The House of Hawthorne

March 2, 2015
Robuck’s thoroughly engaging latest (after 2014’s Fallen Beauty) imagines the marriage of painter Sophy Peabody to the author Nathaniel Hawthorne. Though not wealthy, Sophy’s family is known in New England’s artistic circles. Through her older sister, Elizabeth, a publisher, she meets introverted Nathaniel and immediately feels a connection. He understands her artistic temperament; Sophy herself is renowned for her art, but creating it causes her to suffer excruciating migraines. The two find themselves in a long courtship, with Nathaniel reluctant to marry Sophy due to financial constraints. Family tensions and money problems continue to plague the couple through their marriage, though their love keeps the relationship afloat. Robuck has a light touch, and despite clocking in at 400 pages, the story flies by. Sophy ultimately sacrifices her artistic career to raise a family and support Nathaniel in his writing. Nathaniel goes on to make his name as an author, taking government jobs along the way that eventually land the family in Europe while America prepares for Civil War. Other prominent names pepper the narrative (Herman Melville, Ralph Waldo Emerson, et al), as friends of the Hawthornes who influence their lives and work. Robuck’s ending is perplexing given what we know of these characters, and major themes and questions are suddenly dropped and left unanswered, but this is still a charming work.

April 15, 2015
Upon arriving in Cuba in the winter of 1833 on her doctor's orders, artist Sophia Peabody quickly understands exactly how little she understands. The language, the culture, the foodso much of it is a mystery to her and her older sister, Elizabeth. Sophia is inspired to write a series of letters about her time in Cuba, which Elizabeth secretly publishes. Back in the U.S., the Cuba Journal happens to catch the eye of a talented young writer, Nathaniel Hawthorne. Their courtship and eventual marriage take Nathaniel and Sophia from Massachusetts to Europe, crisscrossing countries while they learn from one another. Artists can be a temperamental lot, and Robuck pulls no punches in describing the tumult of such a passionate relationship. Sophia's inner conflict between providing for her family and following her own creative desires is timely for anyone absorbed by Claire and Frank Underwood's marital drama on Netflix's House of Cards or for fans of Naomi Wood's Mrs. Hemingway (2014). Immersing the reader in exotic locales and the complexities of a high-profile marriage, The House of Hawthorne explores the personal repercussions of creative feats and failures.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2015, American Library Association.)