8: House of Sand and Fog

I finished reading this book today. It was kind of slow to become interesting but at the near the end I couldn't put it down. Just one more book checked off on my Oprah's Book Club list. #24

 Source: goodreads.com

Book Summary:

"In this riveting novel of almost unbearable suspense, three fragile yet determined people become dangerously entangled in a relentlessly escalating crisis. Colonel Behrani, once a wealthy man in Iran, is now a struggling immigrant willing to bet everything he has to restore his family's dignity. Kathy Niccolo is a recovering alcoholic and addict whose house is all she has left, and who refuses to let her hard-won stability slip away from her. Sheriff Lester Burdon, a married man who finds himself falling in love with Kathy, becomes obsessed with helping her fight for justice.

Drawn by their competing desires to the same small house in the California hills--and what it represents to each of them--and doomed by their tragic inability to understand one another, the three converge on an explosive collision course. Combining unadorned realism with profound empathy, House of Sand and Fog is a devastating exploration of the American Dream gone awry."


My rating:

I give this one a 3.5/5 stars. The beginning started off slow but interesting and the end was anything but boring. It reminded me of Lord of the Flies in terms of how brutal and wild-like the ending was. It was clear towards the end that a lack of understanding was going to somehow ruin the relationships between the characters. For me it wasn't a page turner until the last 75 pages or so.

Favorite Quotes:

Page 124. Mr. Behrani talks about American attitude and really hits the "hammer on the nail" when he says:

"And perhaps this explains the face of Americans, the eyes that never appear satisfied, at peace with their work, or the day God has given them; these people have the eyes of very small children who are forever looking for their next source of distraction, entertainment, or a sweet taste in the mouth".


I can understand his thoughts coming from an immigrant's point of view.

I'm curious as to how the film plays out since I've never seen it. Maybe it will be too brutal to watch? I think I shall save that for another day if the movie is as descriptive as the book.

Gogogadgetgirl