Le quattro parti in cui è suddiviso il libro sono una più bella dell'altra. La prima, quella che descrive il rapporto tra il protagonista e la lupa, credo comprenda le pagine più belle mai scritte sulla relazione che si può instaurare tra un essere umano e la natura. Le altre tre parti parlano d'altro, e non ho intenzione di accennarvi nemmeno una parola a riguardo. Along the way, Billy encounters many other travelers and inhabitants of the land who relate in a sophisticated dialogue their deepest philosophies. Take, for example, a Mormon who converts to Catholicism and describes his vision of reality in this way: The Crossing is a book of dreams and auguries. Early in the novel Boyd has a dream of people burning on a dry lake [p. 35]; Billy dreams he sees his father wandering lost in the desert and being swallowed by darkness [p. 112]. Later in his journey, Billy is taken in by Indians whose elder calls him "huerfano"–orphan [p. 134]–thus predicting the murder of his parents. What is the role of portents–both accurate and inaccurate–in this book?

Scusatemi, sto cercando di razionalizzare un po'. Sono sconvolto, davvero sconvolto. Sono arrivato all'ultima riga con gli occhi pieni di lacrime senza sapere neanche bene il perché. So solo che dentro ero completamente scosso. Ancora adesso faccio una fatica immensa a ragionare, a restare lucido. Le parole, di fronte a certe pagine, vengono meno. On Billy Parham’s second journey into Mexico, where he spends most of his time between the northern town of Casas Grandes and the southern town of Santa Ana de Babícora, these two relatively large towns have remained constant and verifiable between 1922 and the present. The smaller villages (or pueblos) had to be hunted down on Google Maps by "flying" close to the ground along the indicated route. Through this means, the pueblos of Mata Ortiz, San Jose (judged to be the existing pueblo of San Jose de Ermita), and La Pinta were located.Non so. Qualcosa. Qualcosa di imprevisto. Qualcosa fuori posto. Qualcosa non vero o improbabile. Una traccia nella polvere. Un gingillo caduto a terra. Non una causa. No di certo. Non una causa. Le cause non fanno altro che moltiplicarsi e conducono al caos. Volevo sapere cos'aveva in mente. Non potevo credere che distruggesse la propria chiesa senza alcuna ragione.

An essential novel by any measure, The Crossing is luminous and appalling, a book that touches, stops, and starts the heart and mind at once. Four men who meet as college roommates move to New York and spend the next three decades gaining renown in their professions—as an architect, painter, actor and lawyer—and struggling with demons in their intertwined personal lives.This spiritual aspect to the novel creates a sense of depth. The instinctive behaviors of wolves, the unexplainable cruelty of man, and the peaceful nature of people unencumbered by modernity are periodically explored. It’s this exploration, however, that is drawn out a bit more than necessary at various points throughout the novel. Please read below my thoughts as I progressed through the book. They illustrate without giving spoilers how the reading influences both one’s emotions and thoughts. Voi cosa dite? Voi che parole pronunciate di fronte a un foglio e dell'inchiostro? Che potere avete voi, che potere abbiamo noi, davanti a un libro scritto in questo modo? The novel mentions other locations in the US where Billy visits. However, these locations were primarily used to establish a sense of time between his second and Third Mexican journeys. Other places in the US are also mentioned during the end of the book, but again, these mentions are more to set the mood rather than serve as an actual part of the plot. As such, these extraneous locations are not shown on the map. When Billy finally catches the animal, he harnesses her and, instead of killing her, determines to return her to the mountains of Mexico where he believes her original home is located. He develops a deep affection for and bond with the wolf, risking his life to save her on more than one occasion.