A review by smbla
Crossing to Safety by Wallace Stegner
5.0
Crossing to Safety is a deeply absorbing and as Stegner referred to it a “quiet book”. The story of the friendship of two couples is told in the span of a day. You meet Larry and Sally Morgan and Sid and Charity Lang in Wisconsin young and starting out-they share a love of literature and intellect. They are the joining of the Eastern intellect (The Langs) and Western intellect (The Morgans). Larry is the dedicated and ambitious writer and Sid the hidden poet /at heart good teacher but not department head material - Sally the supportive spouse and Charity the exacting partner.
There are success and tragedies-there are moments of intense emotional clarity and compassion and moments of exactitude and manipulation but through it all there is an abiding friendship. Early on you learn of Sally’s polio later you learn of the Lang’s generosity in their support. You identify with Larry’s drive, Sid’s innate kindness, Sally’s motivation to not be a burden, and Charity’s desire for the best for her loved ones. Interspersed are some extremely funny moments -one son-in-law refers to the Lang women as a pride and perhaps everyone should recognize it as such and why that is alright with him and some extremely touching ones-Larry’s still wanting to throttle the Dr. that nearly cost him both Sally and his daughter during her delivery even twenty five years later.
Stegner poses interesting questions on how we think about ambition and success, how adversity can deepen a relationship and how perhaps the inner workings of a lifetime together should only be the province of the participants. He shows us that life is quiet and complicated and that there is beauty in simplicity and nature.
There are success and tragedies-there are moments of intense emotional clarity and compassion and moments of exactitude and manipulation but through it all there is an abiding friendship. Early on you learn of Sally’s polio later you learn of the Lang’s generosity in their support. You identify with Larry’s drive, Sid’s innate kindness, Sally’s motivation to not be a burden, and Charity’s desire for the best for her loved ones. Interspersed are some extremely funny moments -one son-in-law refers to the Lang women as a pride and perhaps everyone should recognize it as such and why that is alright with him and some extremely touching ones-Larry’s still wanting to throttle the Dr. that nearly cost him both Sally and his daughter during her delivery even twenty five years later.
Stegner poses interesting questions on how we think about ambition and success, how adversity can deepen a relationship and how perhaps the inner workings of a lifetime together should only be the province of the participants. He shows us that life is quiet and complicated and that there is beauty in simplicity and nature.