The Big House : A Century in the Life of an American Summer Home

A Century in the Life of an American Summer Home

By: George Howe Colt

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Paperback | 1 June 2004

At a Glance

Paperback
336 Pages

Dimensions(cm)
21.43 x 13.97 x 2.79

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Faced with the sale of the century-old family summer house on Cape Cod where he had spent forty-two summers, George Howe Colt recounts returning for one last stay with his wife and children in this stunning memoir that was a National Book Award Finalist and a New York Times Notable Book of the Year.

This poignant tribute to the eleven-bedroom jumble of gables, bays, and dormers that watched over weddings, divorces, deaths, anniversaries, birthdays, breakdowns, and love affairs for five generations interweaves Colt’s final visit with memories of a lifetime of summers. Run-down yet romantic, The Big House stands not only as a cherished reminder of summer’s ephemeral pleasures but also as a powerful symbol of a vanishing way of life.

Industry Reviews

David Halberstam What a wonderful book. George Howe Colt has taken an original idea -- over four generations a house is a family and a family is a house -- and turned it into an uncommon success, becoming in the process the writer as family archaeologist. It's a book that stands in a line with The Late George Apley and The Proper Bostonians.

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Prologue: Winter	p. 1

Arriving	p. 5
The Family Tree	p. 20
1963	p. 30
The Discovery of Cape Cod	p. 42
Rooftree	p. 60
Renovations	p. 79
Fishing	p. 89
The North and South Faces	p. 100
The Barn	p. 117
Plain Living	p. 123
Money	p. 131
Sailing	p. 142
Tennis	p. 158
Midsummer	p. 173

Hidden House	p. 181
The Big Cove	p. 205
Missing Cards	p. 217
Rain	p. 228
The White Elephant	p. 237
Full House	p. 257
Florida	p. 272
Leaving	p. 284
Epilogue: Indian Summer	p. 301
Notes on Sources	p. 321
Acknowledgments	p. 325
Table of Contents provided by Rittenhouse. All Rights Reserved.

The Big House : A Century in the Life of an American Summer Home

A Century in the Life of an American Summer Home

At a Glance

Paperback

Industry Reviews

Shipping

How to return your order

Defective items

You Can Find This Book In

More in Biographies

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