Open House

By: Elizabeth Berg

Narrated by: Becky Baker

Length: 6 hrs and 18 mins

Publisher's summary

Samantha Morrow's husband has left her, and now she must strive to reconstruct a life for herself and her 11-year-old son. Her eccentric mother tries to help by fixing her up with dates, but a more pressing problem is money. To meet her mortgage payments, Sam decides to take in boarders. A new friend suggests that Samantha get out, get going, get work. But her real work is this: In order to emerge from grief and the past, she has to learn how to make her own happiness. And in order to know who she is, she has to remember - and reclaim - the person she used to be, long before she became someone else in an effort to save her marriage.

Open House is the unforgettable story of how a woman re-creates her life after divorce by opening her house to strangers and her heart to the simple miracle of possibility.

Check out more selections from Oprah's Book Club.

©2000 Elizabeth Berg (P)2000 HighBridge Company

Critic reviews

• An Oprah Book Club Selection

"Savvy, wry, and sharply observant." (The Denver Post)
"Smart, funny, and satisfying...a fine literary novel." (The Baltimore Sun)

Not really exciting

I liked the beginning and I liked the ending. I didn’t really see the ebbs and flows of trying to find yourself after divorce. I also wasn’t crazy on the writing. I felt like there was a lot of repetitive phrases. The chapters also just stopped which I thought was strange. This book was just okay for me

Beautifully Honest

I absolutely loved this book and really hope it becomes a movie. It was insightful, funny, empowering, and honest. Thanks

Wonderful narrator. Story was OK but kept my inter

Not my type of book but Story was OK kept my interest loved the narration.

Great narration!

Elizabeth Berg classic that never gets old. Lovely story about finding oneself and someone to love.

The narrator sounds like Marge Simpson

I feel that the narration really distracted from the story. I just found it annoying.

I really enjoyed it!

I absolutely love Elizabeth Berg novels.
I really think they paired the narrator very well with the main character!

Open House

Not my favorite but worth listening to.

Heartfelt and relatable

I've listened to this a few times because its very realistic. The changes that separation and divorce bring to a family can be scary but liberating. The author really captures one woman's journey as she faces a major life change. The people she meets add a spice to her previous life. Loved it!

Satisfying.

Would you listen to Open House again? Why?

I would certainly recommend the book but I wouldn't listen again because I generally don't reread books.

What was one of the most memorable moments of Open House?

There were many memorable moments in Open House, but the best one is when Sam has a chance to go back but moves forward.

Have you listened to any of Becky Baker’s other performances before? How does this one compare?

No, I haven't listened to any of Becky Baker's other performances, but I plan to look her up on Audible's narrator search and select another book she has narrated because I really liked her voice. I think she fit the character of Sam very well.

Did you have an extreme reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?

I didn't have an extreme reaction, but I did chuckle at some of the parts and get a few tears in my eyes in other parts. It was just a very satisfying book.

Any additional comments?

I really liked Sam, because she was able to accept people for who they are and find the good in people without negative judgment. Her initial assessment of people focused on the positive rather than the negative. She was a very optimistic person, although I don't think she saw herself that way.

Witty and Resourceful Survivor

Samantha, the main character, goes through a metamorphasis with grace and humor, from pampered housewife to resourceful survivor. There were a lot of funny moments and absolutely no whinning or complaining even though this woman's husband of many years walked out without any warning and left her financially as well as emotionally strapped. Instead, she rebuilt her life bit by bit and opened herself as well as her home to new people. It was a fun read and the narrator was a good match for the tone of the book.