Home

by Marilynne Robinson

Genres: Fiction

Paperback

Published January 1, 2009

About the author

American novelist and essayist. Across her writing career, Robinson has received numerous awards, including the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction in 2005, National Humanities Medal in 2012, and the 2016 Library of Congress Prize for American Fiction. In 2016, Robinson was named in Time magazine's list of 100 most influential people. Robinson began teaching at the Iowa Writers' Workshop in 1991 and retired in the spring of 2016.

Robinson is best known for her novels Housekeeping (1980) and Gilead (2004). Her novels are noted for their thematic depiction of both rural life and faith. The subjects of her essays have spanned numerous topics, including the relationship between religion and science, US history, nuclear pollution, John Calvin, and contemporary American politics.

Reviews

[Trevor Boyd · Rating 4 out of 5]

I found this book to be more interesting than Gilead. Both are very well written but Gilead focuses more on theology while this book is centered around family dynamics. The story of a classic pastors child

[Melanie · Rating 4 out of 5]

I was not a fan of the first book Gilead, but overall enjoyed this book. I enjoyed Glory and Jack much more so than their father. The first book was focused on the father and I just did not like him in Gilead or this book. Not a lot of action but the building of relationships within a family. I am heartbroken not knowing what will happen with Jack in the future as I see him falling into his previous ways. Times I was angry as the father would do anything for Jack and Glory was treated differently. Very rarely is a sequel better than the original book, but Robinson achieved this. I wonder if there will be a third book as there are a few things that I feel were not explored that would have made this book even better.

How did this book find me? Oprah's Book Club and 1001 Books to Read Before You Die

[Kkraemer · Rating 4 out of 5]

The prodigal son has returned after 20 years. His father, a minister with a preternatural tendency to forgive, understand, and love, is at the end of his life, and Jack's return unleashes tumultuous thoughts and prayers in his soul. Sometimes, he is cranky. Most of the time, he tries to fit Jack's oddness into some overall scheme that God might have.

Jack's sister, meanwhile, grapples with both her feeling about her brother and her own inglorious life. Glory is the most devout of all of the siblings, and the most domestic. She taught school for many years, and was faithful to her "fiancé," who turned out not to have reciprocated. She's now taking care of her father, hiding the vagaries of her life away from both the minister and her wayward brother.

Much is not said in this home. Much is pondered through the lenses of both personal identity and Christian values. Tension is high. Chicken and dumplings are served.

This, like all of Robinson's books, is beautifully written, with sentences and phrases demeaning to be highlighted and savored, even if, occasionally, the inner arguments about meaning and existence seem both ponderous and esoteric. After reading this, though, the reader will carry Jack and Glory in their souls, always wondering where they are and what they're thinking.

[Bret Hicks]

This is book 2 in the Gilead series. I have read Gilead three times, but this is my first time reading Home. It tells the same basic story as told in Gilead but through the eyes of Glory Boughton. As always, Robinson's prose is a delight to read, which makes the story captivating and easy to read. It was very interesting to see some of the same events as in Gilead but given through the eyes of Glory, along with what had preceded and the aftermath. Though the story is often painful, for Jack is so uncomfortable with himself and never feels at home anywhere, I loved it. I did not understand why it was called Home at first, but the idea of "Home" is really central to the story. I loved the book and highly recommend it. And I will say that my wife Linda, who did not really enjoy Gilead (because of the way it was written as a diary rather than told by a narrator), loved this book (and Lila and Jack, which are the final two books in the series). I look forward to reading the other books in the coming months.

[Jo · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was my first Robinson novel and I loved it.
Jack is the family’s scapegoat, but the father is the one who does the damage. It's her story, but Glory doesn’t have any needs or even a personality to her father, she is just there and her loyalty is taken for granted.
His apologies to Jack come too late. Jack’s bone-weariness with life is heart-wrenching. Glory sees him finally, and looks away. So does the brother who spent years searching for him, only to reject him. By letting Jack leave, Glory’s abandonment is self-inflicted. 

It was obvious from the beginning that there was going to be no happy ending for Jack. I believed Glory’s passivity, but I still wanted her to make a real decision. I kept hoping she’d plead with Jack to stay or call Teddy out for driving him off. But she just watches.
I get that she’s trapped by a misplaced sense of duty. The family refusal to name what’s broken feels painfully real. I had to write my own ending where Jack returns to stay, reunites with Della and they settle in Gilead.

[Shari Mellin · Rating 4 out of 5]

This story is at least a four-star, maybe closer to a 5. It's Jack's story, coming home to Gilead and his father that he hasn't seen in 20 years. Basically a prodigal son retelling, with plenty of soul searching and shame and guilt thrown in. Jack's father is dying, and his baby sister Glory, youngest of 8 children (while Jack is the oldest), has come home to take care of their father, and to recover from a "love affair" that went bad. Both Glory and Jack badly need someone to care for them and to take care of them, and that is what they provide for each other. The second in a series of four, this is an extraordinary book.

[Alison · Rating 3 out of 5]

I enjoyed this insight into Glory’s character and it built my love for her, but this felt a little long. Retellings are hard to nail since there is not any suspense and the insights and shades Glory’s perspective adds are very subtle. This is once again a very gentle book, but about halfway through I wishes for less gentleness.

[Sue Malatesta · Rating 1 out of 5]

Terrible… I didn’t see any real story. I was going to ditch this book but kept thinking it would make sense and get better. NO it did not. This is one of the worst books I’ve ever read. Don’t waste any time and n this one. AWFUL.

[Suzanne Ashworth · Rating 3 out of 5]

Almost gave up on this but was worth perservering - a poignant observation of a family and the impact of a slow death

[Shelley · Rating 2 out of 5]

It’s a miracle that I made it through the tedium.

[Linnea62 · Rating 2 out of 5]

Why did I pick another Marilynne Robinson book? How could I not remember how slow her novels develop? Eternally optimistic, I guess. I write this review so I don’t pick up one of her books again.

[Chris Halverson · Rating 5 out of 5]

I'm re-reading the Gilead quartet. They are beautiful books!

[Teresa · Rating 3 out of 5]

I do not remember discussing this book at all but MM said we did and everyone has better memory than me!

[Anna Lee · Rating 3 out of 5]

Sensitive and insightful in Jack’s character. A rebel who doesn’t fit into family life