Rating: 
Summary: Searing portrait of people on the edge
Review: "House of Sand And Fog" is a truly great piece of literature, and greatly enjoyable. I think that this book is also unique because of the vastly different reactions that people have to the characters. This book is a complete tragedy because at so many points, we see how both parties refuse to give in, to compromise, or to let go. The house has become a symbol to Colonel Behrani, a symbol for the only hope for the future he can imagine. Kathi and Leonard have obviously succumbed to a state of alcoholism and codependency, and I think Leonard bears a lot of the blame for the tragic events that transpire. I especially found him distasteful when Kathi is hesitant to drink, and he encourages her, reasoning that cocaine addiction and alcohol addiction are completely different and she shouldn't throw out the baby with the bathwater. Kathi is a fascinating character, so obviously out of control, so lonely, so desperate. She has been shunned by her family, and is really alone in the world. The Colonel's wife is also a deeply moving character, with her love of music, and kind heart. She is the ultimate victim here. This book shows how easily it can be to let yourself be swept along with the tide, unthinking, into unthinkable consequences. A very moving book, and a very readable book, I would highly recommend this to anyone.
Rating: 
Summary: How a married man let sex destroy his life
Review: I liked this book from the start but found it a bit tedious toward the end. How could life get so complicated??? It was just amazing to me that Les could let his lust for one woman destroy his life.
Rating:
Summary: thrupeteseyes
Review: A "true to life" accouting of how things can go from "bad to worse" for any of us. A good example of "America's" general lack of understanding of the cultural differences faced by those who are brave enough to immigrate to another country, as well as the ill affects that gross incompetance can put on the unassuming.
Rating: 
Summary: A train wreck in slow motion does not make for good reading
Review: From early on in this book, you know that something terrible is bound to happen. But in the beginning you hold out hope that at least one of the main characters will grow on you and show some signs of being something other than a complete self-absorbed and amazingly weak fool. But no, it is not to be. By the end, you feel deep sympathy for a couple of innocent bystanders but not the two main protagonists. How this train wreck in slow motion of a book ever got nominated for a National Book Award is beyond me. If you want good tragedies, try Tolstoy. In the hands a master like that , this story could have been a winner because it does have the makings of good tragedy. However, in the hands of Dubus, it comes off as more like darkness for the sake of darkness instead of darkness for what it tells us about the souls of humankind. Okay, Dubus, you've mastered bleak...now get over it!
Rating:
Summary: Masterful Storytelling
Review: I can't understand the one-star reviews on this book. Once I got into the story, I didn't want to put it down for a second. 'The House of Sand and Fog' gathers strength as it moves along at a breathless pace, the characters growing more real, sympathetic and profound as you go. Dubus is able to weave some kind of magic over you with his main characters of Col. Behrani and Kathy Nicolo, pulling you into different directions as you struggle to figure out who is in the wrong here, and you find yourself changing your mind over them time and time again. Col. Behrani is living in California after having to flee with his family from Iran. Working two menial, hard jobs to keep his wife in a nice apartment, he ultimately wants and expects more from his new American life. He finds it in a house he buys at auction, a small bungalow that he sees as a doorway into new riches. After moving his wife and teenage son in, he plans to sell it for as much as three times he paid for it, and then try the same thing again, adding to his money as he goes along. An unforseen problem arises in the original owner of the house, Kathy Nicola. Kathy is a recovering alchoholic/drug addict who has lost the house through a small paperwork error. Without notice, she is kicked out of her home and finds herself in seedy hotels and sleeping in her car. Trying in vain to recover the house that was originally her father's, she ends up involved in a whirlwind affair with a married Sheriff, Lester Burdon. Adding to her strain and hopelessness, she begins to drink again. She is irresistibly drawn back to her house where the Behrani's now live again and again, eventually with disasterous results. The story moves back and forth from Col. Behrani and Kathy's point of view, with interesting feeling. The reader is pulled back and forth along with them, unable to decide who should end up with the house. The story explodes toward the end, with results that will surprise and astound. You can't imagine how the conflict can ever be resolved, but the way it unfolds is completely unexpected and powerful. Dubus has created a truly exciting tale, and for once I'm glad this one was picked as an Oprah selection, ensuring that many people will read it. Never a dull moment, conflicting emotions, believable characters, and an ending you'll never guess, this one instantly becomes a must-read.
Rating:
Summary: A well-written and amazing story
Review: This is the story of a former Iranian colonel and a housekeeper, both claiming to be the rightful owners of a house located outside of San Francisco. The novel is about these two people, those closest to them, and the lengths each party takes and/or endures in the struggle for ownership of this home. Dubus does an extraordinary job of writing the story from three very distinct charachters' point of view. He does not label any of the characters as "good guys" or villans. The reader draws his/her own conclusions about each of them - Kathy, whom inherted the house along with her brother from their fater and is overcoming a bad marriage and substance abuse... Les, a married police officer that falls in love with Kathy and is dealing with marital issues and problems with his identity... Colonel Behrani, who has lost almost all of his wealth and is struggling to take care of his family and has all of his hopes, dreams, and money tied into this home. The book covers emotions stemming from parent/child relationships, marital bliss and difficulty, lust, addiction, and immigrant struggles. The characters and their fellings and relationships are all too human. One cannot help but get deeply and personally involved in the story. Highly recommended.
Rating: 
Summary: Two sides to every story..
Review: This was both sides of a tale about circumstance and how people can easily, drastically change thier lives with out really intending to, and with out having the oppurtunity to un-do what you never meant to do in the first place. It told the story of a struggling, young woman and her fight for sobriety and to be treated fairly in a life she only recently respected; and of a once wealthy immigrant who struggles to provide himself and his family with the wealth and respect that they once knew. Through carless mistakes by the state- these two families are drawn into battle over a house that was once given to Kathy but was now paid for by Behrani. To Kathy- the house sybolizes happy memories of the past, which she is desperatly trying to hold on to. To Behrani- it is a symbol of his family's turn of fortune- his first step to getting them back to the life that was inadvertantly stolen from them when forced to flee thier mother country. Without meaning too, these two main characters divide families, break hearts and basically lose everything they fight so hard to save. I thought this book was okay at best. I did get a bit drawn in by the emotions of both stand points; but I never really felt strongly for any of the characters or any of the situations. The author was a bit predictable at times, but was saved by a surprising, yet unbelievable, ending. The book overall was a bit too over-dramatized for my taste, but it did a good job of making you realize how quickly you can be drawn into situations that can so quickly go into overdrive and get out of control. A definate C+ book.
Rating:
Summary: Great Premise, unbelievable ending
Review: I was intrigued by the clashing of two cultures, and by how the two main characters became intertwined. However, the climax and ending of this book were pretty unbelievable. Upon finishing this book, I found myself saying, "yeah, right."
Rating: 
Summary: Well written, but¿
Review: House of Sand and Fog is the most stress inducing book I have ever read. It's the story of the battle of wills between two parties, Mr. Behrani, and Kathy Niccolo, over a little bungalow just off the shore in northern California. When a third party, Deputy Sheriff Lester Burdon, steps in to help Kathy, the battle gets intensely out of hand, and everything snowballs uncontrollably until the disastrous finale. While it was beautifully crafted, and I marvel at how Dubus was able to wring out so much depth from such a simple plot line, the tensions are piled so thickly I couldn't appreciate the story--I was too stressed out! I wouldn't recommend this novel to anyone, unless they felt they needed a little extra anxiety in their life.
Rating:
Summary: House of Sand and Fog
Review: It is hard for me to pick who I symphathize more in this novel, Kathy or the Colonel. I feel the author has given the reader a great insight to both character's feelings. Kathy feels she has to hold on to her family's heritage. The colonel feels he must hold on to the house to make and nice profit for his family. He wants to give his family back a life that they had to leave behind by coming to America. This book kept me flipping the pages and before I knew it I was at the shocking end.
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