Did you know that in 1974, a man named Philippe Petit walked on a wire that was rigged on the top of the World Trade Center's two towers?

No, it was not fiction. It was real as real could get. And that unbelievable stunt serves as the central event -- and backdrop -- in Colum McCann's bestselling book "Let the Great World Spin".

In this book (a work of fiction), McCann takes us into the lives of different New Yorkers who converge during the Twin Towers stunt. We are immersed into totally varied walks of life -- from two Irish brothers who come to the Big Apple for completely opposite reasons, to a wealthy mother who grieves the loss of her son in Vietnam, to a prostitute who grew up in the dark alleys of Manhattan, and some others in between. Each character is so well-defined, each story so rich with human voice that you are almost entrapped in it. Reading the book is like going through the different lives -- you get pulled in slowly and get surrounded by thick emotional sensations.

I admire how McCann so deliberately wrote this piece; it is clear that he is one author who knows how to intricately tell stories. Personally, however, I've heard of many other plots that involve different people coming together. Also, no matter how richly this book is written, I still fell asleep when I read it -- precisely because it is so rich that it somehow clouded my own consciousness. Like I said, it pulls you in, and you find yourself in a kind of thick, cloudy dream reality. And unless you can really relate with one of the characters, it can be pretty hazy (okay, for me, it was sometimes like, 'Oh, so what do I have to do with this?').

So overall, I rate this book 3.5. Good job, Colum McCann, but you should really sell this book to mothers whose sons perished in war. I appreciate this book, though, so no offense meant. :)

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ps. i miss you, bookies! :)

[photo from srinivasanumolu.tumblr.com]