This book is routinely ranked by critics as one of the best books of the 20th century. It is a tale told by 19 points of view via stream-of-consciousness storytelling. If the reader can follow through the arrangement of the plot, it keeps the final twist hanging until literally the last sentence.
The story is set in Faulkner’s famed Yoknapatawpha county. Addie Bundren is the mother of a family in rural Mississippi. She dies in the early part of the novel. Her family takes her coffin for burial in Jefferson, across the length of the county. Their outing becomes an adventure as each of the family members’ motives becomes exposed. They encounter a flooded river crossing, a burning barn, and a requested abortion. Like many families, this story illustrates the essential dysfunction of the Bundren family.
What makes this novel great is the pioneering use of the stream of consciousness and the varying points of view. Like much (all?) of Faulkner’s works, the plot can be hard to follow due to the constant variation. Nonetheless, reading this work is like feeling an elephant blindfolded from several angles – that is, piecing together a coherent whole is what makes the venture fun for the reader. This is not just incoherent southern rambling. There is a “there” there. The attempt to figure out what the text means is well worth the time of an engaged reader.
As I Lay Dying
by William Faulkner
Copyright (c) 1930
ISBN13 9780679732259
Page Count: 267
Genre: Fiction, Southern Gothic
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