All posts tagged: vigil

Book review: George Saunders’s Vigil and Matthew Kressel’s The Rainseekers are sci-fi treats

Book review: George Saunders’s Vigil and Matthew Kressel’s The Rainseekers are sci-fi treats

Published by skeptic

In Vigil, a dying oil magnate is visited by ghosts liebre/Getty Images VigilGeorge Saunders, Bloomsbury In general, I am not a fan of novellas (or short novels). Just as I am sinking into them, they finish. However, while interesting people keep writing interesting-sounding works like these, I feel obliged to keep reading them, and this week I will be featuring not one, but two of these relatively slender tomes. First, there is Vigil by Booker prize-winning author George Saunders, whose novel Lincoln in the Bardo was a global hit. In Vigil, the ghost of a woman called Jill “Doll” Blaine comes plummeting down to Earth to oversee the final hours of an oil tycoon named K.J. Boone. Jill’s job, as she sees it, is to comfort. She likes to help a soul find peace with what they have done. But it turns out that Boone needs no comfort. He is quite happy with the decisions he has made, even though his life as an oil magnate, inevitably, involved so many lies and so much environmental …

Vigil by George Saunders – Book Review by The Bookish Elf

Vigil by George Saunders – Book Review by The Bookish Elf

Published by José Betancourt

George Saunders returns with his most ambitious and urgent work yet, a metaphysical meditation on accountability that burns with the quiet fury of a planet on fire. Vigil by George Saunders takes readers on a phantasmagorical deathbed journey that feels equal parts Dickensian morality tale and contemporary climate reckoning, wrapped in the author’s signature blend of comic absurdism and devastating empathy. A Premise Both Ancient and Startlingly Modern The novel opens with our narrator, Jill “Doll” Blaine, plummeting toward Earth—not for the first time. Since her accidental death in 1976 Indiana (a car bombing meant for her police officer husband), Jill has served as a psychopomp, a spiritual guide tasked with comforting the dying in their final moments. She’s performed this sacred duty 343 times, and it’s become almost routine. Almost. Her latest charge, however, proves exceptional in the worst possible way: K.J. Boone, an oil company CEO lying in his Dallas mansion, refuses to acknowledge a single regret as his organs systematically fail. What follows is a compressed epic—one night that spans decades of …

George Saunders’s Moral Novel, ‘Vigil’

George Saunders’s Moral Novel, ‘Vigil’

Published by Daniella Wilson

It was once commonly understood that fiction was in the wisdom business, that it offered not only aesthetic pleasure but also moral improvement. This function of literature was not tough to spot. One of the first English novels was Samuel Richardson’s 1740 work, Pamela: Or, Virtue Rewarded—a title not meant ironically. Through the 19th century, many authors turned directly to the reader with philosophical and social (if sometimes ironic) commentary: “It is a truth universally acknowledged”; “It was the best of times”; “All happy families are alike.” For readers not up to the challenge of full George Eliot novels, her enterprising publisher compiled a volume of Eliot’s many Wise, Witty, and Tender Sayings, in order to more broadly distribute “a morality as pure as it is impassioned.” Such open authorial musing, and maybe literature’s wisdom-seeking function itself, has been out of vogue during the past century of show-don’t-tell storytelling. Although this has surely spared us some clunky sermonizing, it has brought downsides as well. Too many writers seem to have overlooked what I consider to …

Suranne Jones shares update on Vigil series 3 alongside co-star Rose Leslie

Suranne Jones shares update on Vigil series 3 alongside co-star Rose Leslie

Published by Daniella Wilson

Suranne Jones has shared an insight into the third series of her hit series, Vigil, which she stars in alongside Game of Thrones actress Rose Leslie. Taking to her Instagram account, the Hostage actress, 47, shared a glimpse of the upcoming series, sharing a photograph of her and Rose on set.  And that’s a wrap on Vigil III. [Photo credit] @imoanyang. Love you, Rose Leslie [red love heart emoji].” The update came to the delight of Suranne’s followers, who could’t wait to weigh in on the update. “We are all very much looking forward to revisiting the world of Silvacre. I hope that you didn’t have to be locked in another torpedo hold. Thank you for representing this relationship so beautifully and with such compassion (and accuracy),” one fan replied.  A second added: “Can’t wait! This is such an important show, especially now.” Meanwhile, a third penned: “LET’S GOOO this is truly THE GOOD NEWS @suranne_jones.” What is series three about? While the series will see Suranne return as DCI Amy Silva, alongside Rose’s DI …

George Saunders On His New Book, ‘Vigil’

George Saunders On His New Book, ‘Vigil’

Published by Daniella Wilson

Anyone who loves George Saunders’s writing can tell you about his wicked imagination: luminous, dark, wholly original, and quite frequently supernatural. Saunders is, after all, the man who gave us Lincoln in the Bardo, about a grieving president and the chorus of ghosts he meets in the graveyard; “Escape From Spiderhead,” a Huxley-esque vision of criminal justice and personal responsibility; and “Fox 8,” about a fox who begins to understand human language by eavesdropping on people’s bedtime stories. The twin currents that run through these and all of his works, including his newest novel, Vigil, about a spirit tending to a dying oil executive, is large-heartedness paired with unsparing wit. Saunders is funny. Hilarious even. (See also: his short story “The Moron Factory,” published in this magazine last year.) I recently spoke with him about how his ideas come to him, karma, and fiction as a source of truth. Our conversation has been lightly edited and condensed for clarity. Adrienne LaFrance: Set the scene for me: Where are you doing your writing? What tools are …

Hong Kong begins national security trial of Tiananmen vigil group

Hong Kong begins national security trial of Tiananmen vigil group

Published by Sam Flores

SUBVERTING STATE POWER A KEY QUESTION ‌IN TRIAL In an opening statement, prosecutors said the case centred on whether the Alliance’s publicly stated goal of “ending one-party rule” constituted illegally inciting others to carry out acts aimed at subverting state power. The other key focus of the case was ‍whether ‌such acts amounted to “overthrowing or undermining” China’s system of government, they added. Rights groups and some foreign governments have criticised such national security cases against prominent democrats as a weaponisation of the rule of law to silence dissent. “This case is not about national security, said Sarah Brooks, Amnesty International’s Deputy Regional Director, Asia. She added that it was about rewriting history and punishing those who refuse to forget the victims of the incident. Beijing, however, says the security law was necessary to restore order after sometimes violent protests rocked the Asian financial hub for months in 2019. Detained since September 2021, Chow, ‌a Cambridge-educated barrister, is one of the few democratic campaigners still speaking out against the Chinese Communist Party’s incident. She has …

Vigil held for woman killed in Minneapolis ICE shooting

Vigil held for woman killed in Minneapolis ICE shooting

Published by Sam Flores

IE 11 is not supported. For an optimal experience visit our site on another browser. Two people shot by Border Patrol in Portland: police 01:17 ICE officer who shot driver dragged by vehicle in June 01:21 Minneapolis lawmaker calls for ICE to leave city 00:42 White House presents updated ballroom plans at hearing 00:25 Snow finally arrives in Italian Winter Olympics venues 00:32 Wegmans faces backlash for collecting biometric data 00:21 Vance says Minneapolis ICE agent has ‘absolute immunity’ 00:20 Explaining the new food pyramid and guidelines 00:41 NASA considers ending mission due to sick astronaut 00:42 Neighbors rescue a Baltimore family from a burning home 00:52 At least two dead after shooting near Utah church 00:20 911 call from Ohio couple’s home months before murders 01:07 Mayor Karen Bass discusses recovery after L.A. fires 02:02 An in-depth breakdown of videos in fatal ICE shooting 02:20 Protests held in several U.S. cities after ICE shooting 00:38 Now Playing Vigil held for woman killed in Minneapolis ICE shooting 00:38 UP NEXT Minneapolis mayor calls ICE shooting …

Shocked silence at vigil for Swiss fire victims

Shocked silence at vigil for Swiss fire victims

Published by Sam Flores

People lay candles near the Le Constellation bar, where a devastating fire left dead and injured during the New Year’s celebrations in Crans-Montana, Swiss Alps, Switzerland, January 1, 2026. ANTONIO CALANNI / AP Hundreds gathered in silence in the freezing night in Crans-Montana on the evening of Thursday, January 1, laying flowers and lighting candles to remember those killed and injured in a horrific blaze as they celebrated the New Year. Around 40 people died and more than 100 were injured in the blaze that ripped through the crowded Le Constellation bar around 1:30 am. The atmosphere among those who came to mourn the tragedy was deathly quiet. Many of those who stood, motionless, overlooking the scene of the tragedy, knew people who remain unaccounted for, or who were badly injured. People spoke in whispers, if at all. The only sound came from a generator humming by the temporary white tents erected outside the bar. Mourners laid tributes on a table temporarily put up at the entrance of the road leading down to the bar, …