It’s been far too long since my last post (things have been a little crazy at work), but I had to take some time to write a recommendation for one of the greatest books I’ve ever read (and its sequel): Ken Follett’s The Pillars of the Earth. Apparently I’m a little late to the party with this one, but in my defense I actually did start reading this well before Oprah recommended it.

The Pillars of the Earth is a historical fiction by Ken Follett first published in 1989. Its genre deviates greatly from the novels by which Follett had become successful up to that point, and he was in fact — if not exactly discouraged — not encouraged to write it by his publisher and some friends. Most of the time, when a novelist tries to radically break out of their mold, it apparently doesn’t go so well. In the case of Pillars, nothing could have been further from the truth.

When I first stumbled across this book on Audible.com (I tend to listen to audiobooks more than actually read them, since I spend so much time commuting each day), the basic premise puzzled me: a story about the building of a cathedral in 12th century England. How could a giant, nearly 1000-page novel/40-plus hour audiobook be about building a church? However, the reviews were extremely positive and the ratings were ridiculously high, so I decided to give it a shot. It turned out to be one of the best books I’ve ever read.

Pillars is all about the people. Follett weaves together the lives of several generations of people over the three decades it takes to build this cathedral in (fictional) Kingsbridge, England. The span of time the story encompasses helps immerse you, as in some cases you follow the characters from their childhood through most of their adult lives. The skill with which the characters and their environment are built is, in my opinion, nearly unparalleled. The texture of 12th century England is everywhere; I was repeatedly struck by the rarity in their world of things we take for granted — being able to read, for example, or having a house with more than one room — and the things they accept as part of life that we never would have imagined.

You come to know, intimately, all the major characters. Their daily struggles, their long-term ambitions, their joy, their heartbreak — it’s all there, it’s all so perfectly painted that you can’t help but identify with them. The world swirls around them as so many different factors conspire over the decades to impede the ultimate vision of the grand Kingsbridge Cathedral. The politics of the time are just as complex, strange, and dangerous — perhaps even more so — as modern day, and the various threads of the story keep your rapt attention until the very end.

I’m not sure I can say anything else without launching into enthusiastic rants that might give away parts of the book. Suffice to say, this is not the kind of novel I normally read — but I was fascinated. When it was finished, I felt a sense of sadness that I would no longer be able to follow these characters’ lives. The sequel World Without End just came out, however (18 years after Pillars was first published!), and I immediately bought it and read it. Although it’s not the same people (it is set 200 years later in Kingsbridge), it is just as intriguing and masterfully written as the first. My only complaint about both books — and it’s a minor one — is that at times he tends to repeat things, almost like a serial TV series where they do the “Last time, on xxxxx…” bit at the beginning. They’re typically just a few sentences to catch up a reader that might be going kind of slow and not recall something that happened 700 pages ago. That gripe, however, is easily overlooked.

Pillars of the Earth is one of the best books I have ever had the pleasure of spending my free time on, and I strongly recommend it. If you’re into audiobooks, as I am, the unabridged recording from Audible is excellent. The narrator captures the characters well. If you’ve read Pillars, comment here and let everyone know what you think!