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Content snapshot
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Violence
Barely any
Some historical violence in the colonial Southwest; very mild
Language
None
No profanity
Sexual Content
None
No sexual content
Substance Use
None
No substance use
Emotional Intensity
Barely any
Mild: the novel is meditative and serene; the only tension is the gentle kind of a life well-examined
What this book is about
Based loosely on the real Bishop Jean-Baptiste Lamy, Cather's novel follows Bishop Jean Marie Latour and his vicar Father Joseph Vaillant as they work to establish the Roman Catholic Church in the newly American territory of New Mexico in the mid-1800s. A serene, episodic novel of faith, friendship, landscape, and the meaning of a life well-spent — widely considered one of the finest American novels of the 20th century and one of the most genuinely peaceful books ever written.
Notes for sensitive readers
Reader-flagged moments and themes that may affect your experience.
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