What readers think of House of Sand and Fog, plus links to write your own review.

This book was indeed a page turning! I had a hard time putting it down.

Bravo author!!!!!

Great novel....decent ending

This book was amazing. i loved it from start to finish. I saw the movie first, but that is what encouraged me to read such a wonderful book. Although some of the characters DO tick me off a little.. like lester.. he made me mad because of the stupid choices he had made throughout the book. but, overall, it was great!

I thought this one of the most intelligent novels I have read, in that the characters are constructed so carefully that the devastating outcome of their actions becomes totally believable. It isn't the sort of novel I'd usually choose (Margaret Atwood is my favourite author) and I read it because of a reader's group a friend has set up. At first I was thinking 'very good of its type', its type being, I supposed, suspenseful thriller, a standard best-seller. But then I reached part II and it was as though Dubus had shifted up a gear, suddenly punching us with the full force of his literary power. It reminds me most of all of that bridge that collapsed after winds made it resonate at it's natural frequency... galloping Gertie?.... each character is a flawed human being, (as are we all), and these little, normal, everyday flaws pile one upon the other so that the situation reverberates out of control towards the climax. Amazing book.

I saw the film last night, a week after reading the book, and I think it's really only worth seeing if you haven't read the book and aren't going to. It's so weak compared with the book. Pretty scenery, but lacks the gut-wrenching depth, and the changed ending is a cop out despite the director's attempts to justify it.

This book is a poignant example of how people who are not in control of their lives can take hideous control of those who seemingly are in control. The characters are painted carefully; attention must be paid to the addict's abject maelstrom. I just read this book. Halfway through I looked to see when it had been written. It was before 9/11, and I think that that makes a huge difference in one's reaction to the plot. I tried to picture what would have changed had this been written after that horrific watershed. This book may not be a laugh riot, but it is thoughtful and warm, and well worth the effort.

I'd read the glowing reviews of this book but was not terribly excited to start it. Having read the first chapter at 5PM, I couldn't put it down until I'd finished it at midnight. Fantastic novel. The best character development I've read in years, each person becoming a living, breathing mix of good and sordid attributes, a complex and totally believable mish-mash of what each of us is under the surface.

I defy anyone who reads the first twenty pages to put it down before they finish it. It could have been 100 pages longer and I would have followed the tortured collision course they all took each step of the way.

I highly, highly recommend this one.

I was completely dreading reading this book for a class b/c I saw how long it was and when I read a short description of it, I was rather disgusted! But as soon as I'd read the first chapter, I was hooked! I couldn't put it down (and it still took me about a week to finish). It was a riveting, attention grabbing (and keeping) novel. The ending is very unexpected and disappointing, but otherwise the book is more than worth the read. It's also very eduactional and gives you a look into the lives of people that most people like to believe are different from us, but aren't, with the same types of problems. It's a little depressing, but the maturity level of the reader is supposed to compensate for that. And the fact that the reader is put into both parties on both sides makes it much more interesting. It's an in-depth novel with many underlying themes and morals...Just a Great Book!

The book is a fast paced book that had me hooked on to it. I could not put it down till I was done reading it. It is certainly a good book for a book club that would spark an animated discussion.