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Around the House and in the Garden: A Memoir of Heartbreak, Healing, and Home Improvement
by
Dominique Browning (Goodreads Author)
My story," writes Dominique Browning, the editor in chief of House & Garden, "is about the way a house can express loss, and then bereavement, and then, finally, the rebuilding of a life." Around the House and in the Garden is a moving narrative, culled from Browning's much-loved monthly editorial column, about the solace and sense of self that can be found through ten...more
Paperback, 208 pages
Published
March 25th 2003
by Scribner
(first published 2002)
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I love it when I stumble upon a book on a library's shelf that is perfectly suited to my current situation in life. Dominique Browing is a magazine column writer whose eloquent if not painfully accurate thoughts on divorce, raising kids jointly, and surviving the monumental task of creating a singular home from what was once shared spoke to me on every level. The undercurrent of pain and melancholy are peppered and uplifted by her knowledge of the natural world (gardening and botany), stories fr...more
As I was thinking about favorite books I have read, the two books by Dominique Browning (she has a third that was published in 2010) are among my all-time favorites. In fact, when I first read this book several years ago, I immediately started reading it again. I very rarely reread books, so that was my highest compliment. I liked it just as much this time. I was a faithful reader of Browning's monthly column when she was editor of 'House and Garden.' In fact, I think I clipped and saved most of...more
Dominique Browning used to the editor of House and Garden until it suddenly closed shop. I always looked forward to reading her “Letter from the Editor”. They were graceful ruminations in life, most frequently about well, home and garden. This collection of short essays remind me why I was such a fan.
“My story begins with the end of a marriage, the end of a household, the end of a home. It is about mourning, and the passage through what I came to think of as a living death ---or perhaps, living...more
“My story begins with the end of a marriage, the end of a household, the end of a home. It is about mourning, and the passage through what I came to think of as a living death ---or perhaps, living...more
I first heard of Dominique Browning through an article that was reprinted in our Montreal Gazette. I loved her writing style: honest, simple and revelatory. I quickly googled her and found that she has written three books that I quickly purchased. This is the first that I've read and each chapter is a snippet of a part of her home life. I am so jealous of her home and they way she finds beauty and comfort in the most mundane things...a fireplace, a chair, her bathtub...each chapter had me reflec...more
I liked all of this book but I loved much of it. I think that there is plenty to love here but which parts are meaningful may be different for each reader. About one third of this book was so good that I made personal notes in order to remember the images, remember the feelings that they invoked.
Jul 18, 2011
Ruth
added it
The first sentence in this book is: “When I was divorced my sense of home fell apart.”
So I took it out of the library and read it quickly, chapter by chapter.
Unhappily, I know of three very dear people in my life going through a divorce. I can’t really say I would recommend this book to any of them, unless they won’t be bothered by the affluence of the author. (When my sister had cancer, I would read a book about someone w/ cancer and say, “you probably don’t want to read this…”)
This book is wha...more
So I took it out of the library and read it quickly, chapter by chapter.
Unhappily, I know of three very dear people in my life going through a divorce. I can’t really say I would recommend this book to any of them, unless they won’t be bothered by the affluence of the author. (When my sister had cancer, I would read a book about someone w/ cancer and say, “you probably don’t want to read this…”)
This book is wha...more
Dominique Browning, the editor of House and Garden magazine, is a wonderful storyteller. A quote from the inside cover describes this book perfectly "Around the House and Garden is a book for anyone who has ever felt the need to reinvent a life or a space, who has ever fallen in love with the idea of home- the place where we reinvent ourselves...". I love each chapter as Ms. Browning's short essays weave their way through various house projects in relation to how they help her heal from a painfu...more
I enjoy Dominique Browning's writing. I used to look forward to her editorials in the now defunct House & Garden magazine because she brings a poetry, a sensitivity to one's home, one's life. She's not afraid to "go there", to admit her lows and share her highs. In this book, she achieves that with beautiful narrative about her own house and garden. I appreciate her sensibilities; often her writing makes me think I am speaking with an introspective, yet generous friend.
I felt sad during and after reading this book. A true story about a woman's journey through and subsequent years lived out in her garden and home. It was painful to read as she talked of how a house "knows" when a family is breaking up. I experienced that myself when the pipes burst after new owners moved into my old house - it was crying in grief; the same thought this author had.
A simple little relaxing book, the author is able to take simple, little bits of life and express exactly things that I've always thought. A good book to read in a relaxing bath or on a hammock. Very enjoyable.
This is a collection of essays, and a very quick read. Browning uses some lovely turns of phrase. It is a more meditative and thoughtful book than I expected. I would definitely recommend it.
I loved this book. I think it's better than Slow Love, but that may be because she talks more about her actual house in this one. i enjoy her ruminations on domestic life.
Going through a divorce? Dominique Browning gives deals with her pain by recreating her "home and garden". Chick lit? Maybe, but healing is individual.
The message that small comforts and beauties can provide what you need to get through the day is lovely.
This book was a little bit too disjointed for me, it's like a bunch of random essays put together in one book. And the title is very misleading...
I loved this book about divorce and how it correlates to one's environment.
Homey and comforting.
divorce, HG editor
Exquisite and moving. I raced through the book knowing that I'll return to it again and again.
There is something I love about Dominique Brown's soothing tone throughout this book. I actually read it in two nights a couple of years ago, but I pulled it back out because it seemed like a good summer read. I have been reading a chapter a night before bed--and it's the perfect bedtime story. Though she's mourning the loss of her marriage, she doesn't harp on it, but beautifully conveys some good life lessons.
Dominique Browning, editor of House & Garden magazine is one of my favorite writers. Her editorial pages each month are beautiful, charming and just awesome. She muses on all things surruonding the interior and exterior space of our homes. Her first memoir shares how her home helped her move the grief of a painful divorce through vignettes that discuss the comforts and pains of home. I love this book.
Though her "background" subject is divorce, she notes that divorce is a lot like other losses. I read it for the losses involved in moving, and found it very helpful, even enjoyable. For one thing, I better understand my vicarious living through magazines and books on home design and decorating, so much easier than digging in to the real thing. But it is time to do some more of that. . .
I really liked this book and the author's exploration of how a home reflects and impacts the emotional needs of its owner. She writes really well and many of her descriptions are lovely. My main complaint is that the 'chapters' were way too short for me, more like essays, and I found myself wanting her to say more about a particular subject.
After re-reading the summary of this book, I know I've read it, I just can't remember when, nor much about it. I'm giving it three stars as a middle-of-the-road rating because I obviously neither liked nor disliked it enough for it to make a huge impression. Maybe someday I'll re-read it to find out....
I absolutely loved this book. I love short stories and each chapter in this book reads like a lovely little story about a part of a home and a part of life. It really makes you look around and remember what is so special about everything in your home. A beautiful book!
Love the way Dominique Browning can make the simple things in life become three dimensional - her writing engages all five senses and leaves you wanting to read anything written by her. Her analogies for home and life are memorable, original, and touching.
Feb 15, 2008
Sabra
rated it
4 of 5 stars
Recommends it for:
anyone going through divorce or a break up, or moving
Shelves:
non-fiction
Discussing her emotional connection to home and place, this author touched my heart when writing about how she coped (or didn't) with her divorce and raising her two boys.
Quite interesting, but I had time to read only about half of this before it was due back at the library. I haven't felt compelled to take it out again.
I like how she writes. Of her two memoirs, I prefer Paths of Desire but that's mostly due to my love of gardening tales.
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Dominique Browning writes a monthly column called Personal Nature for the Environmental Defense Fund website. She is a regular contributor to the New York Times Book Review and also writes for O, Body + Soul, Wired, and Travel & Leisure, among other publications. Before House & Garden she worked at The Edison Project, Mirabella, Newsweek, Texas Monthly, and Esquire. She is the author of Ar...more
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May 13, 2011 06:11pm