Marilynne Robinson has emerged as one of the most respected of contemporary American novelists. Her first novel, Housekeeping, was well-received, but it was a further 20 years before she published, in 2004, her Pulitzer Prize winning Gilead. HOME takes place in the same period as Gilead. This time we hear Jack's story - the prodigal son of the family has come home after 20 years, seeking refuge from his present troubles and trying to make peace with his past. He find his father frail and elderly, yet still holding fiercely to his beliefs and values, and now being minded by Jack's sister Glory, herself a refugee from personal troubles and pain.
The narrative unwinds slowly, the writing is tender, and the simplest of acts and conversations are revealed as tortuous. I enjoyed it hugely, felt moved by the struggles of the family members to communicate with each other, and saddened when they failed to do so, when they judged and misunderstood each other. Readers of Gilead have the advantage over the characters in Home, and know things the characters can only speculate about. It stands alone a a novel - but for a real treat, read both books.
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