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Book Summary and Reviews of Pillars of the Earth by Ken Follett

Pillars of the Earth by Ken Follett

Pillars of the Earth

by Ken Follett

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  • Aug 1989, 973 pages
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About this book

Book Summary

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.

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.

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Reviews

Media Reviews

"Manipulating a complex plot in which the characters interact against a broad canvas of medieval life, Follett has written a novel that entertains, instructs and satisfies on a grand scale." - Publishers Weekly.

"This will appeal more to lovers of exciting adventure stories than true devotees of historical fiction." - Library Journal.

"The vigor and intensity of the first half of the book may bring The Pillars of the Earth popular success. But half a book isn't good enough, especially at these prices. repetitious." - New York Times.

This information about Pillars of the Earth was first featured in "The BookBrowse Review" - BookBrowse's membership magazine, and in our weekly "Publishing This Week" newsletter. Publication information is for the USA, and (unless stated otherwise) represents the first print edition. The reviews are necessarily limited to those that were available to us ahead of publication. If you are the publisher or author and feel that they do not properly reflect the range of media opinion now available, send us a message with the mainstream reviews that you would like to see added.

Any "Author Information" displayed below reflects the author's biography at the time this particular book was published.

Reader Reviews

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Erin

Wonderful!
I think this book is wonderful. One should definitely not judge a book by it's cover, or even the first 60 pages... This book has been a page turner through and through, which I didn't expect and still don't understand how it is possible being so long. I definitely recommend it.

Betty

Loved it.....all 900 pages
I can't believe there are so few reviews of this novel. Don't let the thickness of this book scare you away. At first I thought it would take me forever to finish it. The story and characters captured me right away and I had a hard time putting it down. It is now one of my all time favorite books.

Beth

I can't believe.....
There isn't one reader review? This is one of my all time favorites! A must read!

J B Brush

Sensational history?
If you are interested in this historical period, the Great Anarchy, you should read the Cadfael Chronicles by Ellis Peters. Her 20 volumes are mysteries set against the war between Maud and Stephen, but Peters' work is much more intelligent, and well-written.
One can suspect that Ken Follett benefited from Peters' meticulous research of the period. But his book is history sensationalized for the mass market.
I don't think I'll manage to read "Pillars of the Earth" all the way through.

Rich

The Pillars of the Earth
I have to admit, I'm a bit mystified by the hype. Only 60 pages in, but may pass this to the trash heap. Passages like (loose quote) 'a cathedral is just like a church, but it's where the bishop lives' or 'a cathedral has three parts, a head, shoulders and a body.'
Well, no kidding. Thanks for explaining what a cathedral is. And no, it's not a head, shoulders and body, it's a cross.
And, again, only in the first 60 pages, it seemed like the daughter, Martha, was more like the Kenny character from the Comedy Central series "South Park." I mean, she was almost run down by a war horse and then clubbed by a mutilated thief.
I realize I perhaps have not read enough, but I keep saying to myself "Oh come on, please!"
I hate putting books down, so maybe a few more chapters.
If you want a better book of the same period, a true masterpiece, read 'Narcissus and Goldman" by Hermann Hesse.
It wasn't selected for Oprah's book club, which may be a good thing. Only read one of other book on that list and it was junk. The only other I heard about was a fraud.

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Author Information

Ken Follett Author Biography

Photo by Barbara Follett

Ken Follett is one of the world's best-loved authors, selling more than 188 million copies of his thirty-six books. Follett's first bestseller was Eye of the Needle, a spy story set in the Second World War. In 1989, The Pillars of the Earth was published and has since become Follett's most popular novel. It reached number one on bestseller lists around the world and was an Oprah's Book Club pick. Its sequels, World Without End and A Column of Fire, and prequel The Evening and the Morning, proved equally popular, and the Kingsbridge series has sold more than fifty million copies worldwide. Follett lives in Hertfordshire, England, with his wife, Barbara. Between them they have five children, six grandchildren, and three Labradors.

Link to Ken Follett's Website

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