Amor Towles has delivered again!

Honestly, while I adored A Gentleman in Moscow and Rules of Civility I was a little unsure if I’d like this one as much, the synopsis just didn’t grab me the way the others did but once I started reading I quickly realised I needn’t have worried.

The Lincoln Highway is set in 1950’s America, Emmett has just returned home after serving a year on a work farm for involuntary manslaughter and now plans to move away from his home town to make a fresh start with his young brother, Billy. At Billy’s insistence they choose San Francisco as their destination, following the route their mother took when she left them, the Lincoln Highway. However, their plans soon go awry with the arrival of Duchess and Wooly, two friends from the work farm who have managed to escape and have their own plans for Emmett!

As with everything by Towles, The Lincoln Highway is incredibly well written and utterly captivating. What I loved most about this book is how it diverted from what you initially expect, nothing quite goes as planned which keeps you guessing as to what will happen next.

This book is full of interesting and complex characters, while Emmett is the focal point of the book we also get chapters from the point of view of others, including Duchess and Wooly. By seeing each of them through the eyes of other characters and from their own point of view you come to understand and care for them all, no matter their flaws. Every character we meet has their own background and history, throughout the book you meet characters from all walks of life.

There are so many layers to this book, I particularly liked the inclusion of Billy’s book of adventurers, some real and some taken from fiction. Which at times serves as contrast and inspiration to the many of the characters. There are so many other elements packed into this book that elevates it above a standard American road trip novel. I can see why some may say this book is a bit long but I didn’t mind that, it was wonderful to just allow the story to unfold and reach its conclusion.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publishers for an arc of this book in exchange for an honest review.

I have to say, up front, that I simply love Amor Towles. A gentleman in Moscow is one of my all time favourites. The Lincoln Highway is a fabulous novel too, as I’d expected.
Set in 1954, it takes its various heroes on a road trip like no other. Mixing small time. , small town criminals with an American blue blooded family, ancient mythology with Encyclopaedia Britannica Towels gives us a funny, human story.
Emmett us released early from a juvenile work farm on the death of his father. The bank (in rural Nebraska) is about to foreclose on their farm and there is no one to look after his precocious 8-yr old brother Billy. Planning to head for California (via the Lincoln Highway, to make their fortune and search for the mother who left the family years ago; their plans are continually high jacked by Duchess and Woolley, who stowed away in the boot of the car which brought Emmett home.
The adventures begin, scores are settled, honour is upheld, diversions and misdirections abound - it makes for a wonderful story which I highly recommend

The Lincoln Highway by Amor Towles
I loved A Gentleman in Moscow and Enjoyed Rules of Civility so I couldn’t wait to read this novel and I was not disappointed. The story begins in Nebraska in June 1954 as Emmett is being driven back to his home by Warden Williams. He has been released a couple of months early from his juvenile reform programme as his father has died. The bank has foreclosed on the family farm and Emmett is the only one able to take responsibility for his eight year old brother, Billy.
When he arrives at the farm Sally, the wholesome girl next door, has provided food and care for Billy in his absence. Unbeknownst to Warden Williams however there are two stowaways in his car who have escaped from the reform facility and their plans do not fit in with those of Emmett and Billy.
Emmett has plans to travel in his Studebaker but then Billy comes up with a plan of his own His wants to ride the Lincoln Highway all the way to California.
Billy is a wonderfully drawn character who takes his wisdom from Professor Abacus Abernathe’s Compendium of Heroes, Adventurers and other Intrepid Travellers. The meeting between Billy and Ulysses on board the train is magical. The book is peopled with wonderful characters and as the road trip which they take meanders through America we gain insight into the characters and their backgrounds. At times the book is laugh out loud funny - at others there are nail-biting moments as you fear for their safety.
I loved this book and will be recommending it wholeheartedly to my book groups. Many thanks to Amor Towles to Penguin and to Net Galley for the opportunity to read this wonderful novel.

Amor Towles novel “A Gentleman in Moscow” is one of my all-time favorite reads and I was very thrilled to finally hold his new book “The Lincoln Highway” in my hands. But boy, the unexpected happened: I had such a hard time getting into this very different book, until 250 pages down (567 pages total!) I finally let go of the idea that Towles writing was a continuation of “A Gentleman in Moscow” but rather the voices of four juvenile runaways in a 1950ties American who are at the center of “The Lincoln Highway”.
Eighteen yr. old Emmett Watson is driven home by a warden to Morgen/Nebraska after having served his time in a juvenile work camp. With the foreclosure of their family farm and their father’s death, he and his 8 year old brother Billy plan to drive the Lincoln Highway to San Francisco where they hope to find their mother who abandoned them several years ago... Little does Emmett know that two of his work camp friends, Duchess and Woolly, had hitched a ride as stowaways in the warden’s car, forcing Emmett to change his plans entirely rerouting their trip into the opposite direction, heading for New York where Woolly’s wealthy family lives. And so begins a very multi-layered story, with several stories within a story similar to Marquez plots. In alternating chapters Emmett, Duchess, Woolly and Billy tell their version of their 10 day adventure, with a cast of colorful characters like the preacher or Ulysses making guest appearances. Billy, Emmett’s little brother, who has slightly autistic characteristic was my favorite, followed by gutsy no-nonsense Sally, one of Emmett’s friends from his hometown. Towles is a master in how he unfolds the formative past of the three unforgettable main characters, Emmett, Duchess and Woolly with each passing day of the trip and how he ties it all up in the end.

At times it felt like I was reading a YA novel which irritated me in the beginning but once I settled into this coming-of-age, road trip adventure story, I was won over. “The Lincoln Highway” will not go down as my favorite Towles novel, but I am positive many will completely fall in love with this captivating, multifaceted tale.

I have been waiting, with huge anticipation, for Amor Towles latest novel to be released since falling in love with A Gentleman In Moscow. I wasn't disappointed and it was well worth the wait!

It covers the opening days of an odyssey for two young brothers on the Lincoln Highway, stretching across America from New York to San Francisco. Naturally, the journey is not as straightforward as Emmett (18) and Billy (8) would have hoped. The story covers their adventures, with two escaped juvenile inmates, in trying to set off on the 3000 mile journey to find their Mother.

All the characters have wonderful back stories and are beautifully portrayed - the book is an enjoyable quick read given its relative length, with unexpected twists and turns and I highly recommend it.

I received an advance copy of this novel from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Many thanks.

Towles has done it again. What an incredibly thought out, well written and exciting novel. From the very get-go, I knew I was going to like this. Each and every character was real and raw, I felt their hopes and heartaches as if they were my own. The dynamics between said characters was also perfect, not a single interaction felt forced or unnatural. Towles has a gift for drawing you in and keeping you entertained, every single page was full of excitement and entertainment. The plot, albeit it was a little slow at first, picked up and every side character, every side story, connected and made so much sense by the end. There were certain quotes that took me off guard like a gut punch and had me reeling from the emotions of it all. By the end, I was left in awe of the masterpiece I had just read.

PUBLISHER’S DESCRIPTION:
In June, 1954, eighteen-year-old Emmett Watson is driven home to Nebraska by the warden of the juvenile work farm where he has just served fifteen months for involuntary manslaughter.
With his mother long gone, his father recently deceased, and the family farm foreclosed upon by the bank, Emmett plans to pick up his eight-year-old brother Billy and head to California to start a new life.
But when the warden drives away, Emmett discovers that two friends from the work farm have stowed away in the trunk of the warden's car. They have a very different plan for Emmett's future, one that will take the four of them on a fateful journey in the opposite direction - to New York City.
Bursting with life, charm, richly imagined settings and unforgettable characters, The Lincoln Highway is an extraordinary journey through 1950s America from the pen of a master storyteller.

NO SPOILERS:
This is not a road trip book. Yes, there’s a road and there’s a trip, several small ones actually, all disconnected yet connected; but it is not a road trip book. It is a book about redemption, hope, and unshakeable belief in the future. I loved it. I loved every carefully chosen word (for this is what Amor Towles does, he chooses the right word for the right character), every totally believable character and every moment of observation.
The story is told in chapters from each character’s point of view. I like this technique very much as it gives extra insight to the reader, although, it is narrated so well in both the first and third person that I felt like a listener. Third person narration which feels like a conversation with the narrator is something quite marvellous.
The plot melds seamlessly, with back stories dropped in as anecdotes and explanations in such a way that I felt I was part of the conversations. This is brilliant, skilled writing.

Thank you to NetGalley and Random House, Cornerstone for the Advanced Reader Copy of the book, which I have voluntarily reviewed.

This book is now firmly one of my favourites. The story is just so good, everything about it just works perfectly. The story makes its way under your skin from the very beginning and makes straight for your heart where all these amazing characters will live for a very long time. This book is heart warming, charming, full of fun, and positivity but with a little bit of sadness too. These few words can’t really adequately describe this book and how much I loved it but all I will add is that I can’t recommend this book enough and encourage you to read it.

I love Amor Towles, Rules of Civility is one of my favourite books ever, and A Gentleman in Moscow is great in every way - an unusual period in history, a great story, and the best characters.

This book was missing those three aspects for me. The way the story was told was compelling at first, but it soon became a bit repetitive. In trying to perhaps do something ‘clever’ around parallels with the Odyssey, the book becomes too long and just not that enjoyable. A three star review, because the writing is pretty great, and you end up quite invested in the characters, even if you resent the book!!

Amor Towles brilliantly combines the odyssey with the great American road trip in 'The Lincoln Highway.'

After leaving a Kansas Youth Facility early due to the death of his father, Emmett Watson wants to make a new start with his brother Billy. However, he didn't count on Duchess and Wooley coming along for the ride, and for the many obstacles that would get in their way.

I loved this book. Towles really knows how to spin a yarn. He not only creates interesting characters, but through the use of multiple perspectives he enables the reader to view events from different angles. My only question was why Towles chose to use first person perspective for Duchess and Sally, and used third person with Emmett and Billy who felt to me like central characters (but this is being very nit picky).

I loved Amor Towles previous novels and I am delighted that this is another five-star read. It features eighteen-year-old Emmett, who returns home from a sentence for inadvertently killing a young man at the local country fair. Greeted with delight by his young brother Billy, and neighbour Sally, he is less thrilled that two young men from the work farm have hitched a lift with Warden Williams. Duchess is the son of a vaudeville performer and Woolly is from a wealthy family but was never a natural fit and his family now have authority over his trust fund.

Emmett has none of those issues. His father left nothing, but debts and the family farm has been foreclosed. Indeed, the banker is waiting for Emmett on his return and all that he has left is his powder blue 1948 Studebaker Land Cruiser. With locals having long memories, Emmett decides to head out on a road trip and make a new life. He didn’t count on Duchess and Woolly coming along, nor for the host of other characters they will meet along the way.

Without doubt, this is an excellent portrait of 1950’s America, with Towles painting a realistic view of life at that time. The characters all have depth and I think readers may well find young Billy a favourite, with his big red book, “Professor Abacus Abernathe’s Compendium of Heroes, Adventurers and Other Intrepid Travellers,” which will provide lots of links throughout the story. Overall, though, this is a delight, containing deep themes, which will appeal to book groups, a unique cast of characters, troubled young men, friendship and is, in many ways, the classic tale of young people making their way in the world without adults to guide them and a whole host of unforeseen circumstances that will make their journey a memorable, but bumpy one.

I received a copy of this book from the publisher, via NetGalley, for review.

A Gentleman in Moscow is one of my all-time favourite books, so I had high expectations going in to The Lincoln Highway. Amor Towles’ new book is set in 1954 and begins with 18-year-old Emmett returning home to his family farm after being released from a juvenile detention centre. His father has recently died and Emmett is now sole guardian of his 8-year-old brother, Billy. Together, the two formulate a plan for a new beginning by heading to San Francisco on the Lincoln Highway. But their plans are quickly scuppered when two stowaways from Emmett’s detention centre, Duchess and Woolly, reveal themselves with a scheme of their own which only serves to delay Emmett’s plans on an unimaginable scale.

Amor Towles is a truly wonderful storyteller, I absolutely loved this book from the very first paragraph to the last. The cast of characters Towles has written are so complex they feel entirely real; they are perfectly flawed; good, bad, clever, charming, reflective, lonely and everything in between. I found myself completely absorbed in each of their individual stories, their thoughts and their actions and I wanted a fresh start with a bright future for every single one of them, well, except for the odious Pastor John. This is a rollercoaster of a novel from the very beginning, it was such a joy to read, it is moving and heart wrenching as well as humorous and endlessly entertaining, this is humanity in all its forms. Another incredible story by Amor Towles, The Lincoln Highway is definitely one of my top books of the year.

Oh my - I have just finished this wonderful book. I loved every character - good and bad. Beautifully told story of two brothers, Billy and Emmet setting off to start a new life but getting sidetracked by friends Emmet made whilst in a correctional facility. I laughed, I cried as I made the journey with them and those they met along the way. We learn the back stories throughout the book and see how events change them.. The tone of the book reminded me of Stenbeck's Cannery Row. Definitely recommended.

Having read both of Amor Towels’ previous books I had high hopes for this one and it didn’t disappoint.

Many readers come to Towles during the pandemic - the story of a Russian count being kept under house arrest in a Moscow hotel resonated with most of us during those long days of lockdown. The humanity and richness that was to be found in ‘A Gentleman in Moscow’ runs through every page of ‘The Lincoln Highway’ and I genuinely believed in every character.

Released from juvenile detention following the death of his father, Emmett is left without a home after the bank forecloses on the many loans taken out against the family farm. Having been deserted by their mother years before, Emmett’s younger brother Billy and a bright blue Studebaker are the only things left in his world. When Billy reveals a series of postcards that he believes will lead them to their mother in San Francisco so begins a road trip through 1950’s America packed with a cast of sometimes flawed, sometimes loveable, and always interesting, characters.

Running parallel to Emmett and Billy’s story is that of Duchess and Woolly - escapees from Emmett’s detention centre who have their own reasons for wanting to join the brothers on their cross-country journey. With each chapter written from the point of view of a different character the book really allows you to understand their motivations and why they’ve ended up where they are.

There’s a real heart to this book, and the author does a wonderful job of building connections between the reader and each of the characters. You might not always agree with their behaviour, but they feel so much like real people that you’re somehow invested in them and want to see them walk along the path to redemption.

I imagine the lockdown success of ‘A Gentleman in Moscow’ will bring a lot more readers to this book on release, which can only be a good thing. It’s a great story, and one that I would thoroughly recommend.

Thank you to NetGalley and Penguin Random House for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Amor Towles spins a beguiling and rollicking historical adventure set in 1950s, brilliantly imaginative, and with an unforgettable cast of characters, ostensibly about a Lincoln Highway road trip to California that keeps gets derailed. 18 year old Emmet Watson is a surprisingly composed and mature young man, who arrives back home to Morgen, Nebraska, after serving a sentence for involuntary manslaughter at a juvenile work farm in Salina. His unsuccessful farmer father has died, debts mean their family farm has been foreclosed upon by the bank. None of this is a shock to Emmet, he has planned for new beginnings, to pick up his 8 year old brother, Billy, driving in his 1948 Studebaker, to start a more secure future in California, where it appears their mother went after abandoning them years ago.

However, two of his friends, Duchess and Wooley, from Salena have escaped, hiding in the car that Emmet was driven home in by the warden, and they have other more immediate ideas of going to New York. Duchess is a good, if frustrating, man, but his ideas and misguided good intentions fail to take account of the consequences of his actions, he seeks to balance the scales of justice in his life, which includes taking a beating that he feels he deserves. Wooley is a dreamer, out of sync with the world and his wealthy family's expectations, requiring medication for his condition, looking for a one of a kind day rather than the normal every day kind of days, he has access to money that could set all of them for the new lives they all dream of. So begin a series of adventures, where Billy's precious book, Professor Abernathe's Compendium is key, including a thrilling freight train journey to New York, taking in a circus, the Empire State Building and so much more.

They encounter a memorable set of characters on their oddyssey, including the Great Ulysses in search of his wife and child, a villainous Pastor John, Wooley's sister, Sarah, and are joined by the remarkable Sally from Nebraska. Towles vibrant storytelling is spellbinding, oozing with a sense of magical wonder, with its echoes of ancient myths, legends and heroes, brought to life in 1950s America. This is a beautiful, multilayered read, of life, brothers, love, friendship, the spirit of adventure, misfits that a world struggles to accommodate, and the heartbreak of tragedy. I adored young Billy, wise beyond his years, with his heart of gold and simplicity that cuts through what might be thought of as logical and normal. A superb novel that I recommend highly, a wonderful must read. Many thanks to the publisher for an ARC.

This book took a little while to get going but I became invested in their characters and the plot. It wasn't predictable and o found that the characters stayed with me for a long while after I'd finished the book. Interesting and raised lots of interesting points for reflection.

A classic tale of friendship and reckoning in Fifties Americana

Emmett is released early from a young offenders’ work farm due to the death of his farmer father. With his mother long gone and the farm repossessed, all he has left is his eight-year-old brother, Billy, and a dream to start a new life in California.

But Emmett doesn’t reckon on two friends from the work farm with an entirely different plan.

On themes of friendship and the thin line between right and wrong, the novel explores the art and purpose of storytelling:
How easily we forget—we in the business of storytelling—that life was the point all along.

From first to last, The Lincoln Highway holds you captive. It is an archetypal hero’s journey where the innocent are wise, the good are tricksy, and the hero’s flaw will lead to his undoing. Populated by larger-than-life supporting characters in the mould of Huckleberry Finn and Professor Marvel/The Wizard of Oz, each tells the story as they see it. This leads to interruptions, contradictions and much backtracking, very much as Emmett’s quest is thwarted at every turn.

Towles orchestrates the narrative and characters expertly, referencing Odysseus/Ulysses, The Count of Monte Cristo and The Chronicles of Narnia, along with 50s icons, such as Jane Russell and Frank Sinatra.

Towles is not just a master storyteller, but here he shows veneration for classic tales and why we tell them.

Sublime.

With thanks to NetGalley and Random House UK, Cornerstone for the ARC.

This is a fabulous, beautifully written new novel from Amor Towles. I liked the idea of two brothers setting out on the Lincoln Highway (a route which was new to me) exploring and hoping to find their mother. Having read the book, I think it would be a brilliant book club read - there is so much to discuss!

In this novel, 18 year old Emmett returns to the family farm from Salina, a young offenders work camp, because his father has died. The farm is sold, they have lost everything and he and his younger brother Billy decide to drive the Lincoln Highway to look for their mother. However, two other inmates from the camp have stowed away in the Warden's car and so four set off on the journey, but it does not turn out as planned.

I have to be honest, at times this book is a slow burn. Each chapter is numbered and each section of the chapter is subtitled with a person's name. The sections narrated by Duchess are written in the first person, whilst all of the other parts are in the third person. It made me wonder if the whole book is narrated by Duchess - I'm still not sure! But this structure means that sometimes the same thing is considered from the perspectives of each of the characters. This makes for a slowly evolving plot but it should be savoured as the more you learn about each of the main characters, the more you become invested in their story.

One of the things the author does particularly well is the development of Billy as a character and child. Billy carries a beloved book with him throughout his journey and this book is repeatedly referred to along with Billy's reflections on writing his own story. He wants to start in the middle, but is unsure where the middle is. The chapters count down throughout the book and end on chapter one - is this the middle, the starting point for Billy's story?

This is a book about family, friendship, revenge, heroes, dreams, adventure and very much about good and evil. The ending is unexpected, tragic, funny, emotional and thought provoking. The whole book is highly recommended.

Thank you to NetGalley for an early copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Another great book from Amor Towles! I loved A Gentleman in Moscow and couldn't wait to read The Lincoln Highway. It is such a different book but equally so well written and enjoyable.

I loved Emmett and Billy, their brotherly bond was so touching. I liked how chapters were narrated by different characters which brought them to life. They had very distinct personalities, especially Duchess! There were themes of family, friendship and 'settling the score'.

I would definitely recommend this book..

Amor Towles writes extremely well, both on the superficial level of his flowing and often beautiful prose style, but also at plot level and above all his incredible character building. I loved "A Gentleman in Moscow," and was thrilled to receive an advance review copy of "The Lincoln Highway." The premise of this book is utterly different, and I might have passed it by had it not been for my positive experience with "A Gentleman in Moscow;" thank goodness I didn't..

The story is well thought-out. It is not a fast-paced plot, but it is filled with wonderful details; some simply charming for their own sake, others assuming a greater relevance later in the book. I did not feel the narrative dragging at any point, and I thought the balance between description and plot was ideal. In fact, Towles somehow manages to evoke his various settings (whether a countryside landscape or a slightly debauched circus performance) with relatively.

And, oh, the characters. Just as in "A Gentleman in Moscow," the people in "The Lincoln Highway" are just so perfectly formed. Love them or hate them (and most of them are eminently lovable, despite some pretty serious flaws), they will stay with me for a long time.

Thank you very much to NetGalley and the publisher for the e-arc. I loved it, and will be recommending it far and wide!