Definitely not his best book. This one goes on and on and on... Look at Straight Man and Empire Falls for much better stories.

posted Oct 9, 2007 at 7:37AM

I laughed, I cried. It definitely starts slowly, but I loved the color and detail he develops with minor characters, physical and geographical settings described,and the intellectual and emotional growth of his characters. The last 200 pages are satisfying as these very real people come to terms with themselves and their choices, and understand, as one says, first and above all we have to love people.

posted Sep 21, 2008 at 8:22AM

I would head straight for Nobody’s Fool. This one is so-so.

posted Oct 6, 2009 at 1:23PM

Looking at Russo’s career, his short, entertaining works of fiction gradually worked their way into more substantial (and longer) novels, culminating with this title, which weights in at 527 pages. I would agree that it’s not his best. For sharp, laugh-out-loud dialogue, go for Nobody’s Fool and Straight Man; for dramatic, moving storytelling, you can’t beat Empire Falls. That said, I hope Bridge of Sighs gets its due in years to come, because it is a truly stirring work and feels almost the most personal of Russo’s stories. He takes the time to let the town’s history and people reveal themselves and the complicated relationships between the main three characters are extraordinary. I wasn’t a huge fan of the ending, which seemed out of left field for me, but I appreciated the atmosphere and dramatic tension.

posted Jan 9, 2013 at 2:28PM

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