克雷的桥 (2018)

《克雷的桥》（英语：Bridge of Clay）是澳大利亚作家马克斯·祖萨克于 2018 年出版的最新长篇小说。本书的故事围绕在克雷・邓巴五兄弟，以及他们失踪的父亲。

在接受《卫报》访问的时候，祖萨克提到：我正在写一本名为《克雷的桥》的书。故事是关于一名造桥的男孩，以及他如何造一座完美的桥。他试图透过这座桥达成伟大的成就，但问题就会是这座桥能否承受洪水的冲击。这是我目前能透露的——并不是我想要保持神秘，而只是即便我做了完善的准备，我也不确认这本书会怎么发展下去。

《克雷的桥》英文版于 2018 年 10 月由Random House出版。繁体中文版预计于 2019 年 1 月由木马文化出版。

各界评价

本书出版之后，获得大多数媒体的好评。并被亚马逊书店、华尔街日报、娱乐周刊、邦诺书店、美国网络媒体BuzzFeed⋯⋯等等书店与媒体，选为2018年的年度选书。

英国《卫报》：“如果《偷书贼》是这位澳洲作家最知名的作品，那《克雷的桥》就会是他的生涯代表作。”（If The Book Thief is the Australian author’s most famous book, this is his magnum opus）

在读者书评网站 Goodread 上，有超过 50% 的读者给这本书超过 4 星的评价；在Amazon 网络书店，则有近一半的读者给予本书 5 星满分的评价

Bridge of Clay is a 2018 novel by Australian author Markus Zusak. It revolves around five brothers coming to terms with the disappearance of their father.

Bridge of Clay was released in the United States and Australia on 9 October 2018, and in the United Kingdom on 11 October 2018.

Plot

The Dunbar boys live in a suburb of Sydney, in a house of mayhem and madness that only five young boys can cause. Left to their own devices after their mother, Penny Dunbar, died of cancer, and their father, Michael Dunbar, ran out on them, the boys do their best to get along through life. The novel starts with their father, referred to as 'the murderer', coming back into their lives requesting their help to build a bridge. All of the brothers refuse, except Clay—who betrays his family in this act. Clay leaves school to go help his father, but before leaving Sydney meets up with their neighbour Carey Novac at the Surrounds, an old abandoned horse stables, as they do every Saturday night. The two talk about the previous horseraces of the week and obsess over The Quarryman, a book about Michelangelo. Clay leaves Carey with the book, and she says he has to come back for it.

Meanwhile, several years and decades prior, a young Penny sits at the piano with her father Waldek, who hits her hands with a twig every time she gets a note wrong. Growing up in the Eastern Bloc, Waldek wants a bigger life for his daughter—he mentors her at the piano and reads her The Iliad and The Odyssey. Proficient at the piano, Penny plays many concerts all over the Eastern Bloc, and Waldek decides that at the age of 18, she will play a concert in Vienna and never return. She is in a camp for nine months before Australia accepts her for entry. Once in Sydney, Penny works as a cleaner and an English as a Second Language teacher, but still misses her father and the piano. Eventually, she decides to gather up her savings and buy a piano, which instead of being delivered to her address, is delivered to Michael Dunbar, who lives further down on the same street. Michael, broken after the divorce from his wife Abbey, finds beauty in the world again through Penny. They get married and live happily in their house with their five sons until Penny gets cancer. Death creeps in, and at the end of her life Clay, not Michael, is the one to spend her final moments with her, outside in the garden underneath the clothesline.

Work on the bridge goes slow, and as the months and the work drags on, Clay returns several times to Sydney to see his brothers, and Carey, whose jockey career is coming along smoothly. She races several times, and always goes to the Surrounds every Saturday night. Carey wins most of her races, and eventually gets put up for a Group One race. The night before, she meets Clay at the Surrounds, and they sleep together. Carey wins the race, gets injured, and dies the next day. Overcome by grief, Clay blames himself for Carey's death and decides he must finish the bridge. Eventually the bridge is finished, and Clay disappears across the world for many years until he returns for Matthew's wedding. In the end all the brothers are together, at home.

Characters

Clay Dunbar – the fourth Dunbar boy, and main protagonist of the book. Characterised as a quiet and sensitive boy, who always had a love for storytelling and Michelangelo, and bears the weight of their mother's death the hardest.

Matthew Dunbar – the oldest Dunbar boy, and narrator of the book. As the oldest brother, responsibility to take care of the family fell to him once their father left.

Rory Dunbar – the second Dunbar boy, who is ready to fight the entire world with just his fists.

Henry Dunbar – the third Dunbar boy, who spends his days working and his evenings either drunkenly stealing mailboxes or living on a visual diet of films from the 1980s.