The Dutch House

Score: 4/5 Bookmarks

Thank you to Libro.fm and Harper Audio for gifting me a copy of The Dutch House by Ann Patchett as an audiobook.

I liked this book A LOT, and it didn’t hurt that Tom Hanks narrated it either. The whole way through I didn’t want to stop listening, and on the occasion when I did have to pause to go and do something else I found myself thinking about the characters.

But what did I like about this book exactly? That’s hard to say. It’s a generational tale, of both a family and a house, but I can’t say that anything big really happens. It’s more like everyday life unfolding. But Ann Patchett’s characters are so wonderfully rich and real and you really feel like you get to know them on a deep level. I think if you liked Ask Again, Yes or The Most Fun We Ever Had you’d definitely like this book too.

I’m itching to read some of the authors other books now, and I’ve got The Commonwealth lined up in my ‘to be read’ pile.

You can get the audiobook (which I highly recommend) by clicking the button below. By purchasing through Libro.fm you’re also supporting your local brick-and-mortar bookstore too! Or you can grab the physical copy by clicking here.

Synopsis:

At the end of the Second World War, Cyril Conroy combines luck and a single canny investment to begin an enormous real estate empire, propelling his family from poverty to enormous wealth. His first order of business is to buy the Dutch House, a lavish estate in the suburbs outside of Philadelphia. Meant as a surprise for his wife, the house sets in motion the undoing of everyone he loves.

The story is told by Cyril’s son Danny, as he and his older sister, the brilliantly acerbic and self-assured Maeve, are exiled from the house where they grew up by their stepmother. The two wealthy siblings are thrown back into the poverty their parents had escaped from and find that all they have to count on is one another. It is this unshakable bond between them that both saves their lives and thwarts their futures.

Set over the course of five decades, The Dutch House is a dark fairy tale about two smart people who cannot overcome their past. Despite every outward sign of success, Danny and Maeve are only truly comfortable when they’re together. Throughout their lives, they return to the well-worn story of what they’ve lost with humor and rage. But when at last they’re forced to confront the people who left them behind, the relationship between an indulged brother and his ever-protective sister is finally tested.