The Dutch House by Ann Patchett

Ann Patchett is a talented writer. Her stories are character-driven and certainly don't have a lot of "action", but the writing absorbs the reader from the start. This is the third novel I have read by Ann Patchett and I loved them all.

The Dutch House is a beautiful, expensive mansion with the front & back walls made of glass so that you can see through the house from the street. This is a house that you either hate or love. The family who built the house (the VanHoebeeks) lived there their whole lives. Once Mrs. VanHoebeek died, Cyril Conroy buys the house for his wife, Elna (at the end of World War II). Elna hates the house. We don't understand why until we find out Cyril found her at a convent. She wanted to be a nun and help the poor. Cyril and Elna knew each other during their childhood and they seemed to really love each other, but it doesn't really explain why Elna left the convent to marry Cyril. They were happy, though, when they were poor. It was after Cyril "surprised" Elna with the purchase of the Dutch House that things started to unravel. Elna was not comfortable with their newfound wealth and eventually she leaves her family to travel to India to help the poor.

Then comes Andrea and her two young girls, Norma and Bright. Andrea loves the Dutch House, and she loves Cyril and she loves Cyril's money. She tolerates Cyril & Elna's two children, Maeve and Danny. This story is told by Danny, who is quite a bit younger than Maeve. Maeve is more like a mother to Danny than a sister, since she takes over his care after their mother leaves them. After Cyril dies unexpectedly, Andrea kicks Danny out of the house (Maeve had already left it) so Danny moves in with Maeve in her tiny apartment.

The Dutch House continues to have a hold over Maeve and Danny, even though they are no longer welcome there. They sit in their car on the street in front of the house year after year. They both move on with their lives. Danny becomes a doctor (against his will, but it's the only way Maeve can use up their father's inheritance since the money can only be used for education purposes). Danny doesn't want to be a doctor though, so he turns to real estate as soon as he finishes his residency and that's how he makes his money, just like his father had done.

Everything must come full circle of course. So most of this blended family ends up at the Dutch House decades later. I won't explain who finds comfort there and who does not at the end, other than say it's ironic. ;)

Wendy's Rating: *****

Things You Save in a Fire by Katherine Center

Although I had a few eye-rolling moments while reading this book, I did like the overall message. I have a problem with books that come across as "too gushy", meaning a character goes on and on about their feelings (good or bad) in a silly way. I am a sensitive, compassionate person who encourages people to express their feelings, so I am not against people showing their feelings! I think it's just the way those feelings are expressed at times in writing (especially if there is a lot of cliches and repetition) that makes me roll my eyes.

For example:

Cassie (the main character who is a firefighter): "I told you....I don't fall in love."

Diana (Cassie's estranged mother): "Surely you do, a little bit."

Cassie: "Nope....Love is for girls."

Diana: "You are a girl."

Cassie: "That doesn't mean I have to be girly."

Cassie goes on to say that "love is overrated" and that "love is for the weak". This goes on for the first 69 pages of the book. THEN, on page 70, Cassie sees the rookie FOR THE FIRST TIME at her new firehouse and Cassie refers to "His stunning, heartbreakingly appealing face", and diagnoses herself with a "possible myocardial infarction". She finds herself having a "romantic reaction", which is "A full-body reaction....Like someone had lit a Fourth of July sparkler inside my chest. It was so terrible. So humiliating. So...girly." Good grief. Honestly. It's just too much, in my opinion.

But, if you can get beyond all of that, the message is great. Since the day that Cassie turned 16 years old (10 years previously), she has clung to self-pity and anger against her mother, as well as other people that I won't mention right now since her mother is the central character. Her mother left Cassie and her father on Cassie's 16th birthday. Yes, this is a rotten thing to do. So a strength of this book is watching Cassie learn to forgive. Not only does Cassie learn to forgive, she also encourages others with anger issues to forgive as well. Central themes then are "love" and "forgiveness".

So if you love heartwarming stories, and don't mind "flowery language", then this is the book for you! The only other thing that annoyed me is how often we had to hear about how talented, intelligent, strong and brave Cassie is. Got it.

Wendy's Rating: ***1/2

Big Lies in a Small Town by Diane Chamberlain

This is a story of two women set in two different times. Morgan Christopher is a young woman who is asked to spend time in Edenton, North Carolina to restore a mural that was painted in 1940. Anna Dale is the artist who painted the mural in 1940. The chapters alternate between Morgan and Anna as their stories unfold.

Anna was a very young woman in 1940 when she was selected to paint a mural for the Edenton Post Office. She moved to Edenton on a temporary basis to get to know the town and to actually paint the mural. Edenton was a town with a significant racial divide, like all southern states in the 1940s. Anna needed help and asked for a couple of art students to volunteer their time as she prepared to paint the large mural. She ended up discovering a third "student" on her own named Jesse who is an extremely talented young man but who is black. Eventually the two art students (who are white) are no longer able to volunteer their time with her (for very different reasons), so that leaves Anna & Jesse. Anna is only a few years older than Jesse and rumors start swirling about them having an inappropriate relationship, which is very dangerous for Jesse of course. Black men used to get hung in the south for less.

When Morgan is asked to restore the mural, she agrees to do it even though she has no experience in restoration. She was in art school, but one of her professors told her she would never be good enough. She seemed to accept that feedback (which is sad), but her instruction in art is interrupted anyway because of a drunk driving arrest that ended up with her being sent her to prison. After serving one year in prison, she is approached about restoring the mural. Since this will get her out of prison, she accepts the offer.

What makes this story so intriging is that the original mural was never installed in the Edenton Post Office in the 1940s. In fact, both the mural and Anna Dale went missing before it could be installed. When Morgan is shown the mural, it is in incredibly poor condition. As she starts the cleaning process she realizes that the mural has been changed (in gruesome ways) since Anna's original vision of it. Morgan tries to discover what she can about Anna Dale and what happened to her. Another mystery is why Morgan is chosen to restore the mural when she has zero experience in art restoration.

I really enjoyed this story. These women were both young, strong women who had some terrible things thrown into their lives to derail them. In the end, we find out what happened to Anna Dale in 1940. Jesse is a key factor in all of it. ;)

Wendy's Rating: ****