Tom Hanks really needs to narrate more books - I'm pretty sure I would listen to him read a cookbook cover to cover. ( )

Very good story. I would recommend listening to the book because of great narration by Tom Hanks. ( )

This novel succeeds because the characters are believable and in some ways, ordinary. In Danny and Maeve Conroy we have two siblings, the former who grows up in The Dutch House, and the latter who chooses to play the role of mother to her younger brother. This is not a strange and esoteric tale, but the nuances that Patchett weaves into her characters makes this a powerful narrative. Danny Conroy learns how to negotiate his past in all his decisions, and the skillful back and forth of past and present lays bare how much of living is this constant dance with our past. He can't escape his father's paternalism, foisting a house on his wife and children much in the same way his father did to Danny's mother. He's at the mercy of his sister, who sets him on a path that is very much about her desire to get revenge. Maeve is headstrong and rebellious. Their mother makes a deeply misguided decision that impacts their lives forever. Their stepmother, Andrea, is perhaps the most archetypal, although she too gets recast in the latter half of the book. Even with all these traumatic situations, however, Patchett manages to illuminate the messiness of love.

As the main narrator, Danny seems almost unfazed, seemingly a passive participant in his own life. But this is what makes the story so compelling--we are allowed to bring our own backgrounds into the experience. When Danny says, "Thinking about the past impeded my efforts to be decent in the present" (304), I had to stop reading for a bit, reflecting upon when I, too, had this realization. Danny has astoundingly beautiful turns of phrase and uses of metaphor that spring forward without preamble, made all the more potent by the lack of emotional window dressing. Likewise, one of the most tragic losses in the book happens without drama or ceremony--a sentence at the end of a chapter, the final item on life's great checklist.

This is a remarkable book that should be savored and read carefully. Anyone who has a mixed or blended family will likely relate to much of the book and even those that don't should appreciate the multi-dimensional, heart-wrenchingly human characters. ( )

Beautiful, beautiful writing; the first book by Patchett I’ve ever read, but not the last. Finding out stories about your family years after the fact, as well as making your way successfully through your current life is something many of us go through. Learning from that strength and positive approach to life is a gift. ( )

The Dutch House attempts to make the house in the novel into a focal character like entity. This non-linear family saga uses the house as a metaphor for their “troubles”. Brother and sister are abandoned by their mother and are subjected to an evil step-mother. There was some lovely writing and characters are somewhat developed. But much of it is flat and emotionless. This is a number one best-seller head scratcher to me. ( )