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House of Sand and Fog: Summary and book reviews of House of Sand and Fog by Andre Dubus III, plus links to an excerpt from House of Sand and Fog and a biography of Andre Dubus III.
House of Sand and Fog
by
Andre Dubus III
Hardcover: Feb 1999,
365 pages.
Paperback: Feb 2000,
368 pages.
In this riveting novel of almost unbearable suspense, three fragile yet determined people become dangerously entangled in a relentlessly escalating crisis. Colonel Behrani, once a wealthy man in Iran, is now a struggling immigrant willing to bet everything he has to restore his family's dignity. Kathy Niccolo is a recovering alcoholic and addict whose house is all she has left, and who refuses to let her hard-won stability slip away from her. Sheriff Lester Burdon, a married man who finds himself falling in love with Kathy, becomes obsessed with helping her fight for justice.
Drawn by their competing desires to the same small house in the California hills--and what it represents to each of them--and doomed by their tragic inability to understand one another, the three converge on an explosive collision course. Combining unadorned realism with profound empathy, House of Sand and Fog is a devastating exploration of the American Dream gone awry.
Book Reviews
The Boston Globe
A page-turner with a beating heart.
San Diego Union Tribune
An utterly believable, riveting journey--. Dubus has written a story that one cannot help but care about.
The Baltimore Sun
A mixture of classical tragedy perfectly imbued with film noir...the work of a writer who is the real thing.
Boston Magazine
Dubus proves himself both an exquisitely careful craftsman and a painstaking recorder of society.
Washington Post Book World
Elegant and powerful...an unusual and volatile...literary thriller.
The Philadelphia Inquirer
Exceptional storytelling, true to life--searing and insightful--. You can't help but be impressed.
Los Angeles Times
The most rending kind of war is not between two hatreds, but between two hopes--. Dubus sets out the growing confrontation with chilly ingenuity and a remarkably observant compassion--. A fine and prophetic novel.
San Francisco Chronicle
It is rare these days to encounter a novel that follows the rules of Greek tragedy--. Dubus is a taker of risks--. A craftsman of character and dialogue, Dubus has dared to push his limits.
Seattle Weekly
A poignant drama that is engrossing--. A book full of longing, a vivid and exquisitely realized snapshot of America's underside.
Mirabella
Unputdownable--a page-turner that's a mind-opener--a thriller with moral complexity.
The Postmistress is an unforgettable tale of the secrets we must bear, or bury. It is about what happens to love during wartime, when those we cherish leave. And how every story-of love or war-is about looking left when we should have been looking right.
Masterfully blending true events with fiction, this blockbuster historical thriller delivers a page-turning murder mystery set on the sixteenth-century Oxford University campus.
Kostova's masterful new novel travels from American cities to the coast of Normandy, from the late 19th century to the late 20th, from young love to last love. The Swan Thieves is a story of obsession, history's losses, and the power of art to preserve human hope.
What drives a man to stay in a marriage, in a job? What forces him away? Is love or conscience enough to overcome the darker, stronger urges of the natural world? The Unnamed is a deeply felt, luminous novel about modern life, ancient yearnings, and the power of human understanding.
Lisa See has written a great book! This story is satisfying on many levels, some scenes horrifying, but seemingly truthful, and her handling of the ...
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I was sorry to see that there were so few reviews. I started reading COAL and could not stop. The only thing I am going to say is that I wish ...
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The tragedy, the sorrow, the loss, is almost too much for me to recommend this; on the other hand Mistry made me believe I knew these characters. I ...
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UK Orange Award longlist announced(Mar 17 2010) Hilary Mantel, Sarah Waters and Barbara Kingsolver have made the longlist for the 2010 Orange Prize, a 20-strong list described by chair Daisy Goodwin as...
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National Book Critics Circle Awards announced(Mar 11 2010) Each March, the NBCC present awards for the finest books and reviews published in English (in the USA) the previous year in six categories: Fiction,...
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House of Sand and Fog
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