of the nearly completed World Trade Center and astounded the world with a tightrope performance 110 stories in the air. This event provides the backdrop for a most unusual novel…
flint_westwood
Jan 19, 2021flint_westwood rated this title 1 out of 5 stars
Very boring, flat and predictable one dimensional characters. With the merit of following the perspective of so many characters at once, none of them have any real time to shine, to grow, or develop past tropes in fiction. Also I feel…
Feb 07, 2020
***
Aug 02, 2019
Great author- try another book he wrote
Jul 08, 2019EljayJohnson rated this title 3 out of 5 stars
Oh, this book. A big, fat, very stuffed piece of fiction about many (somewhat) connected people in mid '70s NYC. I got some whiplash as I spun from extremes reading it. I settled on 3 stars, but it's an average from the roller coaster of…
Mar 19, 2018bpolivka rated this title 5 out of 5 stars
A great weaver of the lives of people with six degrees of separation. All tied together by the wire-walker on the World Trade Center.
Jun 09, 2015Wong_Anne rated this title 4 out of 5 stars
A winner of the IMPAC Dublin Award - The author has based his story on an historical event, tying together the stories of 4 different people who witnessed it. I found the characters to be very well developed and their stories were…
Oct 04, 2014stewstealth rated this title 4 out of 5 stars
A wonderful bittersweet look at life.
Aug 31, 2014Wishyouwerehere rated this title 5 out of 5 stars
Very best book. Wonderful characters and unexpected storylines.
Aug 15, 2014mombrarian rated this title 5 out of 5 stars
Beautiful inter-weaving of characters and time come together for a satisfying conclusion. McCann is a gifted storyteller!
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May 29, 2014beatrice81 rated this title 0.5 out of 5 stars
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Mar 06, 2014ohiostatefan rated this title 4.5 out of 5 stars
I'll have to watch the movie Man On Wire again after reading this engrossing and at times heartwrenching book about the intertwining lives of several residents of NYC in the 1970s.
kellnerm
Dec 18, 2013
NYT re; Colum Mcann author
Aug 06, 2013Zoomerofall rated this title 4 out of 5 stars
This is a beautifully written book. The only reason I didn't give it 5 stars was the occasional careless use of anachronistic slang.
Jul 22, 2013annekim9 rated this title 5 out of 5 stars
After hearing Irish author Colum McCann speak at Central Library, I finally read his wonderful award-winning novel Let the Great World Spin. A truly masterful piece of work. I love how McCann weaves Philippe Petit's stunning 1974 walk…
Jul 12, 2013
Must agree with jacket reviewers. Captivating. I could follow and remember the characters and their relationships even when the opening sentences of their monologues weren't obviously identified. Really enjoyed this book.
Jun 11, 2013uncommonreader rated this title 3 out of 5 stars
McCann very cleverly uses the 1974 tightrope walk between the Twin Towers to paint a picture of New York City in the 1970s through various narratives and intersecting stories of people who saw or were somehow connected with the tightrope…
Dec 12, 2012queensgirl1963 rated this title 0.5 out of 5 stars
Did not finish this one.
Jul 14, 2012snkattk rated this title 5 out of 5 stars
Brilliant book. An extraordinary act (see Man on Wire after reading this) paralleled with 'ordinary' characters who are the true focal point as the heartaches the live with are beautifully described, ultimately revealing our…
Oct 16, 2011Spence41 rated this title 5 out of 5 stars
I loved this book! The lives of a dozen or so New Yorkers in 1974 are brought together by two things: a similarity in their struggles that forces them to realize life continues forward despite incredible loss and by an unbelievable vision,…
Aug 16, 201121288004105371 rated this title 2 out of 5 stars
Pretty disappointed with book. Good writing, but found the subject matter pretty bleak. Also, not enough dialogue so found it pretty slow through parts.
Mar 29, 2011JUGEY rated this title 2.5 out of 5 stars
This book came very highly recommended but I didn't really love it. Some of it was slow and I had to push through it. It skips around from character to character a lot which was a little annoying at times.
Mar 10, 2011lilwordworm rated this title 4.5 out of 5 stars
It is centered on a true event of a tightrope walker who crossed the NYC twin towers in the 1970s. But the story has almost nothing to do with the walk itself. Instead it is a beautifully spun web of intertwined fates that illustrate the…
Bettylg
Feb 04, 2011Bettylg rated this title 5 out of 5 stars
a snapshot of a very chaotic but charismatic New York city scene