Housekeeping

By: Marilynne Robinson

Narrated by: Becket Royce

A modern classic, Housekeeping is the story of Ruth and her younger sister, Lucille, who grow up haphazardly, first under the care of their competent grandmother, then of two comically bumbling great-aunts, and finally of Sylvie, their eccentric and remote aunt. The family house is in the small Far West town of Fingerbone, set on a glacial lake, the same lake where their grandfather died in a spectacular train wreck and their mother drove off a cliff to her death. It is a town "chastened by an outsized landscape and extravagant weather, and chastened again by an awareness that the whole of human history had occurred elsewhere". Ruth and Lucille's struggle toward adulthood beautifully illuminates the price of loss and survival, and the dangerous and deep undertow of transience.©1980 Marilynne Robinson (P)2005 Audio Renaissance, a division of Holtzbrinck Publishers, LLC

Critic reviews

"So precise, so distilled, so beautiful that one doesn't want to miss any pleasure it might yield." (The New York Times Book Review)

Haunting Story of Sisters and Abandonment

The prose in this book is like pure poetry. . . and I learned to love it after the first 10-15 minutes of listening. It was unexpected, but captivating. For me, the narration was superb, although others find fault. It is difficult to dissect this book, because it is a story of memories and relationships and human idiosyncrasy in the raw. Enjoyable and relatively short in duration.

Profound writer but flat reader

Would you recommend this book to a friend? Why or why not?

The book, yes but not the audible version.

What was one of the most memorable moments of Housekeeping?

All moments sounded the same.

How did the narrator detract from the book?

So much so that I plan to re-read it to apprehend the authors depth.

Was Housekeeping worth the listening time?

Barely

Any additional comments?

The reader reads with inflection but the same for each paragraph in a kind of cheery manner that made me wonder if she'd read the book before our if so, did she get it. I've been deeply moved by Marylin Robinson's other books but this narrator did not seem to be and sucked the richness out of it. It was hard to differentiate the characters as they were all told with the same chirpy voice. I hate to criticize someone's livelihood but this reader is just too light for this author. Maybe for children's books.

Brilliant

This was a brilliant book, well written, narrated superbly. It is not the type of book a casual reader would enjoy however. The vocabulary was excellent and the pace was fast. I think I would have preferred to read this, but I was not disappointed in the listen.

Into the mystic

I agree with Emily's review below--this is a fascinating novel of abandonment, loss, mental illness, and mystically merging with nature. I was so moved by the descriptions of the area where the girls lived with their grandmother, the huge lake, the mountains, the woods, the cold and snow. It took me a while to figure out it was in Idaho somewhere. Sylvie and Ruthie spend so much time outside, in all kinds of weather, even spending the night on the lake's edge and then in a small boat in the middle of the lake in the middle of winter. They seemed to want to merge with nature, like the drowned grandfather and mother. There were comical scenes among the tragic, like when the ladies drop by to counsel Sylvie on how to keep house and raise Ruthie. That advice was not going to be taken, not by these two birds of a feather. Their outsiderness was sad, but at least they had each other. Unlike some others, I thought the narrator did a great job with this very literary novel. The language is beautiful, dense and flowing, full of mystery and allusion. I have also listened to Gilead by this author but did not like it anywhere near as much as Housekeeping, though Gilead won awards. Marilynne Robinson writes masterfully of troubled families through generations. She is one of my favorite authors.

Strange title for a strange story, but necessary

What did you love best about Housekeeping?

How deceiving it is with its haunting message and surprise ending

What other book might you compare Housekeeping to and why?

I can't think of anything off hand as it's so unique

Which character – as performed by Becket Royce – was your favorite?

Sylvie

If you were to make a film of this book, what would the tag line be?

Life wasn't meant to be straight

Any additional comments?

Some say the narrator was distracting - and I can understand why, as she is rather 'sing song' and very happy, probably too happy. But that's the point, I think. Even though it's a haunting story, Sylvie is a transient but happy with her lot and although the circumstances for the girls might be grim, there is a solution! Being happy go lucky and not weighed down with responsibilities might seem careless to some, but the very fact that there are choices in life is the point of the story. To have narrated this story with a more grave or solemn voice would have taken away the light heartedness intended, in my opinion. Maybe a more 'wistful' reading, without so much 'sing song' would've made it better?

What?

I never quite caught on to what was real in this book. I just listened for the second time.

Unlike anything I've read before.

Beautifully written -- lyrical, one might say -- with a story that unfolds as quietly and unexpectedly as a flower. It's suddenly there, and you know so much about the characters' lives without being aware of that unfolding. The reader has an exceptionally pleasant voice, and a style of delivery perfectly suited to the material. A great experience overall.

Haunting, but a bit depressing

Housekeeping is a rich story, even though I found it somewhat depressing. Biblical themes abound, but at times it is hard to believe that the sophisticated narrator is a high-school aged girl. The narration, while generally good, is occasionally rather flat and too obviously read. There is a mystical touch here, but all in all I much preferred Robinson’s more recent Gilead. Still, this is a wondrous story, and I will likely return to it again someday for a better understanding of its many themes. The overall theme, however, is that the world is not my home: I’m just passing through.

A poignant theology of memory, transience, and loss

This is a beautiful gem of a novel. In part a compassionate, intricate description of characters living at the boundaries of individuality, eccentricity, what is socially acceptable, and mental instability. Also a kind of theology of memory, loss, and transience. Powerful in the end despite its shorter length.

I found no problem with the narrator. She distinguishes the characters well but does not over interpret, which would not fit the tone of the novel. She speaks the meditative passages in a calm, direct manner that draws attention to the ideas instead of the oration. I do not mind her slightly quicker pace.

Wonderful

Would you consider the audio edition of Housekeeping to be better than the print version?

I love this book. I also really like the readers voice - with one criticism. She reads a little too fast for the reflective nature of the material. Still a very enjoyable book though.