Rent: The Pillars of the Earth
By Ken Follett
Add to your pool
About The Pillars of the Earth - Book Description
Ken Follett had long been a staple of the bestseller lists for his novels of intrigue and espionage. Then came The Pillars of the Earth, a grand novel of epic storytelling that readers and critics quickly hailed as his crowning achievement. Now, The Pillars of the Earth is available for the first time to a new audience of readers, in this attractive new trade paperback edition.
In 12th-century England, the building of a mighty Gothic cathedral signals the dawn of a new age. This majestic creation will bond clergy and kings, knights and peasants together in a story of toil, faith, ambition and rivalry. A sweeping tale of the turbulent middle ages, The Pillars of the Earth is a masterpiece from one of the world's most popular authors.
"A novel of majesty and power...Will hold you, fascinate you, surround you." --Chicago Sun-Times
"A towering tale...There's murder, arson, treachery, torture, love, and lust...A good time can be had by all." --New York Daily News
"Touches all human emotions...truly a novel to get lost in." --Cosmopolitan
The Pillars of the Earth Reviews by BookSwim Members
This is one of the most engaging books ever.
It is a colossal battle of good people to overcome the injustice of evil people at a time (12th century) when those in power could eliminate opposition on a whim and get away with it. The characters are well drawn. The heroes have their flaws and challenges.
It is a colossal battle of good people to overcome the injustice of evil people at a time (12th century) when those in power could eliminate opposition on a whim and get away with it. The characters are well drawn. The heroes have their flaws and challenges.
Flag as inappropriate or spam »
A long book but a good story. Not one of my favorites, but good none the less. You really become concerned with the characters, and that is always a sign of a good book.
Flag as inappropriate or spam »
This is without a doubt one of the best books I have ever read. I thought with it being so big that it would have slow parts, but it didn't. I also teach World History and I love the way Follet weaved a great story into really historical happenings. I can't wait to read World Without End!
Flag as inappropriate or spam »
Ken Follett is mostly known for his spy thriller novels, which makes this book about a cathedral builder in medieval England even more of a treat. The characters are realistic and sympathetic (well, in most cases) and the story is fast moving and exciting. I definitely recommend this to everyone.
Flag as inappropriate or spam »
great book, I loved it!
Flag as inappropriate or spam »
Flag as inappropriate or spam »
Flag as inappropriate or spam »
There were moments when I just couldn't put this down. Ken Follett is a fantastic story teller.
Flag as inappropriate or spam »
Set in 12th century England, when Kings reigned and bishops held more than the power of God. This powerful Gothic epic is full of clashing Knights, magnificent castles, romance, lies, power seeking, corruption, revenge, suffering, tragedy, and of coarse deceit. The characters are easy to follow, and are very real; all coming together in the end to complete the tome.
This gripping novel is centered around a prior monk and a destitute builder (architect), who are set out to construct the most magnificent and unique cathedral in England. But there are many who are willing to go to extreme lengths to prevent it. Follet surely did his homework, I feel as though I lived the times. His writing is superb, with an incredible eye for detail. The book is divided into parts, chapters, sub-chapters, hard breaks and then finally soft breaks. I did find a few details unnecessarily graphic and best left to the imagination.
Wish you well
Scott
This gripping novel is centered around a prior monk and a destitute builder (architect), who are set out to construct the most magnificent and unique cathedral in England. But there are many who are willing to go to extreme lengths to prevent it. Follet surely did his homework, I feel as though I lived the times. His writing is superb, with an incredible eye for detail. The book is divided into parts, chapters, sub-chapters, hard breaks and then finally soft breaks. I did find a few details unnecessarily graphic and best left to the imagination.
Wish you well
Scott
Flag as inappropriate or spam »
"Pillars" is a difficult book to start, but it's impossible to put down. Give it 4 pages and you, too, will donate "Pillars" to the thrift store. But give it 100 pages and you'll stay up all night with this novel and sneak it into work with you, even if you're an air traffic controller.
I've read all of Ken Follett's novels, even the early ones. I've enjoyed each one, but if he can do better than "Pillars", I'll eat a bug. The bug of my choosing.
"The Pillars of the Earth" is one of the 5 books I'd take with me if I were stranded for life on a desert island. The others are (in no particular order):
To Kill A Mockingbird - Harper Lee
Life With Jeeves - P. G. Wodehouse
The Book of Common Prayer (1979) - US Episcopal Church
The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn - Mark Twain
I've read all of Ken Follett's novels, even the early ones. I've enjoyed each one, but if he can do better than "Pillars", I'll eat a bug. The bug of my choosing.
"The Pillars of the Earth" is one of the 5 books I'd take with me if I were stranded for life on a desert island. The others are (in no particular order):
To Kill A Mockingbird - Harper Lee
Life With Jeeves - P. G. Wodehouse
The Book of Common Prayer (1979) - US Episcopal Church
The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn - Mark Twain
Flag as inappropriate or spam »
This author (if he can call himself that) writes for kindergartners. I was so appalled at his writing style -- I flipped through the book and sampled 4 pages and then gave it to the Salvation Army. If I could get my money back, that would be great. What a charlatan -- I saw an interview with Ken Follett and he looked and sounded intelligent. I was sorely mistaken.
Flag as inappropriate or spam »
This was a huge disappointment to me. Given that Follet can write a decent book and my interest in the subject matter, it was very much a let down to slog my way through this soap opera of 20th Century characters stuck in mideviel times. Given that I had taken this 700 page tome to Costa Rica and wanted it to sustain the bulk of my beach reading I had little alternative but to read it, although every 100 pages I would flog it across the sand. Maybe if I had hit the surf it would have been ruined such that I would have avoided wasting further time on it. For those that want real adventure of this time period I would recommend you read The Archer's Tale (and follow on books) from Bernard Cornwell. Most of all I wish Follet would have read The Archer's Tale and seen what his book should look like. I won't go near Follet's own sequel.
Flag as inappropriate or spam »
What a wonderful book. My only warning: If you are to read Pillars of the Earth, park aside two days and don't let anything interrupt your read. If you don't, the book will force you to anyway.
Flag as inappropriate or spam »
"Pillars" is a difficult book to start, but it's impossible to put down. Give it 4 pages and you, too, will donate "Pillars" to the thrift store. But give it 100 pages and you'll stay up all night with this novel and sneak it into work with you, even if you're an air traffic controller.
I've read all of Ken Follett's novels, even the early ones. I've enjoyed each one, but if he can do better than "Pillars", I'll eat a bug. The bug of my choosing.
"The Pillars of the Earth" is one of the 5 books I'd take with me if I were stranded for life on a desert island. The others are (in no particular order):
To Kill A Mockingbird - Harper Lee
Life With Jeeves - P. G. Wodehouse
The Book of Common Prayer (1979) - US Episcopal Church
The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn - Mark Twain
I've read all of Ken Follett's novels, even the early ones. I've enjoyed each one, but if he can do better than "Pillars", I'll eat a bug. The bug of my choosing.
"The Pillars of the Earth" is one of the 5 books I'd take with me if I were stranded for life on a desert island. The others are (in no particular order):
To Kill A Mockingbird - Harper Lee
Life With Jeeves - P. G. Wodehouse
The Book of Common Prayer (1979) - US Episcopal Church
The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn - Mark Twain
Flag as inappropriate or spam »
This author (if he can call himself that) writes for kindergartners. I was so appalled at his writing style -- I flipped through the book and sampled 4 pages and then gave it to the Salvation Army. If I could get my money back, that would be great. What a charlatan -- I saw an interview with Ken Follett and he looked and sounded intelligent. I was sorely mistaken.
Flag as inappropriate or spam »
This was a huge disappointment to me. Given that Follet can write a decent book and my interest in the subject matter, it was very much a let down to slog my way through this soap opera of 20th Century characters stuck in mideviel times. Given that I had taken this 700 page tome to Costa Rica and wanted it to sustain the bulk of my beach reading I had little alternative but to read it, although every 100 pages I would flog it across the sand. Maybe if I had hit the surf it would have been ruined such that I would have avoided wasting further time on it. For those that want real adventure of this time period I would recommend you read The Archer's Tale (and follow on books) from Bernard Cornwell. Most of all I wish Follet would have read The Archer's Tale and seen what his book should look like. I won't go near Follet's own sequel.
Flag as inappropriate or spam »
What a wonderful book. My only warning: If you are to read Pillars of the Earth, park aside two days and don't let anything interrupt your read. If you don't, the book will force you to anyway.
Flag as inappropriate or spam »
I have also read this book twice. I have a new clean copy that I am saving for my third read. The reason why I enjoyed it so much is that I saw how life for us is really not any different than it was back then. Love, good food, treachery, war -- only the tools and accoutrements are different. I also loved the religious inferences - I enjoyed how Follett saw the hypocrisies and power that existed in the Church, yet you could only appreciate them through seeing the sincerity and devotion of Prior Philip. I found the cathedral building to be interesting, but I skipped paragraphs where it was too descriptive for me, oh well. There is so much to be discussed about this book. I had no idea that Ken Follett was writing a sequel - buying it and reading it on Tuesday will be my first priority!
Flag as inappropriate or spam »
 |
|
| User Rating | |
| Published | 09/07/1989 |
| Similar Subjects | Biographies & Memoirs, Business & Investing, Children's Books, Entertainment, Gay & Lesbian, Health, Mind & Body, History, Literature & Fiction, Mystery & Thrillers, Nonfiction |
| Publisher | NAL Trade |
| Our Partners | |
| Purchase at | Amazon |
| Share This | |
| Discuss at |
BookSpoke GoodReads LibraryThing |
FAQ | Investment | About Us | Media / Press | Contact Us | Privacy Policy | Terms of Use | Blog
© 2007-2008 Bookswim, Inc. All rights reserved.
© 2007-2008 Bookswim, Inc. All rights reserved.
