Description
The Dutch House (2019) is the most powerful novel by Ann Patchett, the #1 New York Times bestselling author of Commonwealth. A richly moving story that explores the indelible bond between two siblings, the house of their childhood, and a past that will not let them go. It is the story of a paradise that has raised the question of inheritance, love, and forgiveness...how we want to see ourselves and who we really are. The novel is narrated by an adult Danny Conroy.
The Dutch House is a mansion located in Elkins Park, Pennsylvania, a suburb of Philadelphia. It was built in 1922 by the VanHoebeek family, a husband and his wife originally from the Netherlands who made their fortune in the tobacco industry. Cyril Conroy, a self-made real estate mogul, bought the mansion in 1946 and their kids, Danny and Maeve, were raised in the Dutch House. Elna dislikes the Dutch House and she abandons the house when Danny is only 3 and Maeve is 10. After their father dies, the two siblings are forced out of their home by their stepmother. Their unbreakable bond supports each other to live their life further. Maeve finds a scholarship trust and uses it to send Dany to Columbia University and to medical school. He finished medical school in the hope to please Maeve, even though he isn't interested in working as a doctor.
In spite of being an ever protective sister and indulged brother, the two are finally put to be tested over their bond.
In the novel, only the house does not change. Circumstances can change people and their irrevocable bond with their loved ones. This novel takes a winding road through the forest and doesn't rust to a finish, nor is the ending wholly surprising. But if you allow yourself to walk along with Patchett, you will find the end of the trail. At the time of finishing the book, readers will believe to drive to Elkins Park and see it by themselves. The novel got a mix of rave and positive reviews.
"Patchett's splendid novel is a thoughtful, compassionate exploration of obsession and forgiveness, what people acquire, keep, lose, or give away, and what they leave behind."
--Publishers Weekly
Awards
- Finalist for the Pulitzer Prize
- Women's Prize for Fiction Nominee for Longlist (2020)
- Goodreads Choice Award Nominee for Historical Fiction (2019)
- New York Times Bestseller
- A read with Jenna Today Show Book Club Pick
- A New York Times Book Review Notable Book
- TIME Magazine's 100 Must-Read Books of 2019
- Named one of the Best Books of the Year by NPR, The Washington Post, O: The Oprah Magazine, Real Simple, Good Housekeeping, Vogue, Refinery 29, and Buzzfeed
About the Author
Ann Patchett (born on December 2, 1963, in Los Angeles, California) is an American literary fiction author. She received the 2002 'PEN/Faulkner Award' and the 'Orange Prize' for Fiction in the same year, for her novel Bel Canto. Patchett's other novels include The Patron Saint of Liars (1992), Taft (1994), The Magician's Assistant (1997), Run (2007), State of Wonder (20011), Commonwealth (2016), and The Dutch House (2019). The Dutch House was a finalist for the 2020 Pulitzer Prize for fiction. Her mother is the novelist Jeanne Ray.
She grew up in Nashville, Tennessee where she continues to live with her husband. She attended high school at St. Bernard Academy, a private, non-parochial Catholic school for girls, run by the sister of Mercy. Following graduation, she attended Sarah Lawrence College and took fiction writing classes with Allan Gurganus, Russell Banks, and Grace Paley.
In 2010, she learned that her hometown Nashville has no good book store, she co-founded Parnassus Books in 2011 with Karen Hayes. In 2012, Patchett was on the Time 100 list of most influential people in the world by TIME Magazine.
 |
| Ann Patchett |
Link to buy more books on amazon :
Rating: 4.3/5
Author: Ann Patchett
Publisher: Harper
Publishing Date: September 24, 2019
Edition Language: English
Genre: Family life fiction, American Literature, Coming of Age Fiction
ISBN-10: 0062963678
ISBN-13: 9780062963673
Pages: 352
No comments:
Post a Comment