They make their way to the study, and Duchess asks Woolly what the combination to the safe is. He doesnt know the address, but Billy says Woolly marked a spot on his map. That was eight years ago, and Ulysses had been aimlessly riding the train back and forth ever since. Sally also confronts him about suggesting that Emmett leave. The police soon pat Duchess down, and to Duchesss shock, they find it on him. There is now someone else staying there. He brings up the Hondo incident. So, maybe he didnt actually kill Woolly but he also didnt help to prevent the overdose. She's upset to learn from Duchess that Emmett plans on leaving. This was very helpful! Woolly makes his way to FAO Schwarz. Finally, he finds Woolly, but Woolly is already dead from overdosing. And Duchess sounds like a showman. Here we get a little more information on why Duchesss father may have taken off when he heard that Duchess was free. So dont read this unless youve finished the book. The Lincoln Highway: A Novel Audio CD - 2 November 2021 - Amazon Roof Spoilers | Factory & Custom Styles - CARiD.com When the train reaches Cedar Rapids, Emmett goes to find food for him and Billy. Jake starts punching Emmett, and Emmett doesnt fight back. When they pass by a large stone building, Duchess says he used to live there and asks to take a look for just a minute. Mr. Parker explains that the two of them are accompanying their friend Alexander Cunningham the Third, the grandson of the owner of this passenger car who is sleeping in the car next door, to Chicago for his wedding. The moving train makes it difficult to cross the gap between the cars. Its not clear what Sarah was going to ask Woolly, but it can probably be inferred that theres something he doesnt want to talk about or answer to based on his response. The building turns out to be St. Nicholass Home for Boys. I wanted to hear other people's thoughts about the end though. (The number 8 figures repeatedly, a reflection of the travelers' and life's roundabout, recursive route.) When Billy refuses to give it up, Pastor John hits Billy. Ransom for watching over Billy while he was gone. He wonders if perhaps he could open it somewhere in California, maybe Los Angeles. He thinks it's about something more serious than Duchess's escape from Salina. Im not surewhat do you think about that scene? When the subject of their mother comes up, Woolly gets upset when they mention her second husband, Richard. Your email address will not be published. When they got married, he was working as a lineman at the phone company. 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. Earlier that day, Emmett had woken up with a headache, naked, and Charity at his side. While Emmett thinks his brother's plan of tracking down their mother in California is crazy, he knows that California (due to its high population growth) is a good place for him to pursue his goal of achieving financial stability by renovating and selling houses. Meanwhile, Woolly mentions wanting to make a pit stop to see his sister Sarah Whitney when they get to New York. The highway itself acts as nothing more than a MacGuffin, or a device that motivates the plot but ends up being entirely irrelevant to the work. responsibilities and encumbrances runs throughout this book as well as the competing ideas of exploration, travel and imagination. Afterwards, Emmett thinks about how he had been free of debts and obligations that morning, but was now encumbered by two promises hed made that day. On the way to Professor Abernathes, Woolly had thought about how there are certain places that one was supposed to see when traveling, and he knew to be diligent about visiting all those places when he traveled. Once he steals Emmetts car and heads up to New York, it completely delays Emmetts and Billys plans. 20 Reviews Write a Review. 'The Lincoln Highway' Review: Improbable Journey - WSJ Finally, around Thanksgiving in 1943, with Macie a few months pregnant, Ulysses decided to enlist. Meanwhile, back in Nebraska, Sally confronts her father at work. Emmett claims he is interested in hiring Harrison Hewett, and Mr. McGinley directs him to Mr. Cohen, an agent at another agency (Mr. Morton had explained that they all work cooperatively and take commissions from each other for referrals). The Lincoln Highway: Q and A - Amor Towles The Lincoln Highway by Amor Towles | Goodreads The Lincoln Highway: A New York Times Number One Bestseller Paperback - 5 October 2021 by Amor Towles (Author) 70,688 ratings See all formats and editions Kindle $14.99 Read with Our Free App Audiobook $0.00 Free with your Audible trial Hardcover $48.99 1 Used from $75.29 4 New from $48.99 Paperback $22.75 1 Used from $41.50 10 New from $22.75 "The Lincoln Highway" by Amor Towles is a historical fiction novel that was voted by Amazon's book editors as the best book of 2021. He find Duchess in the hallway pointing a rifle at him. It seems like the loud noise was probably Sallys car making some type of noise. Duchess tries to justify both but its undeniable that those were unprovoked actions and the fact he doesnt see that is pretty disturbing in itself. Later, it rings again, and he lets it keep ringing. Very sad and tragic. Eventually, Emmett knocks out Duchess. Maurice looks dejected. (Later, well learn that Duchess was not born in Dutchess County, but instead got his nickname for a different reason.). Back downstairs, Duchess books rooms for him and Woolly for the night. The battery is dead from being idle too long. Spanning just ten days and told from multiple points of view, Towles's third novel will satisfy fans of his multi-layered literary styling while providing them an array of new and richly imagined settings, characters, and themes. Then, as Duchess tries to hack open the safe, Woolly takes a bunch of pills and kills himself. There, he causes a commotion and then drives off with Woolly in Emmett's car (and inadvertently with all of Emmett's money), headed to New York. He seems like such a giving person. His father was between jobs. When he heads back, hes dismayed to see a police officer placing a parking ticket on Emmetts car. He knows that Duchess cant swim and he did just enough to provide some safety but it was up to Duchess to ensure that he could get back to shore. After hearing Pastor John yelp in pain (when Billy kicked him), he got up to move toward Pastor John, though not before he heard Stew get knocked out as well. At his great-grandfathers house, Woolly reminisces about the various parts of the house. For the Great Ulysses, that meant planting an oar in the ground in the countryside in Posideons honor, but Professor Abernathe surmises that for the present-day Ulysses the tribute would be something different thats relevant to his own travels. They make a quick stop at the house of the retired former warden, Ackerly, who used to beat them. As Billy reads to him the story, Ulysses weeps, thinking about his own past. In that moment, a black man named Ulysses who knows Pastor John enters the boxcar. It leads him to Fitzy, who tells him about Duchess's past and also gives him Harry's Syracuse address. There are blank pages under the You chapter for the reader to write their own story as well. Used Lincoln MKC for Sale in Tupelo, MS (with Photos) - CARFAX However, Sally says that the sheriff came to see her. However, Townhouse is reluctant to hit Duchess at first, and he tells them to shut up. Sally joins them (platonically) so she can start a new life out there as well. Triumphantly, he gets ready to depart with the bag until he realizes the shovel is missing and . However, he quickly decides that thered be no point to it. Tom informs them that the bank has no choice but to foreclose on the house, meaning that Emmett and his brother have to move out. Up until about the last 60 pages or so, the story is fairly straightforward coming-of-age tale with vivid imagery of the time period and lots of pondering about the past and whats next. Scared, Billy backs away, clutching his backpack and calling for Emmett. And because his family are society people, she uses the Social Register to find an address for his family. Why are the summaries counted down from 10? The Lincoln Highway Synopsis Emmett Watson, 18, is transported home to Nebraska by the superintendent of the adolescent work homestead in which he has recently served 15 months for inciting separatism in The Lincoln Highway. Duchess hits him on the head with a cast-iron skillet and leaves, noting that Ackerly's debt to him has been paid. Emmett then thinks about how Duchess has been saying he has unfinished business with his father and worries what he plans to do. Used 2014 Lincoln MKX For Sale at Jenkins Ford of Crystal River | VIN The pace is fast and writing concise, making it a digestible read whether in bed or at a . They also determine that Duchess failed to leave an address for Sarahs place. Emmetts father also got sick, and this year he passed away. The Lincoln Highway Summary. They mentioned that former warden Ackerly was attacked and a blue Studebaker was spotted nearby. In spring of 1953 his father had a flu he couldnt recover from. The Lincoln Highway - General Highway History - Highway History Mr. Ransoms daughter Sally soon shows up with Billy and a casserole for them in tow. Epic and original, mesmeric and life-affirming, in The Lincoln Highway Amor Towles takes his unmatched gift for storytelling and puts it on the road. Remembering Woollys admiration for Lincoln, Duchess notices that one of the landmarks on the maps is a Lincoln statue. Like his first two novels, The Lincoln Highway is elegantly constructed and compulsively readable. Lincoln Highway - Wikipedia The night, Sally looks up the number for Father Colmore. This horrifies Emmett and hes determined for Duchess to finally go to the police to own up to his crimes and thats when the two get into a fight. His descriptions and perceptions are quite chewy, indeed. It caused Jimmy to fall and hit his head on a cinder block, resulting in his death. Thanks for the opportunity to share my thoughts Book Club Questions for This Time Next Year by Sophie Cousens, Book Club Questions for Oona Out of Order by Margarita Montimore, Review: The Summer List by Amy Mason Doan, Review: The Perfect Mother by Aimee Molloy, Review: The Last Story of Mina Lee by Nancy Jooyoun Kim, Book Club Questions for The House in the Pines by Ana Reyes, Review: The House in the Pines by Ana Reyes, Q&A with Bart Mruz, Author of All My Clothes Were White, Book Club Questions for Just the Nicest Couple by Mary Kubica, Book Club Questions for Lessons in Chemistry by Bonnie Garmus, (Updated February 2023) Reeses Book Club Picks: Entire List, The Lincoln Highway: Lets Talk About That Ending! Marceline Maupassant was living there as well. The Studebaker company, now known as a long-lasting and iconic automotive manufacturer, was founded in South Bend, Indiana in 1852. This is how I interpreted The Lincoln Highway ending. In Illinois, Duchess had gotten to Woolly just before an officer was about to cuff him for driving without a license, among other things. They are aided by Sally, a family friend, and Ulysses, a black man they meet on the train. Summary and Review: The Lincoln Highway by Amor Towles - The Bibliofile This is kind of a cute chapter. The next morning, Sally Ransom, their neighbor and a former romantic interest of Emmett's drops by. Duchess explains that it required some initiative (i.e. His interest is in those whose zeal has not yet been tamped down by what Duchess (the only first-person narrator) describes, with improbable flair for a poorly-educated 18-year-old, as "the thumb of reality on that spot in the soul from which youthful enthusiasm springs." First, was this Woollys plan all alongto commit suicide and leave his friends his inheritance? Woolly ended up getting in, and he tried to drive around looking for the fire station. For him, there are three main debts one he owes to someone else, and two debts that are owed to him. Then, he took full advantage of it before finally sneaking out the back stairs when it was time to leave. He hopes he might be able to become an officer or at least see more of the world. There is a constant push and pull of wanting freedom and the things we owe to others. I do love everything stopping still like in Marcellines stage act - thats usual Amor Towles elegance. I just finished reading it last night and was so wound up by the ending I had to Google what other people thought - including Amor Towles. The bestselling author of A Gentleman in Moscow and Rules of Civility and master of absorbing, sophisticated fiction returns with a stylish and propulsive novel set in 1950s America In June, 1954, eighteen-year-old Emmett Watson is driven home to Nebraska by the warden of the work farm where he has just served a year for involuntary manslaughter. Duchess is 100% self-centered. Woolly also happens to know that his great-grandfather has a wall safe at their house in upstate New York that contains around $150,000. In present day, Townhouse calls out for Paco and Pico. This 2023 Lincoln Navigator L has a V6, 3.5L high output engine. He seems upset that she remarried after their father died, but Sarah gently reminds him that she waited four years and either way you cant begrudge your mother the comforts of companionship. Hes distraught but when he sees Duchess, all Duchess cares about his trying to get Woollys inheritance that is locked away. That afternoon, theyd found a perfect spot, and he listened to his mother laugh at his fathers stories, and it had seemed to Emmett that the three of them would be attending Sewards Fourth of July celebration for the rest of their lives. Sally drops them both off at the train station, and she asks him to promise to call and check in (on Friday at 2:30) when they get to New York. The acts of violence against the Cowboy & Ackerly come from an 18 yr old w/anger - being left by his father at 10, then being sent to the work farm unjustly. In present day, Emmett learns his father's farm is being foreclosed upon by the bank. Instead, Townhouse said that hed snuck in and taken the key from the body shop. One day, he was asked to do a recitation of Karl Marxs Communist Manifesto at a large event, a gig he undertook with diligence. How I take this is after Emmett murdered that bully, he really worked to contain his anger but Duchess behavior left him no choice. Before she can explain further, theyre interrupted by Duchess announcing that dinner is served. This was a good review. Duchess also takes an inventory of the expenses that are owed to Emmett. One thing smart Billy comes to realize: He belongs to a long tradition of sidekicks who come to save the day. Townhouse tells Emmett what transpired with Duchess, and Townhouse warns that two cops showed up yesterday looking for Duchess. The second is because his father knew it technically belonged to his creditors. In Pennsylvania, much of the Lincoln Highway became Route 30. Initially, the plan for Emmett to go after Duchess and Woolly alone, but Billy insists on going to New York, too. Hed then dropped Duchess off at an old stone building, asking him to wait with the nun there for a moment. The Lincoln Highway: Let's Talk About That Ending! (Spoilers) 'A Gentleman In Moscow' Is A Grand Hotel Adventure, Idea For 'Gentleman In Moscow' Came From Many Nights In Luxury Hotels. The Lincoln Highway: About the Book Click the image to expand A #1 New York Times Best Seller 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. (In another fun connection for Towles nerds, nave trust funder Wallace "Woolly" Wolcott Martin is the nephew of Wallace Wolcott from Rules of Civility.). There's also a wall safe at his great-grandfather's house in upstate New York that contains roughly the same amount of money as his trust fund, $150,000. Pastor John asks to see whats in there. The kindly warden who drives Emmett home reminds him that what sent him to the Kansas reformatory was "the ugly side of chance," but now he's paid his debt to society and has his whole life ahead of him. As he drives by the fairgrounds, it reminds him of Jimmy Snyder. Hed ended up the the room with the safe (while Emmett was upstairs with Woollys body and while Duchess was in the boathouse). Duchess tells Billy that hes been to hundreds of cities because her father was a traveling actor. Duchess asks him where his father is, but Fitzy claims he doesnt know. Duchess is a smart guy so I think he would have waited for the wind to push him back to the other side of the lake. With no money to get back and being unknown in America, he ended up as a pantomime street performer living at the Sunshine Hotel. Woolly doesnt respond. Jimmy ended up in a coma for two months before finally succumbing to his injury. In Chapters 4 and 3, Emmett goes to visit Townhouse, who warns that the police recently came by looking for Duchess. 62,175 miles Body Style: SUV Engine: 4 Cyl 2.0 L MPG City/Hwy: 21/26 . r/books on Reddit: Amor Towles- The Lincoln Highway (Spoilers!) Duchess plans to start a new life after all of this and wants to clear out any debts he owes or owed to him before he does. When questioned, Townhouse didnt squeal on Paco and Pico by saying that theyd rented him the car (in which case, he probably wouldve been let off with a stern warning). How else would he know where to drive to in New York City? He asks them to make a pit stop at the orphanage he stayed in for a few years as a child (because his father abandoned him there temporarily). Towles works in pieces of actual history into his story to give it a stronger sense of happening in the time that its set in. The Lincoln Highway is a journey in multiple layers the escapades of a road trip, coming of age passages and a storytelling odyssey. Potentially, Emmett laid the groundwork for Duchess to have to choose between the money or survival. The second event I want to discuss is the fact that Duchess makes it seem like this trip is an effort to get revenge at his father for framing him and sending him to the work camp. When they stop, they happen to find the envelope with the $3,000 that Emmetts father had given him, still stored in the car. He sees that Maurice is mixed race (part black and part white) and imagines that he struggles to fit in. However, in April, hed come back from home on a Friday smelling like whiskey, and she sensed it was over. Instead, as he heads to another agency, a man name Mr. Morton (along with his African grey bird, Mr. Winslow, who is part of his act) stops him. The Lincoln Highway is the first transcontinental highway in the United States and one of the first highways designed expressly for automobiles. When Duchess goes to the bathroom, he strikes up a conversation with the traveling salesman. Host Jo Reed and AudioFile's Alan Minskoff discuss the exceptional performances from Edoardo Ballerini, Marin Ireland, and Dion Graham. Emmett is angry with Duchess but he thinks about how before they left, Billy had asked Emmett to promise that whenever you feel like hitting someone in anger, first youll count to ten. Young Billy is an utter gem, with his love for books (one book in particular) and his genuine trust in humanity making him an immediate fan favorite. The trust fund is worth roughly $150,000. He directs him to the Unitarian church nearby. Emmett removes the chairs barricading the doors and tells the nuns what happened. When Townhouse later returned, the guards were waiting, and Ackerly punished Townhouse severely. She brings over a jar of home-made strawberry preserves as well. Thanks again! However, they were soon interrupted by some officers because the owner of the Skylark had spotted them out driving. His favorite part of the store is the huge dollhouse. The farmer sees Ulysses, but declines to let him into the shelter. She feels that doing something unnecessary is about kindness. Advance praise for The Lincoln Highway "Towles' third novel is even more entertaining than his much-acclaimed A Gentleman in Moscow. Sam would go with his father to travel to see various shipwrecks, and he felt his world expand and broaden. So in accepting the possibility that he could drown, he killed him. With the exception of Woolly, the teenagers in this novel are remarkably mature by today's standards, and burdened by cares. The Lincoln Highway Summary and Study Guide | SuperSummary However, Billy told Ulysses about Emmetts rule that he needed to have known someone for at least three days before considering them a friend, so Ulysses agreed to spend another day with them (in addition to today and yesterday) so that they could part as friends. When Billy additionally mentions Emmetts car, the other tramps start hassling Emmett, and Ulysses has to intimidate them into leaving. He decides he needs to go find Duchess in the Adirondacks. Upon hearing this, Emmett flat-out rejects the plan, saying he wants no part in it and that hes going to drop them off at the greyhound station in Omaha on Monday. He also adds, however, that the abridged version of the legend of Ulysses in the book left out the part where the Great Ulysses was told that he was destined to wander the seas until he had appeased the gods through an act of tribute. Nov. 19, 2021 Universally Accepted To the Editor: In his recent review of Amor Towles's wonderful "The Lincoln Highway" (Nov. 7), Chris Bachelder says, "The book lacks a prominent female.
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