To inherit a great fortune. To inherit a great misfortune. These words, from Nathaniel Hawthorne's notebook, neatly encapsulate the theme of The House of the Seven Gables - that of a family whose fortunes are poisoned by its past misdeeds. The sins of the Pyncheon father are visited upon his children over a period of several generations, until such time as one of his descendants unites with a member of the family he has wronged. Love conquers hate, and new blood washes away the original crime. This intriguing and insightful novel truly deserves its significant place in the canon of American literature.
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"Full of ominous settings, descriptive characters and mysterious occurances, this story was not at all what I thought it might be. Although I thought it to have witchcraft in the 1800s New England as it's theme, it was so much more than that. And, the ending was quite satisfying. A good read. " — Linda (4 out of 5 stars)
"Full of ominous settings, descriptive characters and mysterious occurances, this story was not at all what I thought it might be. Although I thought it to have witchcraft in the 1800s New England as it's theme, it was so much more than that. And, the ending was quite satisfying. A good read. "
" I read the Kindle edition, Hawthorne's House of the Seven Gables (bargain edition typeset for the Kindle) Dec 2008. I thoroughly enjoyed reading this. I liked the old fashioned English. The story was a real page turner, I couldn't wait to get back to the story every time I had to stop. "
" I've tried reading this about eighteen times. Still haven't finished it. My wife says that this is her history teacher's favorite book of all time. Her second favorite book? Probably something equally dull. "
" Solid 3 1/2 - 4 stars.Loads of description and not as haunting as I would have liked, but still really good.Extremely, extremely well written though a bit heavy handed.I feel smarter after reading it :) "
" I had to read this for school, and surprisingly enough it wasn't terrible! The descriptions were interesting and the style of the narration made it interesting. "
" Almost done with this - so good, and either I've forgotten or I've never read it before. "
" Another great story by Hawthorne, full of Gothic elements and all types of social commentary. The only reason this one isn't getting a 5 star rating is that the ending was weak and appeared to negate the overall societal themes of the novel. "
" Loved it! The Great American Novel! "
" I should read this again, its been since high school and next week we are touring the house near Boston. In HS I thought it was boring, but I was pretty young at the time, maybe it aged better or maybe I did. "
" A classic, I am told. I read it in HS and reread because we went to the house on vacation last year. Rereading did not make it any more interesting that I remember from years. ago. "
" Hmm, not my favorite, although I want to head down to Salem and tour the house now! "
Nathaniel Hawthorne (1804–1864) is considered to be one of the greatest American authors of the nineteenth century. He was born in Salem, Massachusetts, and made his ambition to be a writer while still a teenager. He graduated from Bowdoin College in Maine, where the poet Longfellow was also a student, and spent several years traveling in New England and writing short stories before his best known novel, The Scarlet Letter, was published in 1850. His writing was not at first financially rewarding, and he worked as measurer and surveyor in the Boston and Salem Custom Houses. In 1853 he was sent to Liverpool as American consul and then lived in Italy before returning to the United States in 1860.
Peter Marinker is a highly experienced stage actor whose credits include The Big Idea, Easy Access, Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas, and The Merchant of Venice at the Old Vic. On television he has appeared in Bugs, Bodyguards, and Casualty, while his films include Event Horizon, Judge Dredd, The Russia House, and The Emerald Forest.
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