Housekeeping

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Housekeeping
Marilynne Robinson
1980

The Summary
Housekeeping carefully depicts the lives of Ruthie and her sister, Lucille, who grow up under the care of their grandmother, then their grandmother's bumbling and nervous younger sisters, and, lastly, their flighty and erratic Aunt Sylvie.

More than simply listing off a litany of tragedies shared by these two girls, however, Marilynne Robinson's novel serves as a critical coming-of-age story for young Ruthie as she reconciles her family's tragic legacy with the the past of her town and examines the most complex and startling aspects of life, death, growing up, and being human.

The Good
Robinson's book is simultaneously intriguing and unusual.  Ruthie tells her story, and the stories of others, with amazing detail and depth, and she shares with her readers her startlingly complex notions of philosophy that encompass life, family, human nature, God, and death.

Housekeeping is, at its core, a book about philosophy and religion and emotion and learning to reconcile all the notions of growing up orphaned in a strange town on the edges of a somber lake.  It's a heady brew, in which the narrator and central protagonist, Ruthie, expresses her thoughts with startling depth and intricacy.

In particular, Robinson provides her readers with intricate characters and complex webs of stories and memories that overlap with the author's own experiences of childhood.  And Ruthie, this unusual gem who expresses an exceptional capacity for thought and rumination, offers a poignant perspective that will leave you mulling over her words for weeks to come.

The Bad
Robinson's novel, though immediately enjoyable for its incredible emotional complexity, becomes a deep well of thought and questioning that seemingly assures the readers of no answers.  It's very easy to become lost among Ruthie's philosophical meanderings and leave her story with few questions - and even greater questions.

The Ugly
The lake is a terribly desolate place that has taken lives - including Ruthie's and Lucille's grandfather, and their mother - and continues to claim them, throughout the couse of Housekeeping.