"Halfway down a by-street of one of our New England towns stands a rusty wooden house, with seven acutely peaked gables, facing towards various points of the compass, and a huge, clustered chimney in the midst." -- Nathaniel Hawthorne, "The House of the Seven Gables."
In comments and on Twitter on Sunday, Audrey and I decided to co-host a group read of The House of the Seven Gables by Nathaniel Hawthorne for the RIP VI. The group read is a new feature of the popular yearly challenge, and as Audrey and I discussed the two of us reading this together, it occurred to us that an invitation to all was an option.
Written in 1851, this novel trails through generations of a family plagued by rumors of witchcraft, a curse attached to the supernatural and yet is written in a realistic style prompting Hawthorne to declare it a "romance" in the preface of the book - a blend of two genres. How did the Pyncheon come to this property long ago and how can they be liberated from its legacy? Perhaps one of the greatest examples of house as character in American literature.
We ask that everyone participating post on Friday, October 14, and take the weekend to extend the conversation throughout the group by commenting on one another's posts. Please join us? Let us know if you are interested by leaving a comment here or at Audrey's place.