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A review by sarah_reading_party
Last House by Jessica Shattuck
emotional
informative
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Last House by Jessica Shattuck was a lovely book. I found it to be well written with a deep dive into various parts of the 20th century and characters that were not always likable but were always intriguing and worth pursuing. This book was so readable, even though it was not fluffy. I was forced to keep thinking as I read this story which is not always true with historical fiction. It is definitely on the "literary" side of historical fiction and poses lots of good questions for readers to consider. It is philosophical but also relatable.
I always appreciate family saga type books, but at times there are so many characters it is hard to keep track of who is who. This is not the case for this book! This "family saga" focuses on just one family - Nick and Bet, and their two children, Katherine and Harry. Everyone is not always likable but each character has their charms which motivated me to keep reading. There are three sections of this book, and while I enjoyed the first and last bits the most, the middle section (from Katherine's point of view) was important to the story as a whole. For what it is worth, this section was not as readable as the rest... not quite sure why - perhaps it is Katherine at that age that I didn't like?
Much of the book centers around Vietnam and the politics of that era, as well as the role oil played in American life. Super interesting to me, especially since Dow Chemical was called out in this book (my grandfather worked for Dow for most of his career- 1950s-80s/90s). This book gave me lots to think about in terms of how America relates to the world. I would love to travel to the area where Last House is located and see that part of the northeast. Overall, I really enjoyed this book and am glad I took the chance on it!
Thank you to the author, publisher, and NetGalley for this eARC. All opinions are my own.
I always appreciate family saga type books, but at times there are so many characters it is hard to keep track of who is who. This is not the case for this book! This "family saga" focuses on just one family - Nick and Bet, and their two children, Katherine and Harry. Everyone is not always likable but each character has their charms which motivated me to keep reading. There are three sections of this book, and while I enjoyed the first and last bits the most, the middle section (from Katherine's point of view) was important to the story as a whole. For what it is worth, this section was not as readable as the rest... not quite sure why - perhaps it is Katherine at that age that I didn't like?
Much of the book centers around Vietnam and the politics of that era, as well as the role oil played in American life. Super interesting to me, especially since Dow Chemical was called out in this book (my grandfather worked for Dow for most of his career- 1950s-80s/90s). This book gave me lots to think about in terms of how America relates to the world. I would love to travel to the area where Last House is located and see that part of the northeast. Overall, I really enjoyed this book and am glad I took the chance on it!
Thank you to the author, publisher, and NetGalley for this eARC. All opinions are my own.