Crossing to Safety

I was at a brunch three weeks ago and friends of mine recommended Wallace Stegner to me as an author. Having worked for the Public Library all these years I was familiar with his name, though I could not remember anything he had written. So, last week on one of my regular trips into the library, I went to the stacks and picked up the only work by Stegner on the shelf. Crossing to Safety did not disappoint me. I can see now why my friends held his work in such high esteem. Stegner is both a master of storytelling and an artist with words. I have read few others who tell such a compelling tale whilst using language so effectively. focuses on the friendship between two couples who meet during the Depression of the 30s and follows it through to their old age and the circumstances that continue to bring them together. There are not plot twists, gimmicks, or sex. Just a simple rendering of the beauties and triumphs of true friendship as well as the trials and tribulations. The interspersonal relationships of the two couples are fascinating in their complexity and depth and watching them evolve over the course of the novel provided continual changes of mood. It forces us to think about the nature of companionship, the joys of generosity, and the "whys" of friendship. In short, Crossing to Safety is one of the finest novels that I have ever read and I look forward to my next foray into the work of Wallace Stegner.