Review of The Bridge

[Nat Barie]

[Following is a volunteer review of "The Bridge" by Andrew Palmer.]

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4 out of 5 stars

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The Bridge by Andrew Palmer is a historical fiction novel revolving around the building and ultimate collapse of the Quebec Bridge in 1907. The novel introduces two engineering students, Ben and Esther, who work together to research the tragic bridge collapse and subsequent Iron Ring ceremony. Ben and Esther find a journal belonging to Alec Durand, one of the engineers who worked on the bridge. Together they uncover, not only what led to the bridge’s collapse, but also the inner turmoil of a man who experienced the tragedy firsthand.

I appreciated the use of different timelines in the book. Jumping back and forth from different time periods can often be difficult to follow, but Andrew Palmer managed to weave the two narratives seamlessly. We follow Alec’s experience through his journal entries and find that he feels powerless in the face of corrupt leadership on the construction site. Alec also struggles under the pressure he puts on himself in order to provide for his new family. Ben and Esther bond over their shared interest in Alec’s story, and they realize that they can both relate to Alec in different ways.

There are not many negatives about this book, in my opinion. I noticed a few grammatical errors, such as missing commas, but the writing still flowed well. Also, I found the portrayal of the modern day characters stereotypical, especially during the first part of the book. Esther characterizes herself as the straight-A student who does not like to have fun. Ben resigns himself to the party animal who doesn’t take anything seriously. Of course, the characters grew throughout the story, but I found their initial judgments about each other (and themselves) a little too on the nose. Nevertheless, it was fun to see the unlikely pair work together and hesitantly form a friendship.

I give the book 4 out of 5 stars. Despite the few aforementioned errors, the story is powerful, and it involves an interesting piece of Canadian history that I had not known about before.

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The Bridge
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