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The Carriage House
Jane Austen's Persuasion is brought into the twenty-first century by Louisa Hall in The Carriage House, a stunning novel of family and forgiveness, set in contemporary suburban America.
Elizabeth, Diana and Izzy, three sisters who have lived a privileged life in suburban America are the pride and joy of their father William. All three were tennis prodigies as children, popular, and successful at school: they seemed destined for greatness.
But the idyllic façade masks a family who is in turmoil - their mother is suffering with early onset Alzheimer's which is making Izzy spiral out of control, Diana is failing her career, Elizabeth feels trapped by her domesticity and their father is still in love with his old sweetheart, Adelia.
When William is suddenly taken ill, he reveals that he has lost faith in the things he had once held closest to his heart: the promise of his gifted daughters and his grandfather's beautiful carriage house, now lost to the family.
Devastated by his disappointment in them and desperate to make their father proud, the sisters band together to restore his beloved carriage house which is now dilapidated, unloved and under threat of demolition by the neighbourhood association, and to re-build a family in disarray.
Touching, intelligent and compassionate, The Carriage House is a drama about family, relationships and forgiveness - and, most importantly, that it is never too late to make amends.
'Louisa Hall writes about the wars waged between neighbours and family members with extraordinary sympathy and a keen sense of humour. Part Jane Austen, part John Cheever, this tale of upheaval in a suburban Philadelphia household marks the debut of a stunning new writer' Philipp Meyer, author of American Rust
'Every sentence in The Carriage House is full of clarity, attention, and grace. Louisa Hall is a writer to be admired' Kevin Powers, author of The Yellow Birds
'The Carriage House is gorgeously detailed and rife with betrayal, heartbreak, nostalgia, lost love, and possibilities for redemption. You will ache for the Adair family, cringe at their mistakes, and plead with them to make peace with each other before it's too late. In her smart and insightful debut, Louisa Hall examines the ways in which we fail and forgive others-and ourselves' Megan Mayhew Bergman, author of Birds of a Lesser Paradise
Louisa Hall was born in Philadelphia in 1982 and grew up in the nearby suburb of Haverford. She graduated from Harvard in 2004 and went on to play squash professionally for three years. She is now completing her Ph.D. in literature at the University of Texas at Austin, and lives in Los Angeles with her husband. Her poems have been published in journals such as The New Republic, The Southwest Review, and Ellipsis. The Carriage House is her first novel.
Elizabeth, Diana and Izzy, three sisters who have lived a privileged life in suburban America are the pride and joy of their father William. All three were tennis prodigies as children, popular, and successful at school: they seemed destined for greatness.
But the idyllic façade masks a family who is in turmoil - their mother is suffering with early onset Alzheimer's which is making Izzy spiral out of control, Diana is failing her career, Elizabeth feels trapped by her domesticity and their father is still in love with his old sweetheart, Adelia.
When William is suddenly taken ill, he reveals that he has lost faith in the things he had once held closest to his heart: the promise of his gifted daughters and his grandfather's beautiful carriage house, now lost to the family.
Devastated by his disappointment in them and desperate to make their father proud, the sisters band together to restore his beloved carriage house which is now dilapidated, unloved and under threat of demolition by the neighbourhood association, and to re-build a family in disarray.
Touching, intelligent and compassionate, The Carriage House is a drama about family, relationships and forgiveness - and, most importantly, that it is never too late to make amends.
'Louisa Hall writes about the wars waged between neighbours and family members with extraordinary sympathy and a keen sense of humour. Part Jane Austen, part John Cheever, this tale of upheaval in a suburban Philadelphia household marks the debut of a stunning new writer' Philipp Meyer, author of American Rust
'Every sentence in The Carriage House is full of clarity, attention, and grace. Louisa Hall is a writer to be admired' Kevin Powers, author of The Yellow Birds
'The Carriage House is gorgeously detailed and rife with betrayal, heartbreak, nostalgia, lost love, and possibilities for redemption. You will ache for the Adair family, cringe at their mistakes, and plead with them to make peace with each other before it's too late. In her smart and insightful debut, Louisa Hall examines the ways in which we fail and forgive others-and ourselves' Megan Mayhew Bergman, author of Birds of a Lesser Paradise
Louisa Hall was born in Philadelphia in 1982 and grew up in the nearby suburb of Haverford. She graduated from Harvard in 2004 and went on to play squash professionally for three years. She is now completing her Ph.D. in literature at the University of Texas at Austin, and lives in Los Angeles with her husband. Her poems have been published in journals such as The New Republic, The Southwest Review, and Ellipsis. The Carriage House is her first novel.
281 pages, Paperback
First published March 1, 2013
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 85 reviews
April 1, 2013
Whenever I write a review I think about the many different opinions people have when reading a book. This is one of those books that will probably not appeal to everyone, but it was one I really liked. It is being compared to Jane Austen's "Persuasion" but I read that book so long ago I don;t remember all that much about it in order to compare the two. William Adair, the father, is the sun that everyone, his three daughters, his wife who is disappearing under the weight of her early onset Alzheimer's and the woman who he wanted to marry once long ago. It is about the weight of seeing oneself only through someone else's eyes and when they are disillusioned, losing ones self and having to figure out all over again who you are and what you are meant to be doing. It is about the impact of a mother who is not really able to be there any more for her husband nor her daughters and the effect this has on the family. It is also about a carriage house which comes to mean everything and then alternately nothing at all. Wonderfully written, with some very flawed but real characters, and a family that must come to terms with what they are and where they will go from here. A family that I am sure many of us can relate to. Really looking forward to what this author will write about in her next novel.
June 30, 2023
Last year I read Speak by Louisa Hall and absolutely loved it, so I put her on my list of authors to watch, and found The Carriage House, which was her debut. I can tell that her style has evolved. Speak is multilayered and complex speculative fiction. This book is a straight-forward story of a family of three daughters, all of whom were skilled tennis players in their youth. Their mother is in mental decline and their father has had a stroke. The titular carriage house is an outbuilding that is located on both their property and their neighbor’s property. It has fallen into disrepair. This is a slow-paced novel. The characters are all facing the need for change and adaptation. They are well-developed and believable. It is nicely written though not particularly compelling. I liked it but not as much as Speak, which I highly recommend.
August 8, 2013
Many aspiring novelists wonder if they should self-publish, and after reading this traditionally published, good-looking book, I say, Definitely! You certainly can’t do any worse than The Carriage House.
William is obsessed with tennis, having been a former tennis champion. He had high hopes that his three daughters, Diana, Elizabeth and Isabelle, would follow in his footsteps. It took the author 30 pages to say this. Anyway, William has a stroke and his wife, Margaux, who left reality behind a long time ago, is cared for by crazy, Louise. William loves Adelia and he asks her to move in with him, his three daughters and his wife. We are now well into the novel and other than meandering through unlikeable characters’ heads, nothing has happened.
This book is excruciating. The characters are dull, the dialogue poor, the adequate descriptions are endless – some paragraphs go on for two and a half pages, and the plot is missing. The goal to save the house of the title seems like an afterthought. It is not ‘Part Jane Austen’ as indicated on the cover.
William is obsessed with tennis, having been a former tennis champion. He had high hopes that his three daughters, Diana, Elizabeth and Isabelle, would follow in his footsteps. It took the author 30 pages to say this. Anyway, William has a stroke and his wife, Margaux, who left reality behind a long time ago, is cared for by crazy, Louise. William loves Adelia and he asks her to move in with him, his three daughters and his wife. We are now well into the novel and other than meandering through unlikeable characters’ heads, nothing has happened.
This book is excruciating. The characters are dull, the dialogue poor, the adequate descriptions are endless – some paragraphs go on for two and a half pages, and the plot is missing. The goal to save the house of the title seems like an afterthought. It is not ‘Part Jane Austen’ as indicated on the cover.
November 21, 2015
This novel is set in an upper class Philadelphia suburb seemingly dominated by tennis and social convention and starts with a quote from a Jane Austen novel.So the novel starts with limits. The father is an accomplished architect but lives in a haze of a history of family prominence and memories of family tennis championships; the novel alternates chapters from his view and views from his three daughters, an old flame who has moved back to the suburb from a successful legal career to be closer to him and his family and a caretaker for the wife/mother who suffers from early dementia, the caretaker being possibly the most annoying fictional characters I have ever read. It is telling that this annoying caretaker shares too many similarities with the author's bookjacket.
But this is not a complete loss. The characters become sympathetic and more complex as their stories are told, and many take complicated steps toward redemption. There are some interesting plot twists that kept me involved and there no syrupy, too convenient endings, to wrap things up, again the family and characters seemed more appealing and real at the end of book, after the struggles, than an the beginning
But this is not a complete loss. The characters become sympathetic and more complex as their stories are told, and many take complicated steps toward redemption. There are some interesting plot twists that kept me involved and there no syrupy, too convenient endings, to wrap things up, again the family and characters seemed more appealing and real at the end of book, after the struggles, than an the beginning
August 28, 2014
Probably a 3.5 but decided to round it down.
There are some books that just fail to excite and quite early on you realise you are pretty much indifferent to what happens to any of the characters. This was one of those books - had I lost this book half way through reading it, I wouldn't have wasted much time wondering what had happened to this family and their carriage house. The book also disappointed by only focusing on one family member at the end which left a couple of unfinished story lines.
There is a plus side to this novel; it was beautifully written and one or two of the characters were quite amusing but sadly, for me, it lacked energy and sparkle.
There are some books that just fail to excite and quite early on you realise you are pretty much indifferent to what happens to any of the characters. This was one of those books - had I lost this book half way through reading it, I wouldn't have wasted much time wondering what had happened to this family and their carriage house. The book also disappointed by only focusing on one family member at the end which left a couple of unfinished story lines.
There is a plus side to this novel; it was beautifully written and one or two of the characters were quite amusing but sadly, for me, it lacked energy and sparkle.
August 28, 2022
Decent read, good debut. Nice prose, interesting characters. The plot is intriguing but does feel a little removed from reality. But it's good to see an author treating the subject of Alzheimer's with thoughtfulness. Wish I was a little more familiar with the plot of Austen's 'Persuasion' to see some of the links between the two.
abandoned
July 24, 2013So I was a little hesitant to start this book when I looked at the author bio and discovered that she is from the Main Line Philadelphia suburb that I haaaaated living in when I first moved to Southeastern Pennsylvania. The book is also set in that area and is about a family who is upper crust enough to have a tennis obsession and a carriage house on their property, but I heard good things and was willing to give it a shot.
Then I got to page eleven and I read this lovely little bit, of a Main Line father reflecting on his disappointment of a daughter:
I threw the book. Literally threw it at the dashboard of my boyfriend's car.
Don't hate, Louisa Hall. You may have gone to Harvard, but there's nothing wrong with old "Harvard on the Hocking." After all, Macguyver's an alum. And Ed O'Neill. And Matt Lauer. And mother fucking Bart Simpson. Et cetera, et cetera.
(I might go back to this one, but I am in no mood to be reading about snotty Main Line folks right now, especially one who is going to insult my Bobcats.)
Then I got to page eleven and I read this lovely little bit, of a Main Line father reflecting on his disappointment of a daughter:
She had challenged herself only enough to get in to Ohio University, of all incomprehensible places, and they had considered themselves lucky of that.
I threw the book. Literally threw it at the dashboard of my boyfriend's car.
Don't hate, Louisa Hall. You may have gone to Harvard, but there's nothing wrong with old "Harvard on the Hocking." After all, Macguyver's an alum. And Ed O'Neill. And Matt Lauer. And mother fucking Bart Simpson. Et cetera, et cetera.
(I might go back to this one, but I am in no mood to be reading about snotty Main Line folks right now, especially one who is going to insult my Bobcats.)
March 12, 2013
I loved this book from page 1. I was immediately arrested by Hall's writing, from the poetry of a tennis match to the inner monologues of the novel's various characters. I find it quite an impressive feat that she genuinely captured so many individual characters and their reactions to patriarch William Adair's stroke and its consequences. The beloved carriage house in their backyard, facing demolition due to a zoning error, serves as a foil for the struggles of three Adair daughters, all of them facing various personal crises--a failed marriage, a failed career, a lost youth.
I read this book in a weekend; Hall's characters are so sharply-drawn that I was unwilling to pull myself out of their world until all had been resolved. Everything does get resolved, and satisfactorily, too, though not necessarily in the way you would expect. I'm excited to see what Louisa Hall does next.
This would be a great choice for a book club, too.
I read this book in a weekend; Hall's characters are so sharply-drawn that I was unwilling to pull myself out of their world until all had been resolved. Everything does get resolved, and satisfactorily, too, though not necessarily in the way you would expect. I'm excited to see what Louisa Hall does next.
This would be a great choice for a book club, too.
May 12, 2019
I enjoyed this book. Apparently it's based on a Jane Austen novel, so maybe if I'd ever managed to slog my way through any of her novels, or Persuasion specifically, then I might have got more out of this.
The character in whom I was most interested was Margaux, the wife and mother who is fairly embedded in early onset Alzheimer's disease by the start of the novel, but samples of whose journals from the start of the disease are also included. Adelia, her love rival, was also interesting. Between them they added up to a partial mother for the three disappointed, disaffected younger women in the story.
Then there is William, the man around whom they all circle, who was far more sympathetic after having lost his confidence through a stroke. Arthur, the love interest, is less fully drawn and serves the role of missed prize mostly. Louise, the help and aspiring novelist, was the least fully drawn with the flattest story arc. Elizabeth's daughters are delightful, especially foul-mouthed Lucy.
Tennis and architecture are also central to the book. Between them they provide a framework in which Hall builds her story of renewal through destruction. The titular carriage house mirrors the state of the family well, without being too obvious.
The character in whom I was most interested was Margaux, the wife and mother who is fairly embedded in early onset Alzheimer's disease by the start of the novel, but samples of whose journals from the start of the disease are also included. Adelia, her love rival, was also interesting. Between them they added up to a partial mother for the three disappointed, disaffected younger women in the story.
Then there is William, the man around whom they all circle, who was far more sympathetic after having lost his confidence through a stroke. Arthur, the love interest, is less fully drawn and serves the role of missed prize mostly. Louise, the help and aspiring novelist, was the least fully drawn with the flattest story arc. Elizabeth's daughters are delightful, especially foul-mouthed Lucy.
Tennis and architecture are also central to the book. Between them they provide a framework in which Hall builds her story of renewal through destruction. The titular carriage house mirrors the state of the family well, without being too obvious.
September 27, 2018
This is a nothing book. There is no character development, the storyline is non-existent and the writing is childish. I kept reading on the hope that something, anything, would happen but nope! You could have written the entire book in one paragraph and it would have been more entertaining.
I’m thankful I borrowed this from the library, so spent nothing on it, but I did spend time - which I’ll never get back. Do yourself a favour and choose any other book than this. How it ever got published, I have no idea.
I’m thankful I borrowed this from the library, so spent nothing on it, but I did spend time - which I’ll never get back. Do yourself a favour and choose any other book than this. How it ever got published, I have no idea.
September 20, 2021
The Carriage House centers around William Adair, and his family focusing on the family dynamics and the expectations we place on our families and they place on us.
William viewed himself as somewhat of a respected and envied societal patriarch but after he suffered a stroke, he realizes that his children are less extraordinary than he had remembered and his world begins to collapse. Although the writing is very good, I found the story line to be both slightly unbelievable and predictable.
William viewed himself as somewhat of a respected and envied societal patriarch but after he suffered a stroke, he realizes that his children are less extraordinary than he had remembered and his world begins to collapse. Although the writing is very good, I found the story line to be both slightly unbelievable and predictable.
March 19, 2024
This book wasn't quite for me. The pacing dragged in sections and I found it to be repetitive at times. The characters themselves were difficult to connect with. The father, for example, came across as narcissistic and was obsessed with his daughter's appearances and them playing tennis even if that wasn't what they wanted to do.
However, if you enjoy character studies that delve into dysfunctional family dynamics, this book might be for you.
However, if you enjoy character studies that delve into dysfunctional family dynamics, this book might be for you.
September 30, 2024
Kind of sad and felt it could have been so much better with a couple of plot twists. Family dynamics are off a little.
Fav line “Some people never look back long enough to know there’s nothing there anymore.”
Fav line “Some people never look back long enough to know there’s nothing there anymore.”
September 6, 2018
I really enjoyed this book. Each chapter is a different point of view, and this isn't tiresome, but in fact fascinating! The characters are rich and real, the story is relate able.
February 17, 2019
I'd like to see a movie adaptation of this one.
June 17, 2025
Loved this family drama . Highly recommend.
June 12, 2013
People once looked up to William Adair and admired his three beautiful, intelligent and talented daughters - Elizabeth, Diane and Isabelle - but a lot has changed since his two eldest daughters left the house.
When William suffers a stroke Elizabeth and Diane return home and for the first time have to deal with their mother's Alzheimer's disease on a day-to-day basis and see the devastating effect it has on their younger sibling, Izzy, and to a lesser extend William. Not only that, but they finally see themselves through the eyes of the people who surrounded them growing up and they have to face the hard realisation that they are no longer the admired Adair girls, filled with all the potential in the world.
Before his stroke, William was passionately opposing the demolition of the carriage house which once belonged to his family and due to a change in property lines now stands on his neighbour's land. But as he returns home from the hospital the fight has left his body, so his childhood friend Adelia decides to take over and rallies the three Adair daughters to help her save the carriage house. She hopes that winning the battle may bring the sparkle back into William's eyes and help the sisters find back some of what they have lost.
Elizabeth once dreamed of becoming a famous actress but is now a divorced mother of two. Diane was a tennis prodigy, but she changed courses to become an architect and she's struggling to finish her studies. Izzy is a teenager living at home but she is having a hard time without a mother in her life and is unable to connect to other people. Joining the estranged family members in the house is Adelia, a neighbour and childhood friend of William who tries to take care of the family in her own way.
What struck me most about The Carriage House is that the characters, without exception, feel inexplicably sorry for themselves. They've certainly had hardships in their lives, but instead of dealing with them like most people do they gave up without much of a fight and even seem to relish in feeling miserable and unaccomplished. This made them appear more like a bunch of spoiled children than well-rounded people the reader should be rooting for.
The novel by Louisa Hall is a decently written debut, but for the longest of time the carriage house seemed liked a trivial focus point for both the story and William's life. Combined with pointless character additions such as caretaker Louisa and the self-pitying from the Adair family members this soon became a tiresome read that I struggled to find interesting enough to finish.
Many thanks to Lovereading for providing me with a copy of the novel in exchange for an honest review.
When William suffers a stroke Elizabeth and Diane return home and for the first time have to deal with their mother's Alzheimer's disease on a day-to-day basis and see the devastating effect it has on their younger sibling, Izzy, and to a lesser extend William. Not only that, but they finally see themselves through the eyes of the people who surrounded them growing up and they have to face the hard realisation that they are no longer the admired Adair girls, filled with all the potential in the world.
Before his stroke, William was passionately opposing the demolition of the carriage house which once belonged to his family and due to a change in property lines now stands on his neighbour's land. But as he returns home from the hospital the fight has left his body, so his childhood friend Adelia decides to take over and rallies the three Adair daughters to help her save the carriage house. She hopes that winning the battle may bring the sparkle back into William's eyes and help the sisters find back some of what they have lost.
Elizabeth once dreamed of becoming a famous actress but is now a divorced mother of two. Diane was a tennis prodigy, but she changed courses to become an architect and she's struggling to finish her studies. Izzy is a teenager living at home but she is having a hard time without a mother in her life and is unable to connect to other people. Joining the estranged family members in the house is Adelia, a neighbour and childhood friend of William who tries to take care of the family in her own way.
What struck me most about The Carriage House is that the characters, without exception, feel inexplicably sorry for themselves. They've certainly had hardships in their lives, but instead of dealing with them like most people do they gave up without much of a fight and even seem to relish in feeling miserable and unaccomplished. This made them appear more like a bunch of spoiled children than well-rounded people the reader should be rooting for.
The novel by Louisa Hall is a decently written debut, but for the longest of time the carriage house seemed liked a trivial focus point for both the story and William's life. Combined with pointless character additions such as caretaker Louisa and the self-pitying from the Adair family members this soon became a tiresome read that I struggled to find interesting enough to finish.
Many thanks to Lovereading for providing me with a copy of the novel in exchange for an honest review.
August 17, 2013
I was very kindly sent a copy of this book via the First Reads Scheme at Good Reads, and the following is my honest opinion.
In the very first chapter, all I could think was: William, get over yourself for goodness sake. The other characters then went on to make a very poor first impression too.
As I progressed though, my opinions had a bit of a switch around in most cases.
Izzy went from a sulky teenager with real Daddy issues to a lost child that simply needed her Mother to be more present - something I can really identify with, and that is probably why I had the most empathy with the way she was written.
Diana moved from college drop out to a girl who had loved so deeply, and lost so profoundly, she couldn't move on with her life. How happy was I at the end then, to find that she finally got it. It left me wishing that she and Arthur could re-awaken the love, and find a life together.
Elizabeth was my least favourite character, and I haven't quite got my finger on why .... I expect most people probably didn't like Adelia much, so it surprised me too.
Really, Adelia had just made a spectacular mess of her life, she should have had children, not tried to cling to William and take over his family (I personal experience of a would be family hijacker and it isn't nice), no wonder Izzy found her terrifying and threatening!
All in all this was a meticulously put together piece of work. However, I did have a bug bear: sometimes at the start of a chapter it was difficult to define just who was narrating, and therefore a heading under the name would of been useful to the flow, i.e. Chapter #, Diana's story. Just a minor, and personal opinion, but it would have been nice to see.
This is not a book that ends up with all the loose ends neatly tied, but it did finish at a nice logical point. Hey, not everybody requires happy ever after at the end.
Review on my Blog (Blog Post #366 in August 2013).
In the very first chapter, all I could think was: William, get over yourself for goodness sake. The other characters then went on to make a very poor first impression too.
As I progressed though, my opinions had a bit of a switch around in most cases.
Izzy went from a sulky teenager with real Daddy issues to a lost child that simply needed her Mother to be more present - something I can really identify with, and that is probably why I had the most empathy with the way she was written.
Diana moved from college drop out to a girl who had loved so deeply, and lost so profoundly, she couldn't move on with her life. How happy was I at the end then, to find that she finally got it. It left me wishing that she and Arthur could re-awaken the love, and find a life together.
Elizabeth was my least favourite character, and I haven't quite got my finger on why .... I expect most people probably didn't like Adelia much, so it surprised me too.
Really, Adelia had just made a spectacular mess of her life, she should have had children, not tried to cling to William and take over his family (I personal experience of a would be family hijacker and it isn't nice), no wonder Izzy found her terrifying and threatening!
All in all this was a meticulously put together piece of work. However, I did have a bug bear: sometimes at the start of a chapter it was difficult to define just who was narrating, and therefore a heading under the name would of been useful to the flow, i.e. Chapter #, Diana's story. Just a minor, and personal opinion, but it would have been nice to see.
This is not a book that ends up with all the loose ends neatly tied, but it did finish at a nice logical point. Hey, not everybody requires happy ever after at the end.
Review on my Blog (Blog Post #366 in August 2013).
August 20, 2013
Picture this family: a mother (Margaux), with early-onset Alzheimer's, her husband William, an architect and tennis nut whose just had a stroke, and their three daughters who have all by turns been (mostly lovingly) pressured by their father to be tennis stars. Because of their parent's health, all three sisters gather in the family manse in suburban Philadelphia. Isabelle is about to go off to college when the book opens; Diana has just announced she has dropped out of grad school where she was studying to be an architect; Elizabeth is recently divorced with two young daughters. These are the Adairs. Oh, and there are two other gals who are constantly on the scene as well: Louise, Margaux's live-in caretaker and Adelia, William's childhood girlfriend who still has a bad case of unrequited love. Lots of estrogen floating around, not to mention a bunch of old issues. And much angst around the issue of a decaying carriage house built by William's grandfather which is due to be torn down due to the efforts of many busybody neighbors.
This novel is divided into two books. Dysfunctional melancholy permeates most of the first book, but then Isabelle gets drunk and in one evening of what could be called righteous destruction (which called to my mind the Hindu goddess Kali), the whole axis of the family shifts in a new direction. I was about to give up on the book right before this dramatic scene, which rather woke things up enough for me to stay interested. In the second book, the family rents a beach cottage and regroups. That's about all I am going to say about the plot. For a first novel, I thought there was a fair amount of fairly sensitive character development. Yet I never really bonded with these folks. I say that but I know I was rooting for each and every one of them to find themselves, so perhaps I was more hooked than I consciously realized.
This novel is divided into two books. Dysfunctional melancholy permeates most of the first book, but then Isabelle gets drunk and in one evening of what could be called righteous destruction (which called to my mind the Hindu goddess Kali), the whole axis of the family shifts in a new direction. I was about to give up on the book right before this dramatic scene, which rather woke things up enough for me to stay interested. In the second book, the family rents a beach cottage and regroups. That's about all I am going to say about the plot. For a first novel, I thought there was a fair amount of fairly sensitive character development. Yet I never really bonded with these folks. I say that but I know I was rooting for each and every one of them to find themselves, so perhaps I was more hooked than I consciously realized.
February 19, 2017
A brilliant plot, beautifully written with echoes to jane Austen's Persuasion. Loved it !
May 30, 2013
A stunningly beautiful tale of family expectations, consequential change and relationships
Heartrending and powerfully moving this exquisite, truth-drawing tale captures the essence of family life so acutely. The Carriage House is the centre of William Adair and his two beautiful and talented daughter’s lives, with its historical value and significance casting a shadow over its inhabitants. Elizabeth, Diana and Isabelle struggle to find clear direction as they encounter personal betrayals and family fallouts. All the while the house falls into decay, as the links binding each individual begin to fray and snap. Full of heartwarming poignancy and focusing on forgiveness, this is a tale that reminds one of how strong the connection is between relatives, and how the home is where the heart is.
Within a suburban setting Jane Austen’s classic ‘Persuasion’ is modernized and totally transformed into something fresh and contemporary. Character-driven and sincere, the warmth and sympathetic way in which the author captures the hearts of her heroines is wonderfully assured.
Intricately woven and fascinating this novel is a classy edition to contemporary fiction, combining tragedy and humor in such a clever way. A romantic comedy that observes each character in-depth so as to bring their separate stories vibrantly to life, and which link together like the pieces of a perplexing puzzle. I was enchanted by Louisa Hall’s writing style and so I am greatly intrigued to find out what she is going to write next, for I truly believe her to be an exceptional new writer.
*I was sent a copy of Louisa Hall’s the carriage house from “Love Reading” to read and review*
www.lovereading.co.uk
Heartrending and powerfully moving this exquisite, truth-drawing tale captures the essence of family life so acutely. The Carriage House is the centre of William Adair and his two beautiful and talented daughter’s lives, with its historical value and significance casting a shadow over its inhabitants. Elizabeth, Diana and Isabelle struggle to find clear direction as they encounter personal betrayals and family fallouts. All the while the house falls into decay, as the links binding each individual begin to fray and snap. Full of heartwarming poignancy and focusing on forgiveness, this is a tale that reminds one of how strong the connection is between relatives, and how the home is where the heart is.
Within a suburban setting Jane Austen’s classic ‘Persuasion’ is modernized and totally transformed into something fresh and contemporary. Character-driven and sincere, the warmth and sympathetic way in which the author captures the hearts of her heroines is wonderfully assured.
Intricately woven and fascinating this novel is a classy edition to contemporary fiction, combining tragedy and humor in such a clever way. A romantic comedy that observes each character in-depth so as to bring their separate stories vibrantly to life, and which link together like the pieces of a perplexing puzzle. I was enchanted by Louisa Hall’s writing style and so I am greatly intrigued to find out what she is going to write next, for I truly believe her to be an exceptional new writer.
*I was sent a copy of Louisa Hall’s the carriage house from “Love Reading” to read and review*
www.lovereading.co.uk
February 4, 2015
The Carriage House is a perceptive novel about regret. The characters struggle with what they’ve become, they mourn the loss of the people they used to be close to and they rue the decisions they’ve made.
The story is told from the perspectives of the various members of the Adair household, all of whom have issues: William, the father, suffers a stroke, Margaux, the mother, has Alzheimer’s; Adelia, William’s childhood friend, is still in love with him and three daughters: a failed actress with a failed marriage, an architect in training who has never graduated and the youngest daughter who has never really known her mother without her illness.
The family lives in the Philadelphia suburbs where William’s father built the carriage house that gives the story its name. There is some contention around the house and whether it should be retained, restored or torn down which causes some consternation within the neighbourhood. I thought the house was merely symbolic, something that represented the past and what the Adairs yearned for.
When the house is destroyed by fire followed by an accident, the family seems to rally, not dramatically but determinedly and find themselves whilst not completely embracing the fresh start it brings, beginning to rebuild their lives according to their current status and becoming more accepting of things they cannot change.
This is not a story with an obvious happy conclusion but I felt pleased that lives became more settled which I guess was an ending of sorts.
The story is told from the perspectives of the various members of the Adair household, all of whom have issues: William, the father, suffers a stroke, Margaux, the mother, has Alzheimer’s; Adelia, William’s childhood friend, is still in love with him and three daughters: a failed actress with a failed marriage, an architect in training who has never graduated and the youngest daughter who has never really known her mother without her illness.
The family lives in the Philadelphia suburbs where William’s father built the carriage house that gives the story its name. There is some contention around the house and whether it should be retained, restored or torn down which causes some consternation within the neighbourhood. I thought the house was merely symbolic, something that represented the past and what the Adairs yearned for.
When the house is destroyed by fire followed by an accident, the family seems to rally, not dramatically but determinedly and find themselves whilst not completely embracing the fresh start it brings, beginning to rebuild their lives according to their current status and becoming more accepting of things they cannot change.
This is not a story with an obvious happy conclusion but I felt pleased that lives became more settled which I guess was an ending of sorts.
February 8, 2013
Originally posted on my blog... http://asoutherngirlsbookshelf.blogsp...
When I first read what this story was about I was really tempted to read it. I seemed like a great story of a family brought together after their father’s stroke. Boy was I disappointed. I couldn’t for the life of me get into this story. I tried several times but just couldn’t. I never like to not finish a book so I struggled several times to get to the end.
I wasn’t connecting to the characters. The patriarch William was a man who in my opinion was just plain mean and insensitive to his daughters. All he cared about was imagine, the old carriage house and what others thought of him and his family. All three daughters tried so hard to live up to his expectations that they failed to really live their lives for themselves. Not to mention their mother who was suffering from dementia was mainly unheard of since she was isolated upstairs most of the time. Then there was her caretaker, who if you asked me was a character one too many. I mean there were so many characters it was kind of hard to keep track of them all. If William had put more of an effort into caring for his daughters much as he did trying to save that carriage house maybe I’ve enjoyed the story more.
In the end there were just too many loose ends and things I didn’t get to truly enjoy this book. It wasn’t a bad book there were some good parts, just not enough for me to have this book worth it for me.
When I first read what this story was about I was really tempted to read it. I seemed like a great story of a family brought together after their father’s stroke. Boy was I disappointed. I couldn’t for the life of me get into this story. I tried several times but just couldn’t. I never like to not finish a book so I struggled several times to get to the end.
I wasn’t connecting to the characters. The patriarch William was a man who in my opinion was just plain mean and insensitive to his daughters. All he cared about was imagine, the old carriage house and what others thought of him and his family. All three daughters tried so hard to live up to his expectations that they failed to really live their lives for themselves. Not to mention their mother who was suffering from dementia was mainly unheard of since she was isolated upstairs most of the time. Then there was her caretaker, who if you asked me was a character one too many. I mean there were so many characters it was kind of hard to keep track of them all. If William had put more of an effort into caring for his daughters much as he did trying to save that carriage house maybe I’ve enjoyed the story more.
In the end there were just too many loose ends and things I didn’t get to truly enjoy this book. It wasn’t a bad book there were some good parts, just not enough for me to have this book worth it for me.
June 16, 2013
I enjoyed this gentle and thoughtful slice of life tale inspired by Jane Austen's 'Persuasion'. Set in suburban America, it revolves around The Carriage House' of the title and the Adair family - William, his wife Margaux who suffers from early onset of Alzheimer's disease, and his three daughters, Elizabeth, Diana and Isabelle. The Carriage House was built by William's grandfather but has now fallen into disrepair and is quite dilapidated. It is also the subject of a demolition order and the Adairs are determined to fight to retain their beloved property.
It is a very character driven story and is about the importance of family, forgiveness and acceptance. There isn't much plot as such and it isn't a fast paced read, it's more about the trials and tribulations of life. I found it quite descriptive, atmospheric and it gives a good insight into human nature, human failings and idiosyncrasies. It's a tale to savour and not one to rush through!
I thought it was sensitively and well written, especially with regard to the Alzheimer's aspect, and the writing style is modern and discerning. There is some humour as well as some poignant moments.
I would recommend The Carriage House to those readers who prefer a character based plot with good observations of family life.
I reviewed this book for www.lovereading.co.uk.
It is a very character driven story and is about the importance of family, forgiveness and acceptance. There isn't much plot as such and it isn't a fast paced read, it's more about the trials and tribulations of life. I found it quite descriptive, atmospheric and it gives a good insight into human nature, human failings and idiosyncrasies. It's a tale to savour and not one to rush through!
I thought it was sensitively and well written, especially with regard to the Alzheimer's aspect, and the writing style is modern and discerning. There is some humour as well as some poignant moments.
I would recommend The Carriage House to those readers who prefer a character based plot with good observations of family life.
I reviewed this book for www.lovereading.co.uk.
June 21, 2013
I was fascinated by the world depicted in this book, in which a family is judged by a patriarch who values his daughters insofar as they are 1) attractive, and 2) able to win competitions. Even as adults, their father is deeply invested in the girls winning tennis competitions at the local country club, and his standing in their rather precious neighborhood is intensely important to him. It's a bizarre conceit, though I don't mean to imply that some families aren't set up this way.
What an unhappy, unfulfilled bunch they are, and they coalesce to greater or lesser degrees around the idea of saving a falling-down carriage house, built by the grandfather, as a way of saving the family's claim to craft and appearances and good taste. In the end the carriage house becomes unimportant to several of the family members but it keeps the plot moving forward. The Rashomon-style organization of the chapters is witty and fun, as the characters take turns narrating and the other characters tell us all the ways each of them misperceives herself. (Daddy seems to see himself pretty clearly.) I enjoyed this as an anthropologist would, a view into a foreign and distinctive worldview. The writing is evocative and I wanted to continue reading.
What an unhappy, unfulfilled bunch they are, and they coalesce to greater or lesser degrees around the idea of saving a falling-down carriage house, built by the grandfather, as a way of saving the family's claim to craft and appearances and good taste. In the end the carriage house becomes unimportant to several of the family members but it keeps the plot moving forward. The Rashomon-style organization of the chapters is witty and fun, as the characters take turns narrating and the other characters tell us all the ways each of them misperceives herself. (Daddy seems to see himself pretty clearly.) I enjoyed this as an anthropologist would, a view into a foreign and distinctive worldview. The writing is evocative and I wanted to continue reading.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
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May 1, 2014The Carriage House is about William Adair’s faith in life and his two indisputable principles - the exceptional good looks and athletic talents of his three daughters and the historical status of his family in their Philadelphia suburb.
Now both the beauty and talents of his daughters and the symbol of their place in the world – the carriage house which was built by his grandfather are beginning to collapse.
Diana, Elizabeth, and Isabelle were all tennis champions in their youth. Having lost their father’s pride, the three sisters are now struggling to define themselves. Their ailing mother was suffering from dementia and had forgot about everyone around her.
Fighting to help William to recover from his stroke, his daughters started the battle to take back the carriage house which had decayed beyond recognition and may even be condemned. This novel is about overcoming the complex bonding of siblings, misunderstandings, and betrayals and how each of the Adairs ultimately found how to forgive, to rebuild lost lives, and how to save grace of love.
This book is a moving, soul searching, easy to related to and a refreshing read.
I received this book for free through a GoodReads giveaway but only just got to finish the book. Thank you.
Now both the beauty and talents of his daughters and the symbol of their place in the world – the carriage house which was built by his grandfather are beginning to collapse.
Diana, Elizabeth, and Isabelle were all tennis champions in their youth. Having lost their father’s pride, the three sisters are now struggling to define themselves. Their ailing mother was suffering from dementia and had forgot about everyone around her.
Fighting to help William to recover from his stroke, his daughters started the battle to take back the carriage house which had decayed beyond recognition and may even be condemned. This novel is about overcoming the complex bonding of siblings, misunderstandings, and betrayals and how each of the Adairs ultimately found how to forgive, to rebuild lost lives, and how to save grace of love.
This book is a moving, soul searching, easy to related to and a refreshing read.
I received this book for free through a GoodReads giveaway but only just got to finish the book. Thank you.
December 31, 2013
I probably never would have read this book - set in suburban Philly, country club and tennis set (not that I have anything at all against either the people or surrounding, but it's rather alien territory for an urban loving Asian-American), except that it's a first time novel written by the daughter of a friend of a friend.
It took a while for me to get into the story of a family - Dad's an architect, Mom has early dementia, and three grown daughters, each confronting separate challenges and trying to understand their earlier lives as the family was growing. The father is a force of nature - proud, and boastful of the beauty and exceptional tennis prowess of his daughters. It's interesting to see how each daughter works to come to terms with the expectations of a parent, who's been so 'loud' and articulate regarding his pride/expectations and what they want for themselves. This is a challenge complicated by the slow disappearance to dementia of their Mom.
I'm glad I read this book.
It took a while for me to get into the story of a family - Dad's an architect, Mom has early dementia, and three grown daughters, each confronting separate challenges and trying to understand their earlier lives as the family was growing. The father is a force of nature - proud, and boastful of the beauty and exceptional tennis prowess of his daughters. It's interesting to see how each daughter works to come to terms with the expectations of a parent, who's been so 'loud' and articulate regarding his pride/expectations and what they want for themselves. This is a challenge complicated by the slow disappearance to dementia of their Mom.
I'm glad I read this book.
October 20, 2015
Why on earth was the phrase ‘similar to Jane Austen’ splashed prominently across the cover? Honest and united, yet genuinely flawed, families and relationships lie at the heart of Austen novels, and the author’s desperate attempt to adhere to this model felt all too heavy-handed and forced. This dreary, and quite frankly far too unoriginal, theme of illustrious children that fade into the mediocrity of adulthood left me completely unable to empathise, despite the proximity of my age to the Adair sisters’. The father’s inability to accept his own seniority was utterly frustrating, and the obvious way in which the reader is steered towards feeling sympathy for the typically overlooked middle child was entirely contrived and untactful.
I certainly did not feel that fondness for these characters in the same way as those of Austen’s creations; my acceptance and understanding of their flaws as they themselves recognise and strive to rectify them.
The Carriage House was clunky imagery, downright churlish and objectionable characters and a weary and unimaginative plot.
I certainly did not feel that fondness for these characters in the same way as those of Austen’s creations; my acceptance and understanding of their flaws as they themselves recognise and strive to rectify them.
The Carriage House was clunky imagery, downright churlish and objectionable characters and a weary and unimaginative plot.
April 29, 2013
This book has been compared to a modern-day Jane Austen, and I'm not sure that I would go that far. It is a story about a family that is searching for an identity, comprised of a well-off father, his wife with early onset Alzheimers, and their three lovely daughters, aged 18-30 or so. The father is obsessed with image, and tennis. He wanted all of his girls to pursue competitive tennis, and all three failed him in that regard for different reasons. At first, the book did not involve me that much, but I became completely consumed in the desires and struggles of the various characters. The daughters all come back together to help save a carriage house that is destined for demolition. The house means different things to different people, and the struggle becomes a metaphor for the bonds in the family. The prose is not overwhelming, but it is good enough to sustain the wonderful tale.
July 5, 2016
A creditable attempt to rewrite Jane Austen's Persuasion in a modern setting. If you have read Persuasion, you will recognise the new versions, or sometimes, amalgamations of the characters but the author hasn't allowed herself to be too constrained by the original and so this becomes a study of a contemporary family suffering from a crisis in confidence, which will also appeal to non Austen fans. A clever move to replace the original's deceased mother with Margaux, suffering from Alzheimer's. The only character I found difficult was Louise, Margaux's carer, whose presence in the story seem superfluous. Now, I am firmly of the opinion that no one should attempt to recreate Jane Austen's style and that authors who try and write sequels to her books are misguided and should be avoided....but this novel stood on its own merits and I found it interesting and enjoyable.
P.S. July 2016. Yet forgettable.....I'm looking at it on my shelves and wondering why I kept it!
P.S. July 2016. Yet forgettable.....I'm looking at it on my shelves and wondering why I kept it!
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