House of Sand and Fog [Unabridged]

Rating:
Summary: Brilliant Characterizations
Review: "House of Sand and Fog," by Andre Dubus III (author of "The Cagekeeper and Other Stories" and "Bluesman"), is a compelling novel. Divided into two parts, "House" is a complex, disturbing, and thought-provoking tragedy.

Dubus's brilliance at characterization shines through this bleak and believable story. He climbs inside his characters' heads to give readers a chance to feel what it is like to be a recovering addict (Kathy Nicolo); what it is like to be first and second generation immigrants in pursuit of the "American Dream" (the Behrani family); what it is like to be an ordinary man (Lester Burdon).

"House" is flawed; it is not perfectly written or edited. But one can forgive these imperfections because of the powerful emotions that Dubus can generate in his readers through his storytelling. "House" is not a tragedy of Greek proportion; there is no chorus of readers which will respond in uniformity to the protagonists' or antagonists' moral claims. Rather, "House" reminds one of a Kafkaesque travesty: a minor clerical error which compounds itself into misfortune, mayhem, and murderous revenge.

Dubus employs an experimental style of narration, with his deliberate shifting of points of view. This narrative device manipulates the reader's response to the characters, thereby creating, in the reader's mind a frustration of not being able to "solve" the moral dilemma. (Tim O'Brien uses a similar technique in his short novel, "In the Lake of the Woods.")

I especially recommend this book to readers who like to weigh and measure their responses; to writers of fiction who wish to learn about characterization; to book discussion groups. Further, I recommend that you explore the writings of this writer's father, the late Andre Dubus, especially "Meditations from a Movable Chair" and "Dancing After Hours."

Rating:
Summary: Hypnotizingly readable and intensely suspenseful!
Review: After reading the reviews, all of which emphasized the traumatic doom and gloom of the plot, I expected this book to be both depressing and hopelessly melodramatic. I almost didn't read it, never expecting to become as caught up in it as I was. The four main characters were so appealing--so vulnerable with their obvious personal flaws--that I couldn't help but root for them to "make it." At the same time, it was impossible not to recognize also that they simply did not have the self-awareness to do so.

The characters and their motivations are believable, their mistakes understandable, and their miscommunications plausible--for most of the novel, that is. As other readers have pointed out, the conclusion is "movie-like," with a grand finale that ties up all the loose ends. I did not find it incongruous, however. The sense of inexorability resulting from the increasingly more serious miscommunications of the characters seems to demand a "showdown." The sense of impending doom is almost palpable and needs resolution.

Anyone interested in the craft of writing would find it fascinating, I think, to study how the author takes four relatively "normal" characters through a series of seemingly innocuous events which, in combination, lead to total disaster. Well deserving of its National Book Award Finalist medal, in my opinion.

Rating:
Summary: A deeply affecting story
Review: The characters in this novel are not just pieces on a chessboard being pushed through their paces by the author. Quite the reverse, in fact: the story unfolds the way it does precisely because of who the characters are, and all of them are trying to outrun the past and recreate themselves. Each feels that the house will allow them that catalyst: the Colonel, still haunted by his past and trying to adjust to life in America; Kathy, struggling with a history of personal failure; and Les Burdon, escaping his lifeless marriage and doubts about being a cop. The Colonel wants to either reaffirm his status or justify it to himself through making money in real estate. Kathy stares longingly at children and hopes of raising them in her father's old house. Les allies himself with Kathy as a way of appeasing his own fears about both fatherhood and being a protector figure.

Like many other reviewers, I found the Iranian family to be the most sympathetic. Kathy Nicolo could have finally broken free of her past--her brother's disapproval, her mother's cryptic disappointment, failed marriages, addiction and so on--through letting go of the house. She is unable to do so, thus proving that the lessons of the past have taught her nothing.

Getting down to the more basic questions of plot, I remember thinking "Aw jeez, the cop's going to mess everything up!" He is the catalyst for the series of disasters which end the book (others have already covered what happens, so I'll not go into it here). At first I thought that he was spinning out of character, so to speak, but then realized that it was typical of him. Les consistently bends the rules: taking a protective interest in Kathy when they first meet, admitting to planting evidence, staging the macho attack on the house and locking up the family, and so on. He leaves his wife when he realizes that she no longer shares the same crusading, protective vision. While his actions are understandable (in other words, consistent with the character as created) they do nothing to make him likeable. One feels the whole mess might have concluded quite amicably without his macho interference...but then we wouldn't have much of a story, would we?

_House of Sand and Fog_ leaves the reader with many emotions. It's not an easy beach read. It does a heartwrenching job of showing how people can get lost on their way to the American Dream no matter what their starting point.

Rating:
Summary: A heart-breaking story
Review: Dubus' novel is a gripping and often frustrating look at two characters whose imperfect lives are set on a collision course. Although my sympathies flip-flopped between the two protagonists, a young American woman and an older Iranian immigrant, Dubus never made the decision easy. The personalities are so fully realized - in all their flawed glory - that one is left only with sympathy for their shared inability to avoid their tragic fates. It is a page-turner, in the worst sense of the word. I longed for the characters to look inwards and realize their mistakes, but at the same time recognized the inevitability of their conflict. This is a novel that has stayed with me for months and that I've recommended to all the book-lovers I know. Truly a great accomplishment, and hats off to Andre Dubus III for capturing an immigrant's dreams and fears so vividly.

Rating:
Summary: Compellingly Stark and Tragic Tale
Review: There is not one wasted word in this devastating and compelling tale in which two diverse and desperate people's lives collide in a totally believable sequence of events. The ultimate carnage is the result of each one's attempt to sieze and hold onto the 'American Dream.' Watching Behrani, Kathi and Burdon crash and burn as the result of their own misguided actions is like witnessing an accident you are powerless to prevent. This is superior writing.

Rating:
Summary: Mark Bowes's review is right on target
Review: I too wanted to throw the book away as it degenerated into unnecessary, pop-culture violence in Part Two. I should have had a tip off when the narrative voiced changed: it was almost as if Dubus had written two books and then lumped them together. Furthermore, I am not sure that the central premise of the book--ownership of the bungalow--is sustainable for 350 pages.

Rating:
Summary: A reading experience forcing one to look at one self!
Review: Perhaps some of Amazon.com's clientele remain unaware of the perils facing an enthusiastic reader residing in a rural area. For this reason, from a country dwelling reader's perspective and to inform city dwelling readers of one of these perils; one residing in a rural area has very limited access to good novels (although the internet is changing this particular peril!). Therefore, recently while browsing for a new novel in a small rural town in Wisconsin, an avid reader (such as myself) will purchase just about anything new (it beats re-reading the books I own, considering I've re-read these books two and three times (not that I'm complaining, Mr. King, Mr. Lamb, Ms Oates, etc.).

Therefore, I purchased a relatively new novel written by the author Mr. Andre Dubus III. This is an unknown author to me. However, I purchased this book without a glance at the description on the outside backcover as it was new! A NEW BOOK! The novel I purchased that day was one of my better decisions in book purchase selection. The novel entitled "House of Sand and Fog" is one of my very best choices when spending hard earned money on paperback novels.

Although I had never heard or read of the author, I so enjoyed this tale and its incredible intensity and heightening suspicion, odd perplexities with characters and absorbing storyline, it was truly the cliché "hard to put down". In fact, I never did put it down. I began reading on a Saturday morning and finished later the same evening.

I guarantee one will continue to read until the end of the book . . . the uncertainty, the entralling cast of characters, and unusual storyline will keep one reading this author's talented work of fiction until the very end. It is truly a tale of convincing human circumstance (or fate?) in its ability to identify and finally realize the enormity of the outcome of human behavior and, perhaps, we aren't all selfish people. Or do people deserve what they perceive as rightly theirs, no matter the circumstance?

Dear fellow readers: if suspense is your forte, you will not be disappointed, and, please, read this novel.

Rating:
Summary: A reading experience forcing one to look at one self!
Review: ...The novel entitled "House of Sand and Fog" is oneof my very best choices when spending hard earned money on paperbacknovels.

Although I had never heard or read of the author, I so enjoyed this tale and its incredible intensity and heightening suspicion, odd perplexities with characters and absorbing storyline, it was truly the cliché "hard to put down". In fact, I never did put it down. I began reading on a Saturday morning and finished later the same evening.

I guarantee one will continue to read until the end of the book . . . the uncertainty, the entralling cast of characters, and unusual storyline will keep one reading this author's talented work of fiction until the very end. It is truly a tale of convincing human circumstance (or fate?) in its ability to identify and finally realize the enormity of the outcome of human behavior and, perhaps, we aren't all selfish people. Or do people deserve what they perceive as rightly theirs, no matter the circumstance?

Dear fellow readers: if suspense is your forte, you will not be disappointed, and, please, read this novel.

Rating:
Summary: Loud Echoes of Steinbeck's "The Pearl"
Review: I liked the book, but I'm surprised that none of the above reviews mention that the plot is in lockstep with Steinbeck's "The Pearl". Behrani = Nino; the house = the pearl; Behrani's and Nino's wives plead with their husbands to release themselves from the evil house/pearl; and finally, in the ending, Behrani's son's fate is the same as Nino's son. Two good books, one plot.

Rating:
Summary: gripping
Review: I usually don't like books of tragedy, but this one was so well done, that I loved it anyway. The lasting message that I take away is that it is so very easy for people's lives to fall apart, in a very short period of time. One bad decision and your life can snowball. I also learned to appreciate the freedom we have in North America, to live our lives as we choose.