It also becomes clear that Pastor John isnt really a pastor, but perhaps someone who uses the moniker to his benefit. As Duchess questions Fitzy, Fitzy apologizes for a statement he had written and signed for the po9lice. The next morning, Emmett heads to Harlem to pick up his now-yellow Studebaker which has gotten some other upgrades as well. Emmett tries to pay for the food instead with some cash that Mr. Parker had tipped him (on the train), but pulls out the bill to find that its a 50-dollar bill and Ulysses sternly tells him to put it away. I feel Emmett was truly concerned that Duchess would find him and Billy and continue to cause havoc so he had to delay Duchess. Then, in the kitchen hed found an envelope marked To Be Opened in the Event of My Absence in Woollys handwriting (which we soon learn is Woollys will). This is how I perceive the author's intent for all his characters. (He tells Billy that For only when you have seen that you are truly forsaken will you embrace the fact that what happens next rests in your hands, and your hands alone.). Pastor John happens to be walking by when he spots the open hatch and Billy sitting alone in the boxcar, reading his big red book by his side. This horrifies Emmett and hes determined for Duchess to finally go to the police to own up to his crimes and thats when the two get into a fight. When he returned, Woolly was dead. Meanwhile, the Studebaker wont be ready until tomorrow morning. So Emmett will not get pushed around any longer and is willing to do whatever it takes to get him and Billy to safety. So in accepting the possibility that he could drown, he killed him. This is their chance to leave behind Nebraska and its bad memories and try out California. Over dinner, Duchess further explains that Woolly has a trust fund, for which his brother-in-law, Dennis Whitney, is the trustee (the person who makes decisions on behalf of a minor). Emmett tries to impress upon the consequences of Duchesss actions. In present day, Pastor John sees Ulysses slump over. Pastor John knocks him out with the shovel. In 1954 much of that travel would have been on two lane roads until reaching Pennsylvania and New Jersey. With the exception of Woolly, the teenagers in this novel are remarkably mature by today's standards, and burdened by cares. He then goes into the room that he had stayed at the longest. However, when they arrive, it turns out Woolly doesn't know the combination (and it never occurred to him there would be one). For him, there are three main debts one he owes to someone else, and two debts that are owed to him. Duchess realizes that theyre at the intersection that is mentioned in Billys big red book (I write to you from the junction of Thirty-Fourth Street and Fifth Avenue on the isle of Manhattan), the location thats described as the office of Professor Abacus Abernathe, the author of the book. Looking at Emmett, though, he says he doesnt look like a theatrical producer, and he recommends that Emmett pretend to be a rodeo owner. Duchess is a smart guy so I think he would have waited for the wind to push him back to the other side of the lake. Afterwards, Emmett looks at Billys big red book. Dennis talks about the three boarding schools that Woolly had gotten kicked out of and about how theyd lied about Woollys age to keep him from being sentenced as an adult. However, they often ended up needing help from others. Ransom, a neighbor and family friend who has known Emmett his whole life, meets them outside. Like his first two novels, 'The Lincoln Highway' is elegantly constructed and compulsively readable. When Emmett declines, Duchess "borrows" Emmett's car, forcing Emmet and Billy to stowaway on a train to New York to find Duchess and Woolly and reclaim it. By Amor Towles Viking: 592 pages, $30 If you buy books linked on our site, The Times may earn a commission from Bookshop.org, whose fees support independent . Its worth noting that Woolly is described as being somewhat child-like, easily fascinated by things and also easily distracted by or led away by things that interest him. Then, he took full advantage of it before finally sneaking out the back stairs when it was time to leave. (Previous chapters have referenced how Warden William had taken over from Ackerly and made reforms like trying to educate the kids and firing the nurse who was illicitly dispensing drugs. Duchess had referenced a building that houses all the big agencies, but Emmett cant remember what the name was. The Lincoln Highway: A New York Times Number One Bestseller: Amazon.co.uk: Towles, Amor: 9781786332523: Books He demands that Woolly go work for one of his stockbroker friends after he finishes his sentence. So, maybe he didnt actually kill Woolly but he also didnt help to prevent the overdose. In June, 1954, eighteen-year-old Emmett Watson is driven home to Nebraska by the warden of the work farm where he has just served a year for involuntary manslaughter. He then sees hes next to a freshly dug grave with a casket at the bottom. Afterwards, Emmett sees Woollys will which was duly signed and dated. When a hiss of steam indicates that the car is going to move again, Emmett rushes out. He understands why Sally is upset, knowing that there was once the possibility of something between them. Emmett had brought down the picnic set to urge them to go, and his mother had reluctantly agreed. She also talks about the parable of the Good Samaritan and how we do not always get to choose to whom we should show out charity.. He knows that population growth is crucial to his plan of ensuring the profits of possible rental properties. In present day, Emmett thanks Mr. 'A Gentleman In Moscow' Is A Grand Hotel Adventure, Idea For 'Gentleman In Moscow' Came From Many Nights In Luxury Hotels. At the park, Woolly notices a man feeding the birds and some squirrels (the Birdman) by placing kernels of popcorn all over himself. Ulysses gets into the grave and opened the casket. It is a good summary but full of typos, extra words and words left out. Duchess thinks back to how you used to be able to make out the word Othello printed on the case. This was a good review. He leaves and takes the train to Hastings-on-Hudson. A year ago, Emmett killed another young man, Jimmy Snyder. Cathy I was shocked that Emmett, as portrayed, left him in the boat as described. Hed decided to walk the 40 miles to the nearest junction in Des Moines instead. He met his wife Macie Dixon during the depression. He follows the cowboy hat guy. So, when Sally called Sarahs place, no one picked up and it kept ringing instead. Emmett is not pleased to see them, knowing they should just finish their sentences. Once he steals Emmetts car and heads up to New York, it completely delays Emmetts and Billys plans. Instead, he would rather use Fitzys feelings of remorse to guilt him into telling him where his father is. She was a singer who got sick and died. Duchess comments on how great the preserves are, while Emmett says they already have jam. This is why his interactions with his sister seemed to have a farewell component to it. The wind also causes some bills to fly away. Its now June 21st, and Emmett tells Billy they should be able to make it to San Francisco by July 4. In that moment, a black man named Ulysses who knows Pastor John enters the boxcar. Billy says that hed want a house in San Francisco. He instead changes to subject and starts reminiscing about their childhood. When Townhouse was 16, he rented out one of the cars a Buick Skylark convertible for a date with a girl, Clarise. It turns out Woolly did leave each of the friends his money. While A Gentleman in Moscow and The Lincoln Highway differ in duration, the ending of the two books match each other in a very specific . However, Duchess derails the plan. He takes his medicine, and then he takes the pink pills from the little brown bottle. Duchess finds Fitzy FitzWilliams, an old friend of Harry. Load groceries and much more with ease into this 1/2 ton suv thanks to the power liftgate. Young Billy is an utter gem, with his love for books (one book in particular) and his genuine trust in humanity making him an immediate fan favorite. Duchess's goes looking for his father (Harry), who is trying to evade him after learning that Duchess escaped from juvie. He then grabs Billy by his shirt collar. The Lincoln Highway Summary. Nov. 19, 2021 Universally Accepted To the Editor: In his recent review of Amor Towles's wonderful "The Lincoln Highway" (Nov. 7), Chris Bachelder says, "The book lacks a prominent female. Jimmy was a troublemaker who had goaded Emmett into punching him. Thanks. That night, situated in the trains empty car, Emmett and Billy open the cars hatch (with warning from the panhandler to shut it when they near the Chicago station mid-way). After leaving the hotel, they met up with Miss Maples, the magicians assistant in their troupe. While we dont know the details of it yet, it seems clear that it somehow implicated Duchess. Each chapter covers one hero, adventurer or traveler. If you'd like me to review your book, contact me! (The number 8 figures repeatedly, a reflection of the travelers' and life's roundabout, recursive route.) Woolly is excited to see the statues of Abraham Lincoln which Billy says have been placed along the road, since Woolly is a great admirer of Lincoln. Townhouse warns, however, that the police looking for Duchesss were asking about a blue Studebaker. None of them are major and they dont detract from the content at all. The Lincoln Highway in Pennsylvania Through historic towns like York, Lancaster, and Bedford, you can follow some 200 miles of the original road. The novel embraces the contradictions of our character with a skillful. He finds Ackerly asleep in a BarcaLounger in the living room with a smile on his face. The standing man who identifies himself as Mr. Parker is very drunk, and Emmett lies and says that hes a brakeman. When Emmett was 15, he asked Mr. Schulte, the carpenter, to work for him in the summers. In present day, Emmett and Sally piece together that it was likely Duchess who did it. Afterwards, Sarah wants to ask him a question, but he implies that hes rather she didnt. He advises that Emmett will eventually need to stand up for yourself like you used to. Duchess can tell that Townhouse is their leader. It took him six tries to get it open. Downstairs, he hears some clanging, but he ignores it and climbs into bed. Why are the summaries counted down from 10? Townhouse didnt make a big deal about it, but Duchess knows he owes Townhouse. Next to him is a picture of Ackerly with two boys, presumably his grandsons. Jacob is Jimmys brother. After surveying Morgen, Nebraska, Duchess notes how small the town is, only four blocks in either direction. 1913 The Lincoln Highway was the first transcontinental road for automobiles in the United States, dedicated in 1913. Afterwards, they open three bottles of Denniss wine to try the same trick suddenly, Dennis and Sarah walk in. In town, Jake Snyder (brother of Jimmy Snyder) accosts Emmett, trying to goad him into a fight and then punching Emmett a few times, though Emmett doesn't fight back. But Duchess made a mess of everything. After all this effort, all Duchess can do is laugh when he realizes that Woolly doesnt know the combination and that it genuinely didnt occur to Woolly that they needed a combination. Duchess held grudges but recognized when he'd treated others badly (as when he found Townsend and got him to settle the score from the work camp). Outside, Emmett smashes a windowpane to get back into the house. The next morning, Sally Ransom, their neighbor and a former romantic interest of Emmett's drops by. He wonders if perhaps he could open it somewhere in California, maybe Los Angeles. As Duchess and Woolly head to New York down the Lincoln Highway, Duchess assuages Woollys guilt over taking Emmetts car by reminding him that with the money they recover, Emmett will be better off and Billy can come closer to having the house they dreamt up. He returned in time to see Emmett and Duchess arguing with each other. The highway itself acts as nothing more than a MacGuffin, or a device that motivates the plot but ends up being entirely irrelevant to the work. But Emmett is concerned that Duchess will try and find them. She tells him that she has spoke to Warden Williams and that hes willing to give him minimal repercussions for running away if he returns immediately. However, Townhouse is reluctant to hit Duchess at first, and he tells them to shut up. Meanwhile, Woolly visits his sister Sarah who says that she has talked to Warden Williams, who is offering Woolly minimal consequences if he returns to juvie immediately. I just finished the audiobook today. The Lincoln Highway is, among other things, about the act of storytelling and mythmaking. Theyve promised to return by June 18. In Chapters 8 and 7, they hit the road with the plan of dropping Woolly and Duchess off at the bus stop in Omaha before Emmett and Billy continue on to San Francisco. When the train starts to slow, Ulysses tells Billy he doesnt have to leave and invites him to stay. Emmett seems worried about Billy over-romanticizing breaking rules and whatnot since he wants Billy to understand that your actions have consequences which can often effect others as well. He initially doesnt to ask anyone for directions, but he thinks about how his father had been too proud to ask the other farmers nearby for advice (Self-reliance as folly, Emmett had thought). Tommy was friends with Bo Finlay, who shared his sentiments about race. But lets talk over several key events. He says that she is accustomed to nursing her furies and speaking her mind which makes her unsuited to matrimony. Later, Emmett finds Sally, who is upset with him. Afterwards, Emmett thinks about how he had been free of debts and obligations that morning, but was now encumbered by two promises hed made that day. Laying in deb, Duchess reminisces about traveling with his father in August of 1944 when he was 8. Duchess then imagines where hed open up his Leonellos if he could. Emmett is momentarily upset that their father kept these postcards from them, but then thinks that perhaps it was the reasonable thing to do after shed abandoned them. Hes especially fascinated by a story about them doing a civil defense test that resulted in them shutting down all activity in 54 cities across America for ten minutes. Description: Used 2020 . Pastor John is about to collect the coins and leave when he starts to wonder what else Billy has in his backpack. This 2023 Lincoln Aviator is pure luxury with a heated steering wheel. He ends up in the churchs graveyard and trips over a gravestone. That night, Billy opens up his big red book, considering where to start his story. Then, as Duchess tries to hack open the safe, Woolly takes a bunch of pills and kills himself. The Lincoln Highway is captivating and utterly compelling, telling the story of two brothers, abandoned by their parents, who are determined to start a new life together. That afternoon, theyd found a perfect spot, and he listened to his mother laugh at his fathers stories, and it had seemed to Emmett that the three of them would be attending Sewards Fourth of July celebration for the rest of their lives. Ulysses (a man in his early 40s) then turns to Billy and tells him (more gently) to leave as well since he wasnt kidding about riding alone. When Warden Williams later had them all take an accounting class about balancing your accounts, Duchess started to understand what Sister Agnes had been teaching them. Later, it rings again, and he lets it keep ringing. At first, Emmett is hesitant, telling her that he doesnt want her to have expectations regarding the two of them. He seems upset that she remarried after their father died, but Sarah gently reminds him that she waited four years and either way you cant begrudge your mother the comforts of companionship. When she shows up, they all come out to greet her. Sally also confronts him about suggesting that Emmett leave. Emmett confronts Duchess and tries to get him to leave. As he keeps hacking away, Emmett goes to call the police, but the phone is dead. By all means, I always love a good journey yarn. I don't understand why Towles wrote the death of Duchess at the end the way he did. However, spoilers can also be designed to reduce drag. Woolly left a note behind apologizing for everything. Two years later, when he returned from war, he learned that shed left two weeks after giving birth. Emmett recognizes the numerous flaws in Billys plan if shes really there and whether she wants to see them but he agrees to think about it. The second is because his father knew it technically belonged to his creditors. The two novels have collectively sold more than four million copies and have been translated into more than thirty languages. A caravan of cars speeds by and a nearby farmer rushes his family into a shelter. Maintaining a stable interior temperature in the Lincoln . His father then proceeded to drive off with Miss Maples, leaving Duchess behind as he realized [hed] been had. Pastor John asks to see whats in there. The novel probes questions about how to structure a narrative and where to start; its chapters count down from Ten to One as they build to a knockout climax. You could probably argue that Woollys longing for adventure mixed with his wealthy background which ensure a comfortable life which could lead to boredom (since he doesnt have the stress or worry about needing to get by or developing a drive to achieve certain things) might be why he ended up starting to get into trouble. As Billy reads to him the story, Ulysses weeps, thinking about his own past. responsibilities and encumbrances runs throughout this book as well as the competing ideas of exploration, travel and imagination. It also shows us how Ulysses has a soft spot for Billy (perhaps out of some sadness having to do with being apart from his own child) so hes willing to break his own rules for him. Duchess remembers Fitzy, who was an old friend of his fathers and also an actor. He sees that Maurice is mixed race (part black and part white) and imagines that he struggles to fit in. Mr. Emmett makes his way to the Wolcott house. (Spoilers), Book Club Questions for Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow by Gabrielle Zevin. He later attended Harvard, married a woman he loved named Polly and had two children. The Lincoln Highway. I'm not 100% sure of Duchess' fate. She thinks to herself that she does it because its time-consuming, old-fashioned, and unnecessary. He thinks about how his boarding schools had been like that, too. He disappears inside, and eventually Emmett goes looking for him. However, Woolly says that its too precious just to keep, saying that its a watch that should be handed down to others. Duchess thinks about how Emmett clearly felt he owed a debt which is why allowed Jake to beat him up. When he comes back, he sees that Woolly has driven off with the car. Quick (-ish) Recap Buy The Lincoln Highway: A New York Times Number One Bestseller 01 by Towles, Amor (ISBN: 9781786332523) from Amazon's Book Store. "The Lincoln Highway" is a road-trip-buddy book with a myriad of mixed agendas and detours. As they drive, Sally says that the sheriff came by her place because the cowboy hat guy that had confronted Emmett (along with Jake Snyder) had been attacked. He sees that Californias growth had exceeded Texass impressive growth over the years. He says that it seems to be about something more serious than Duchess skipping the fence at Salina. After some research, he agrees to the plan. Meanwhile, Woolly is a troubled rich kid. He finds a drawer filled with unpaid bill notices. Woolly hated the thesaurus and the unnecessary amount of alternative words it offered. The sight of the postcards from their mother in his pack reminds Emmett of how unhappy his mother had seemed. Back downstairs, Duchess books rooms for him and Woolly for the night. He then thinks about happy memories of their adventures. He has Billy with him and knows that bringing him was a mistake, since the area appears very rough. . Emmett then takes a moment to talk about the story Duchess had told Billy about sneaking out to see movies. Woolly and Billy both have a desire for adventure. I can't understand why would Billy and Emmets mom leave the family. When Billy additionally mentions Emmetts car, the other tramps start hassling Emmett, and Ulysses has to intimidate them into leaving. The Lincoln Highway, which owes a debt to Huckleberry Finn, revisits American myths with a mix of warm-hearted humor and occasional outbursts of physical violence and malevolence that recall E.L. Doctorow's work, including Ragtime. On reflection now, I can see that Duchess is a charming psychopath (who can quote Shakespeare but cant read) and his end is kind of fitting. However, various cases had been lost or sold over the years. However, in that moment, Billy says to himself I am truly forsaken (referencing what Ulysses has told him) and then proceeds to kick Pastor John in his injured knee and run off. In present day, Duchess guilts Fitzy into giving him Harry's current address in Syracuse. And obviously the accounting class was about balancing your debits and credits, not about doling out vigilante justice. When they stop, they happen to find the envelope with the $3,000 that Emmetts father had given him, still stored in the car. After hearing this story, Billy suggests that Duchess doesnt know how to swim and didnt want to admit it, which is why he had refused to cross the river.). Duchess takes the opportunity to apologize for everything. He calls Ma Belle and it turns out the night went poorly, since Duchess had drugged Emmett with Woollys medicine and it was apparently too strong for him. Sally had lied, saying he didnt. Emmett removes the chairs barricading the doors and tells the nuns what happened. I needed to finish this for book club and ran out of time. When the old man tells Duchess that his father only recently vacated the room on Monday, Duchess understands that his father mustve left after learning Duchess had escaped from Salina. Your email address will not be published. Billy tells Abacus about his own adventures. He says hell pay him back as soon as they get to Woollys grandfathers place in the Adirondacks. He wants to start in media res (in the middle of the story), and he considers what the best starting point would be. However, he also thinks that he needs to settle his debts before he can truly have a fresh start. Meanwhile, Duchess chats about Leonellos in East Harlem, where is father had been a matre d for sic months, describing the delights of having an Italian dinner there. In the station, Emmett tries to approach one of the workmen at the station to try to get advice on the best way to hop a train, but hes dismissed. Thanks for the opportunity to share my thoughts Book Club Questions for This Time Next Year by Sophie Cousens, Book Club Questions for Oona Out of Order by Margarita Montimore, Review: The Summer List by Amy Mason Doan, Review: The Perfect Mother by Aimee Molloy, Review: The Last Story of Mina Lee by Nancy Jooyoun Kim, Book Club Questions for The House in the Pines by Ana Reyes, Review: The House in the Pines by Ana Reyes, Q&A with Bart Mruz, Author of All My Clothes Were White, Book Club Questions for Just the Nicest Couple by Mary Kubica, Book Club Questions for Lessons in Chemistry by Bonnie Garmus, (Updated February 2023) Reeses Book Club Picks: Entire List, The Lincoln Highway: Lets Talk About That Ending! He reminds Emmett that he has paid his debt to society and to make the most of your liberty. . As Dennis yells about needing to catch the 6:42 train each morning, Woolly had realized that his boarding schools had been designed to train them to become adults who had every-day days as well. From there, we follow Emmett and Billys journey to regain the car and they meet an interesting cast of characters along the way. Emmett thinks about how the difficulty of distinguishing between fact and fancy was what drove their father to end up bankrupt pursuing his dreams. Fitzy then starts to cry as he reminisces. They want Emmett to go with them to help Woolly get the cash, and in exchange they'll split the money evenly among the three of them. Finally, in April, he passed away. They make their way to the study, and Duchess asks Woolly what the combination to the safe is. However, hed accidentally set the grass around it and the goalpost on fire, resulting in him being called to the disciplinary committee. Hello and welcome to the second check in for The Lincoln Highway by Amor Towles.The first section had me hooked, and just so intrigued by all the characters already, but this section bought us new insight from some of the other players in the book, a deeper dive into the lives of the characters we already met and even a few emotional moments.. Meanwhile, back in Nebraska, Sally confronts her father at work. While the ending is shocking, there are hints of something more sinister going on earlier in the novelDuchess random act of violence against the taunting cowboy in Morgen and also to Ackerly, the former warren of the juvenile camp. He then says he leaves to Emmett two legacies, one great, one small, both a form of sacrilege. Odd choice. There, he causes a commotion and then drives off with Woolly in Emmett's car (and inadvertently with all of Emmett's money), headed to New York. Emmets voice is quiet and mostly principled. This is part of a 1.2-mile (2.0 km) section of the highway that is listed in the National Register of Historic Places. He also realizes that by taking the car, Duchess and Wooly had also (inadvertently) taken all his money with them as well. Pastor John initially strikes up a conversation in hopes that Billy will share any food he has with him. The Lincoln Highway Synopsis The Lincoln Highway, by Amor Towles In June, 1954, eighteen-year-old Emmett Watson is driven home to Nebraska by the warden of the juvenile work farm where he has just served fifteen months for involuntary manslaughter. Woolly should have control over the money now that hes 18, but his brother in law had him declared temperamentally unfit in order to retain authority over it. The panhandler had explained to Emmett that the Sunset East transports metric tons of flour and crackers back and forth from Nabiscos processing facility in Manhattan. Right after, Emmett had started formulating a plan to move him and Billy into a fixer-upper that he could renovate and sell. Elsewhere, Abacus thinks about how Billy has reawakened his desire for adventure. However, Ulysses kills him and drops his body into the river. Clearly this doesnt represent the future since Woolly is alive but maybe that flash was simply Duchess wishes. Duchess also uses a pay phone to call Salina to ask for the address of the retired former warden, Warden Ackerly, by pretending to be his uncle. Remembering Woollys admiration for Lincoln, Duchess notices that one of the landmarks on the maps is a Lincoln statue. Macie hadnt wanted him to enlist, but as time passed Ulysses had been unable to stand stares of everyone else who judged him for that decision. And in this book the last day in the book is the first day of summer! Passing by the Empire State Building, Woolly felt that should be included on the list. The Lincoln Highway is the first transcontinental highway in the United States and one of the first highways designed expressly for automobiles. The pace is fast and writing concise, making it a digestible read whether in bed or at a . They also determine that Duchess failed to leave an address for Sarahs place. Given what Duchess did to Ackerly, we can only imagine what Duchesss current relationship with his father is and what he might do when he does catch up with him.
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