Mrs Bridge by Evan S Connell – rereading | Books | The Guardian

Mrs Bridge by Evan S Connell – rereading | Books | The Guardian:

"One might be compelled to compare it specifically with Richard Yates's Revolutionary Road, as that classic's counterpart. No blow-out fights here. No wretched unravelling tragedy. But despite their very different presentations of domestic life, the two books have in common characters who sense something beyond, and better than, the settled contentment of their prosperous lives. "

Evan S. Connell

Great to see a long article on my favorite American novel -- and curious indeed to see the comparison to Yates. Because at the Univ of Oregon, where I was introduced to Connell in my novel writing class, taught by Robert Lacy (drinking buddy to Yates), our two textbooks for reverse engineering were these same two novels. Connell has worn with me better than Yates (a difference between "great" and "good"). Connell and Dos Passos, as I noted here before, were the two major influences on my own recent novel.

If you haven't read this novel, you should. If you have, maybe it's time for a rereading. I'm overdue myself but have it waiting on my Kindle.