Vigil

Jan 11

About the book

Author: George Saunders
Publisher: Random House

More info:
The StoryGraph | Goodreads
Note: Content and trigger warnings are provided for those who need them at the bottom of this page. If you don’t need them and don’t want to risk spoilers, don’t scroll past the review.

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My review

I, like most of the rest of the world, was eagerly anticipating George Saunders’ sophomore novel after his work of genius, Lincoln in the Bardo. I quite enjoyed Vigil, although I must warn you: do not expect it to be LITB, or you will be disappointed (like many reviewers).

One of the main reasons I enjoyed this book so much is because it’s essentially a retelling of A Christmas Carol, complete with a ton of parallel characters. I re-read A Christmas Carol almost every year, and it's one of my favorites. It was really fun to see how Saunders took this classic and adapted it for our current times (the Scrooge in question is a grumpy oil tycoon, and the inventor of the combustion engine feels a lot like Jacob Marley, among many others). Ghosts of the past, people of the present, and a terrifying look into the future shape the central question of the novel, which is: Are people inevitable, and how much should we hold them accountable if so?

That brings me to the biggest difference between LITB and this, which is that LITB takes a moral stance, whereas Vigil simply asks the question. I know a lot of people have been very frustrated by Saunders’ refusal to propose an answer to his question, especially in the current political climate. I do think that the timing is a little bit unfortunate, because a few years ago I believe people would have been a lot more open to thinking about what Sonder wants us to think about. Right now there's just no appetite for that. Personally, I feel like I know enough about Saunders’ politics to understand that he would never truly think that oil tycoons should not be held accountable, but I recognize that most readers will not have that background.

But for me, I thought this was smarter than it initially lets on. When you first read it, it does feel a bit one-note and surface-level. It really makes you work for it and wonder what the heck he was trying to do, but if its purpose is to make you debate with yourself, it achieves that. My group chat with three other people, when we read it together, had hundreds and hundreds of messages and a great debate. And is that is not impressive in itself?

I haven't even gotten into all the nuance and questions about the main character who is tasked with guiding this oil tycoon into the next life!

In short, I understand why many people are frustrated with this, and I understand why the high expectations from LITB have left many disappointed, but I enjoyed it, and I'm definitely looking forward to whatever Saunders writes next!