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Pillars of the Earth (Hardcover)

by Ken Follett (Author) "IN A BROAD VALLEY, at the foot of a sloping hillside, beside a clear bubbling stream, Tom was building a house ..." (more)
4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (612 customer reviews)
List Price: CDN$ 44.14
Price: CDN$ 43.71 & this item ships for FREE with Super Saver Shipping. Details
o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o
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Pillars of the Earth + World Without End + The Book Of Negroes
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  • This item: Pillars of the Earth by Ken Follett

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Product Description

From Publishers Weekly

Set in 12th-century England, the narrative concerns the building of a cathedral in the fictional town of Kingsbridge. The ambitions of three men merge, conflict and collide through 40 years of social and political upheaval as internal church politics affect the progress of the cathedral and the fortunes of the protagonists. "Follett has written a novel that entertains, instructs and satisfies on a grand scale," judged PW.
Copyright 1990 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to the Mass Market Paperback edition.


From Library Journal

A radical departure from Follett's novels of international suspense and intrigue, this chronicles the vicissitudes of a prior, his master builder, and their community as they struggle to build a cathedral and protect themselves during the tumultuous 12th century, when the empress Maud and Stephen are fighting for the crown of England after the death of Henry I. The plot is less tightly controlled than those in Follett's contemporary works, and despite the wealth of historical detail, especially concerning architecture and construction, much of the language as well as the psychology of the characters and their relationships remains firmly rooted in the 20th century. This will appeal more to lovers of exciting adventure stories than true devotees of historical fiction. Literary Guild dual main selection.
- Cynthia Johnson Whealler, Cary Memorial Lib., Lexington, Mass.
Copyright 1989 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an alternate Hardcover edition.
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IN A BROAD VALLEY, at the foot of a sloping hillside, beside a clear bubbling stream, Tom was building a house. Read the first page
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Customer Reviews

612 Reviews
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Average Customer Review
4.6 out of 5 stars (612 customer reviews)
 
 
 
 
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25 of 27 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars A VERY ENJOYABLE BOOK., Nov 24 2007
By NeuroSplicer (Freeside, in geosynchronous orbit) - See all my reviews
(TOP 50 REVIEWER)   
This review is from: The Pillars of the Earth (Deluxe Edition) (Oprah's Book Club) (Paperback)
PILLARS OF THE EARTH is one of those books one can really enjoy and will leave a memorable aftertaste long after the last page is turned.

The story is set in the middle ages (12th century) and starts in a stormy night full of death and new life, desperation and hope. It then follows the story of a stone-mason (Tom Builder) and his family in his efforts to continue building a cathedral (Kingsbridge) and, thus, carve out a living for his family.
The story, of course, also branches out into a number of interweaving stories, from the villainous lord William Hamleigh and pious Prior Phillip, to beautiful Aliena and Tom Builder's children and their own ambitions and schemes.

KEN FOLLETT is a well above average English writer (I would recommend also trying his NIGHT OVER WATER). If you have came across interviews of his declaring himself an atheist, do not let this discourage you from buying this book: he approaches a religious theme (the building of a cathedral by a monastery Prior) with respect and fairness.

Although not a masterpiece (and hardly a classic), PILLARS OF THE EARTH does occupy No.33 on the BBC's Big Read (a 2003 survey with the goal of finding England's Best-loved Book), just below Gabriel García Márquez's One Hundred Years of Solitude and above...Charles Dickens' David Copperfield (yeah, I know...) - which goes to show how much people are enjoying the easy narrative and interesting plot.
The book runs for almost 1,000 pages, so make sure to have some free time ahead before getting started.

RECOMMENDED.
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6 of 7 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars A great recommended read, Jan 10 2008
By R. Hansen "rob_slick" (Hamilton, Ontario) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   
This review is from: Pillars Of The Earth (Mass Market Paperback)
I'd read Ken Follett's Eye of the Needle, an espionage adventure novel and was surprised to see the change in genre.

I was pleasantly surprised once I began reading Pillars of the Earth. I wasn't privy to any of the "hype" surrounding this novel before I read so I was able to purchase without any preconceptions.

It is a long (almost 1000 pages) epic tale of the lives of several people involved in the daily life of a middle ages English priory and how we see their lives intersect over their lifetimes.

I thought Follett did a marvelous job painting the antagonists, William Hamleigh and Bishop Waleran Bigod as poisonous malevolent evil-doers. The progression of the book kept me leading to believe they would earn their own punishment and I was appalled that they managed to continue to pillage the countryside untouched.

Where other reviewers have indicated this book was too long or too descriptive - I disagree. I enjoyed the descriptions of monsatic life and cathedral building in the middle ages.

My only negative - I would have liked to see the conclusion unfold over a longer period of time. It seemed like the last 50 pages of the book were crammed with "what happened to ..." for each character.
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2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars Good read, Sep 23 2008
By dayanara (toronto, on) - See all my reviews
This review is from: The Pillars of the Earth (Deluxe Edition) (Oprah's Book Club) (Paperback)
This book was enjoyable to read and actually kept my interest throughout the approximately 900 pages. It is very delightful, however I haven't really thought more from the book since I finished it. It's one of those novels that one enjoys whilst reading it, but afterwards its put at the back shelf.
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 		 Most recent customer reviews

5.0 out of 5 stars Great epic
Great read. One of my favorite epics. Very well thought of, touching and definitely a page turner. I could hardly put it down.
Published 1 month ago by S. El-Hilo

1.0 out of 5 stars Unchallenging, one dimensional, waste
Ken Follet's "The Pillars of the Earth" is truly one of the worst reads I have come across... in his preface Follet raves about the popularity of the book and the throngs of... Read more
Published 4 months ago by Melissa Gnam

5.0 out of 5 stars A Journey back in Time
This is the second historical novel I read that begins and ends with an execution scene. The other novel being Philippa Gregory's "The Other Boleyn Girl". Read more
Published 8 months ago by A. Saeed

5.0 out of 5 stars Character is King!!!
This was my first book by Ken Follett and I must admit I was a bit wary of the size of the book itself but after few chapters I was completely hooked. Read more
Published 10 months ago by Piotr Mendrela

1.0 out of 5 stars Beyond Bad
Horrid. The writing is as bad as the story is implausible. The characters offer as much depth as those found in a comic book. Read more
Published 11 months ago by Deak

4.0 out of 5 stars 600 pages book disguised in a 973.
I am very confused about my feeling for this book. I really enjoyed the story but there are so many bad things about this book. Read more
Published 12 months ago by N. Drouin

1.0 out of 5 stars Low Rating but not for the reason you may think
I read The Pillars of the Earth years ago and loved it. So imagine my surprise when World Without End was released. I wanted to buy both together from Amazon. Read more
Published 13 months ago by Darlene McDonough

3.0 out of 5 stars A well written noverl but with typical potty mouth parts
There were a few drawbacks on this otherwise well-written novel.
One definite 5 star aspect to this book was the ease with which the characters were easily remembered. Read more
Published 14 months ago by Rick M. Pilotte

5.0 out of 5 stars A highly readable and engrossing novel
When a novel is as thick as "Pillars of the Earth", I am usually skeptical whether it will keep me interested throughout. Read more
Published 15 months ago by Suresh Peram

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent characters!
I've found some of Ken Follet's WW II novels a bit formulaic, but always a great suspense read. So when I saw this on sale at the bookstore, I picked it up - and am certainly glad... Read more
Published 15 months ago by R. A. Clark

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