The Bridges of Madison County

One of the bestselling novels of the 20th century with over 60 million copies sold, The Bridges of Madison County by Robert James Waller has captured the hearts of readers all over the world since its debut in 1992, when it slowly began its climb up the New York Times bestseller list and planted itself firmly, remaining there for over three years. The story of Robert Kincaid, a free-spirited photographer in search of Iowa’s hauntingly beautiful covered bridges, and Francesca Johnson, a farm wife in search of the fulfillment of a girlhood dream, The Bridges of Madison County gives voice to the longings of men and women everywhere, and serves to show us what it is to love and be loved so intensely that life as we know it is never the same. The Bridges of Madison County is more than a novel, it is a publishing phenomenon. Written in 11 days, Robert James Waller had no intention of publishing it. Being his first attempt at writing a story, he was content to share it as a gift with family and friends. One of those friends happened to know a literary agent, and asked Waller if he could pass it along. Days later, he received a call from the New York Agent who began the conversation with, “Robert, where have you been all my life?” The rest is publishing history. Robert James Waller grew up near Madison County, Iowa, fascinated by its historical covered bridges. A professional photographer, Waller said the idea for the novel came to him during a three-hour drive home, on his way back from photographing the bridges featured in the story. "It is very difficult for me to articulate,” Waller once stated. “I believe in magic and that things happen to you, that the universe talks. The universe said to me that there's something going on inside of you that needs to be drawn out. I began to think about a song I'd been writing, it had a line in it: I know you have your own dreams too, Francesca. I looked at the photography on the truck seat beside me and the name Robert Kincaid came to me. I came home, turned on the computer and wrote, sleeping two or three hours max, for nearly two weeks. It was given to me. I never knew where the next line was coming from but when I got to it, it was there."