The House of the Seven Gables

Title: The House of the Seven Gables
Author: Nathaniel Hawthorne
Genre: Classic
Pages: 416
Rating (out of 5 stars): **
Reviewed by: Ben
Description: A twisting tale of the Pynchon family, a venerable bunch from a small New England town in the 19th century, who own the House of the Seven Gables.  The story focuses on two members of that family who have been shut up in the house for many years due to some dark past and terrible rumors, and how they finally break loose of those chains with the help of young Pheobe, who comes to live with them.
Thoughts: I never liked The Scarlet Letter or The Cruicible when I studied them in 11th grade English.  Turns out I'm still not a fan of those kinds of harsh, New England, gothic stories.  I found my mind wandering nearly every time I listened to this book, and when I'd snap to I'd usually find that I hadn't missed anything and that the story was still describing some ancient relative of the Pyncheons that had little to do with the plot.  Overall, I just never got into the book, and the best thing about it were the names of the main characters: Hepzibah, Jaffrey, Phoebe, and Clifford.  After living near Concord for the past five years, I'm glad to have read the book, but it's never a good thing when you're relieved that it's over.
Disclaimer: None.