The Sweet Hereafter

by Russell Banks

Book Overview

From the critically acclaimed author of Affliction comes a story that begins with a school bus accident that kills 14 children from the town of Sam Dent, New York. A large-hearted novel, The Sweet Hereafter explores the community's response to the inexplicable loss of its children. Told from the point of view of four different narrators, the tale unfolds as both a contemporary courtroom drama and a small-town morality play.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0060167033
• ISBN13: 9780060167035
• Release Date: January 1991
• Publisher: Little Brown and Company
• Length: 257 Pages
• Weight: 0.95 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.2" x 5.6" x 8.4"

Customer Reviews

Utter perfection; calm, subtle and heartbreaking perfection...

It's hard to write a review for the novel and the novel alone, for if you've seen the brilliant film adaptation they really mold into one amazing experience. Both the novel and the film add so many layers and compliment one another so well that I'm almost forced to advise everyone who has read the novel to see the movie and visa-versa. It's only in that way that you'll get the whole experience. That's not to say that either is incomplete but that each one is so well-rounded, so well fleshed out and so in tune that it's almost a continuation rather than an adaptation. That said I'll try and focus mainly on Russell Banks novel here but don't get upset it I reference Atom Egoyan's film adaptation more than once. First I want to point out that Russell Banks is a masterful writer. This is the first novel of his that I have read and I'm so impressed that I've already ordered `Affliction'. His style is so calm and relaxed; it perfectly fit the atmosphere of the story. Some have mentioned this being boring or slow paced. It's far from boring in my humble opinion, but the slow pacing is essential to the feel of the novel. It helps you to get inside the aftermath of the tragedy by fully understanding the mindset of the town. If you've seen the film you'll understand better, for Egoyan also was able to brilliantly capture that pure unsettling serenity that Banks exposes on each and every page. It was a very easy read, not something you long to put down. My only fault with the writing was more the arrangement. There are only five chapters, each with a different protagonist (except the first and last, each being the same) and each chapter is quite lengthy of course with no breaks in text to render a good stopping point. So, with that said it became difficult to find enough time to devote to finishing a chapter. I know that not everyone will have this problem, but for someone who can't seem to set aside more than ten minutes or so to get in some reading it can prove difficult. Don't let this detour you from divulging this brilliant novel. That would be a grave mistake. The story focuses around the small town of Sam Dent after a tragic bus accident leaves 14 children dead, the bus driver, Dolores Driscoll, and a 14 year old student Nichole being two of the only survivors. The novel shifts between four key characters, Dolores, Nichole, Mitchell (a lawyer) and Billy Ansel, a widower who lost his two children in the wreck. The story follows Mitchell as he tries to persuade the town's people to file a negligence suit against the town of Sam Dent. There are conflicting opinions in regard to the suit, to the money and to the accident as a whole and those opinions are fleshed out so well before us. Each of these four human beings has so much history, so much baggage, yet Banks' superb novel never gets bogged down. That is due in large part to his calm and steady style. To me the novel excels in really exposing Mitchell Stephens, the lawyer,

Infinitely sad and yet almost therapeutic

This is the story of a town that lost many of its children in a schoolbus accident. I read this book a long time ago after suffering a great loss of my own, but rather than making me sadder strangely it made me feel better. Banks communicates the terrible loneliness and isolation that surrounds and overwhelms the parents, the surviving victim, and even an attorney who is planning to sue for damages (who has himself lost a daughter to drugs). Banks' chacters have feelings that are genuine and human rather than stereotypically "bad" or "good." Because the characters are flawed and struggling with those faults, it avoids sentimentality. I identified with many of them. If you have avoided this book because of its tragic story, I urge you, "Don't". I can think of no other author who can convey the emotions of ordinary people as well as Banks. I would not have believed it, but it made me feel better.

Read this book twice.

A heartbreakingly beautiful exploration of the space between light and dark, heat and fierce cold; that prolonged moment of unbearable, profound tragedy, what came before and the pale comparison of all that comes after. I could not put it down. I am certain these characters will live with me forever.

Intensely moving

I was perusing the reviews of this book earlier, and I have to agree that this book is one of Russell Banks' most haunting, despondent, and beautiful pieces of prose. The Sweet Hereafter chronicles the story of four individuals who are struggling with the aftermath of a horrific school bus accident, resulting in the deaths of many schoolchildren riding that morning. The book uses four different narrators; there is Delores, the once tough but eternally optimistic driver who now is consumed by guilt. Another voice is Billy Ansel, the ruggedly handsome widower who witnesses the accident from his truck. With the death of his twin son and daughter, Ansel becomes grief-stricken and shuts out any possibility of redemption, offerd in the form of a personal injury lawyer, who placed blame on the town and offers promise of financial reparitions. The lawyer is Mitchell Stephens, who also is reeling from the "death" of a child; his daughter has disappeared into a lifestyle of drugs and detox centers. The fourth and perhaps most intriguing voice is Nicole Burnell, a former cheerleader now paralyzed by the accident. She is a crucial witness for Stephens, and her surprising actions reveal ambiguous motives. I can't really reveal too much more about her, but she is the most interesting character in the book, in part because it is never clear why she does what she does. The book also has a heatwrenching epilogue, demonstating that, in a story like this, there can be no neat sense of closure. Rather, the devastation of survival plagues and haunts each member of the community, and time does not heal suffering, but rather prolongs it. Another reviewwer commented that the book was light on dialogue. Indeed, it is. However, I think it is necessary to omit large chunks of conversation, because so much of the book centers on the internal process of grief and the ianbility of hte characters to express their emotions effectively to others. Everything just shuts down, becomes static, and indeed, suspends people in a "sweet hereafter." This is an incredible book by one of the greatest contemporary authors in the United States. The film adaptaion is also stellar, with fantastic work by Ian Holm and a parade of talented Canadian actors.

This book has an issue for everyone-a must read!!

The Sweet Hereafter is a compelling novel of a small town in America that has to overcome a devasating tragedy.The novel is written from the perspective of four completely different narrators which is what makes the story so interesting. The way Russel Banks portrays each character can make even the most insensitive reader identify with them. The language he uses can make you almost hear the character speaking and makes them seem more realistic. A reader from any cultural background can read this book and get the feeling of a small town in America and sympathize with the characters in it. The novel is written so well that every point of view can be clearly seen even when the characters are expressing some of their negative attributes.The way the people deal with the accident is what is so compelling because their lives can be altered in a positive or very negative way depending on how they deal with the influx of big city lawyers and media.This novel gives you an in depth look at how ordinary people deal with pain and loss. We see how certain relationships deteriorate and others develop after the tragedy. The way they see each other and the way the reader sees the characters will change drastically from beginning to end.There are themes in this novel for everyone from secret affairs, loss of loved ones, alcoholism, selfishness, divorce and the need to blame others are just a few. Anyone can get involved in this book and will most probably see some aspects of their own lives in it.The outcome of the novel was pleasantly surprising but it is inevitable to have a slight feeling of sadness for some of the characters. It is very realistic but not at all dull, everyone has to read this book!