Hamburger/Mobile Menu
Twigge Logo
Books
Gift Cards
Reading List
Cart Image
< Back to the Stacks
The Dutch House

The Dutch House

By: Ann Patchett

The #1 New York Times bestselling author of Commonwealth delivers her most powerful novel to date: a richly moving story that explores the indelible bond between two siblings, the house of their childhood, and a past that will not let them...Read More

Experience: Hit Me Right in the Feels

Format: Paperback

Genre(s): Literary Fiction

Page(s): 337

Published: 2019

Rental Price: $8.49 for six weeks (List Price $17.00 | Save 50%)

Book Value Prop1
Book Value Prop2
Book Value Prop3
  • DESCRIPTION
  • ABOUT THE AUTHOR
  • EDITORIAL REVIEWS

The #1 New York Times bestselling author of Commonwealth delivers her most powerful novel to date: a richly moving story that explores the indelible bond between two siblings, the house of their childhood, and a past that will not let them go. The Dutch House is the story of a paradise lost, a tour de force that digs deeply into questions of inheritance, love and forgiveness, of how we want to see ourselves and of who we really are.

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 unshakeable 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.

ANN PATCHETT is the author of seven novels, The Patron Saint of Liars, Taft, The Magician's Assistant, Bel Canto, Run, State of Wonder, and Commonwealth. She was the editor of Best American Short Stories, 2006, and has written three books of nonfiction, Truth & Beauty, about her friendship with the writer, Lucy Grealy, What now? an expansion of her graduation address at Sarah Lawrence College, and, most recently, This is the Story of a Happy Marriage, a collection of essays.

"Patchett’s prose is confident, unfussy and unadorned. I can’t pluck out one sentence worth quoting, but how effective they are when woven together—these translucent lines that envelop you like a spider’s web. It can feel old-fashioned: her style, her attachment to a very traditional kind of storytelling — a vision of the novel as a Dutch house, with a clarity and transparency of purpose and method, a refusal of narrative tricksiness. But like the family’s Dutch house, it’s an enduring structure, which gives an added dimension to the references in the text — its way of gesturing toward a lineage." - Parul Sehgal, The New York Times

"This novel takes a winding road through the forest and doesn’t rush to a finish, nor is the ending wholly surprising. But if you allow yourself to walk along with Patchett, you’ll find riches at the end of the trail." - Martha Southgate, The New York Times Book Review

"The Dutch House arrives just three years [after Commonwealth]—the shortest gap between novels for Patchett since the ’90s—and while it shares those strengths, it’s a less polished, more experimental effort. This marks a rare foray into first-person prose for Patchett, and her focus on perspective proves rigorous." - David Canfield, Entertainment Weekly

"A timeless plot." - The Wall Street Journal

 

How it Works

account

  • My Book Rentals
  • Order History
  • Sign In

company

  • About Us
  • Become an Affiliate

help

  • FAQs
  • Email Us

Join the Conversation

Visit our Instagram
Sign up for our emails and join the best community of readers on the internet (in our humble opinion).
Copyright © 2023 Twigge | Terms of Service | Privacy Policy
Close X
Stacks
Gifts
My TBR List
Close X
Cart


Explore The Stacks
Checkout