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House of Sand and Fog

by

House of Sand and Fog Cover

 

Synopses & Reviews

Publisher Comments:

Colonel Massoud Amir Behrani was once a powerful and respected officer in the Shah of Iran's air force. Having fled the country with his family, he works by day spearing trash on California highways and by night as a clerk in a convenience store while deceiving his family into believing that he has a loftier job. Now, willing to risk the modest remainder of his fortune to restore his family's dignity, he buys a small house at a county auction, planning to sell it again for three or four times what he paid. But the house has been auctioned because of a bureaucratic error, and Behrani's fragile plans are jeopardized when Kathy Nicolo, the owner of the house, begins to protest the sale.

A recovering alcoholic and addict, Kathy is desperate to regain her only tie to stability — her home. In doing so, she enlists the help of Deputy Sheriff Lester Burdon, a married man who has fallen precipitously in love with her. As Kathy and Lester become obsessed with seeking justice by whatever means possible, the three characters 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.

Review:

"A mesmerizing tale of the American Dream gone terribly awry....The son and namesake of one of our most talented writers has embarked on a dazzling career in his own right." Publishers Weekly

Review:

"Elegant and powerful...an unusual and volatile...literary thriller." The Washington Post Book World

Review:

"House of Sand and Fog is a page-turner with a beating heart." Boston Globe

Review:

"Dubus's attention to detail and realistic prose style give the narrative a hard-edged, cinematic quality, but unlike many movies, its outcome is unexpected. Recommended for all fiction collections." Reba Leiding, Library Journal

Review:

"House of Sand and Fog is one of the best American novels I've ever read." James Lee Burke, author of Heaven's Prisoners

Review:

"[A]n enthralling tragedy....No villains here, but only precisely rendered proof that the road to hell is paved with good intentions." Kirkus Reviews

Review:

"Dubus writes gorgeous prose with a noirish edge, holding his readers spellbound..." Donna Seaman, Booklist (Starred Review)

Synopsis:

An American tragedy, House of Sand and Fog turns both the traditional immigrant success story and a modern love story upside down with a heartrending outcome in a master stroke of American realism and Shakespearean consequence.

Synopsis:

NOW A MAJOR MOTION PICTURE

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 resotre his family's dignity. Kathy Nicolo is a troubled young woman 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 doomed by their tragic inability to understand one another, the three converge in an explosive collision course. Combining unadorned realism with profound empathy, House of Sand and Fog marks the arrival of a major new voice in American fiction.

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About the Author

Andre Dubus III lives in Newburyport, Massachusetts.
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What Our Readers Are Saying

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Average customer rating based on 4 comments:
Kayla Andres, January 23, 2013 (view all comments by Kayla Andres)
I had no idea what this book was about when I first picked it up, but I was captivated from the start!
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(1 of 2 readers found this comment helpful)
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Laurie Beringer, January 3, 2012 (view all comments by Laurie Beringer)
Even if you've seen the movie, read this because it's sooo much better! I keep thinking about it and thinking about it.
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(1 of 1 readers found this comment helpful)
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Beryl272, January 10, 2008 (view all comments by Beryl272)
I'm a senior in high school and this book was on my outside reading list so I chose it because I needed a book to connect to a previous book I'd read entitled 'The Bell Jar' to go along with its theme of depression. And I got what I was looking for. I have to agree with the comment below me and say that this book was completely infuriating because you say to yourself, okay, the characters are going to turn out to be dynamic, not static. They're going to come around and this book will leave you with a positive moral, but it just never comes and it leaves you with a huge dose of the truth instead of the sugar coated stories we're forced to read all throughout high school. So yes, I did get a book to accompany 'The Bell Jar's' theme of depression and suicide but I sure got more than I bargained for.
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Product Details

ISBN:
9780375727344
Subtitle:
A Novel
Author:
Dubus III, Andre
Author:
Dubus, Andre, III
Author:
Andre Dubus III
Publisher:
Vintage
Location:
New York :
Subject:
General
Subject:
Literary
Subject:
Literature
Subject:
Immigrants
Subject:
Home ownership
Subject:
Domestic fiction
Subject:
Iranian Americans.
Subject:
San Mateo County
Subject:
Literature-A to Z
Copyright:
2000
Edition Description:
Trade paper
Series:
Vintage Contemporaries
Series Volume:
106-632
Publication Date:
November 2000
Binding:
Paperback
Grade Level:
General/trade
Language:
English
Pages:
368
Dimensions:
8.02x5.22x.76 in. .61 lbs.
Media Run Time:
35 Min. 30 Sec.
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Related Subjects


Featured Titles » Miscellaneous Award Winners
Fiction and Poetry » Literature » A to Z

House of Sand and Fog Used Trade Paper
0 stars - 0 reviews
$1.95 In Stock
Product details 368 pages Vintage Books USA - English 9780375727344 Reviews:
"Review" by , "A mesmerizing tale of the American Dream gone terribly awry....The son and namesake of one of our most talented writers has embarked on a dazzling career in his own right."
"Review" by , "Elegant and powerful...an unusual and volatile...literary thriller."
"Review" by , "House of Sand and Fog is a page-turner with a beating heart."
"Review" by , "Dubus's attention to detail and realistic prose style give the narrative a hard-edged, cinematic quality, but unlike many movies, its outcome is unexpected. Recommended for all fiction collections."
"Review" by , "House of Sand and Fog is one of the best American novels I've ever read."
"Review" by , "[A]n enthralling tragedy....No villains here, but only precisely rendered proof that the road to hell is paved with good intentions."
"Review" by , "Dubus writes gorgeous prose with a noirish edge, holding his readers spellbound..."
"Synopsis" by , An American tragedy, House of Sand and Fog turns both the traditional immigrant success story and a modern love story upside down with a heartrending outcome in a master stroke of American realism and Shakespearean consequence.
"Synopsis" by , NOW A MAJOR MOTION PICTURE

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 resotre his family's dignity. Kathy Nicolo is a troubled young woman 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 doomed by their tragic inability to understand one another, the three converge in an explosive collision course. Combining unadorned realism with profound empathy, House of Sand and Fog marks the arrival of a major new voice in American fiction.
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