- Between the Bridge and the River
Infobox Book
name = Between the Bridge and the River
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author =Craig Ferguson
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publisher =Chronicle Books
pub_date = March 2006
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pages = 352 (hard cover)
isbn = 0811853756 (hard cover), 0811858197 (trade)
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followed_by ="Between the Bridge and the River" (ISBN 0811853756, ISBN 0811858197) is a
novel written byCraig Ferguson , aScottish American entertainer and the host of "The Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson " in theUnited States .The novel has been characterized as a satire of religion and the entertainment industry. Ferguson has hinted in various interviews there is a fair amount of autobiography in the story. [ [http://www.chroniclebooks.com/site/catalog/index.php?main_page=pubs_info&info_uid=podcast_archives&store=books) Chronicle Books podcast, Episode 1] ]
Ferguson has attributed the inspiration for the novel to a conversation with a
Jesuit priest about whether all those who commit suicide go to hell. According to Ferguson, the priest said that while suicide was a mortal sin, if someone were to jump from a bridge and genuinely repented of their action before they hit the river they would be forgiven. Ferguson interpreted this as there always being one last chance of redemption, [ [http://www.lovelineshow.com/programhighlights?pid=16453 Loveline Interview] , October 15, 2007] which is the core of the adventures in the novel.Ferguson's great grandfather, Adam McLachlan, appears as a supporting character.
Plot
The novel follows two best friends from
Glasgow : Fraser Darby, an alcoholic televangelist caught up in a sex scandal, and George Ingram, an attorney diagnosed with terminal cancer who contemplates suicide. In a parallel, the story also follows two half-brothers in the Southern U.S.: Leon and Saul Martini, the illegitimate children of aLas Vegas, Nevada showgirl, with the two fathers beingFrank Sinatra andPeter Lawford . Eventually the lives of these four men intersect in a journey that ranges fromScotland toFrance , fromAtlanta, Georgia to ruralFlorida , and fromHollywood toBelgium duringWorld War I .Supporting characters in the story include the poet
Virgil , andCarl Gustav Jung , the eminent psychiatrist.References
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