House of Seven Gables was mandatory reading in high school. I have been out of school for many years and have been reading the "classics" again. I am enjoying them so much. I will be adding this to my Grandchildren's library and who knows someday they may enjoy these books as much as I have. pb

As this book followed Hawthorne's succesful "The Scarlet Letter," there is no wonder that it carries the strong Hawthorne sentiments of mysteriousness and guilt. Although the whole book is ridden by an apparently dire mood, the gradual but sure development of the highly original plot makes the book an important addition to one's literary knowledge. Hawthorne himself appears to have summed up the story in his introduction, but the conclusion of the novel is not what one would expect.

To those who approach "classics" with trepidation, I heartly recommend House of the Seven Gables. Not only the characters but the very house come alive, in all their splendor and in all their shortcomings.

Cousin Hepzibah Pynchon stands as one of the most pitiful but admirable characters of fiction. The befuddled Clifford, the mysterious Holgrave, and the sweet Phoebe come alive to the reader. Even the house itself has a life and a spirit.

Come home to the House of the Seven Gables.

I really wanted to like this book. Hawthorne's language has a nice poetic flow to it, and once accustomed to it, reads very smoothly. The first chapters of this book were the hardest for me to get into, or care about. Though Hawthorne weaves his words well, his characters are less interesting, and sometimes the slowness of the plot makes you wonder what direction the book is going. Or if it has any direction at all. Also, I didn't really feel that this book had a lot of supernatural elements in it, there were some to be sure,though they were hardly anything to get excited about. Many passages were overly long and took away from the enjoyment of the novel. This book took me about 2 months to read, although I read several books during that time as well. Though I fancy myself to appreciate fine works of literature I just couldn't bring myself to give this one anymore than three stars.

I can't believe that this is recommended reading for grade 9 and up. Had I been assigned this for reading at grade 9, I would have read as much as necessary to get a C on whatever project was associated with the assignement and not felt the least bit of guilt. Fast forward to the present...I picked this book up (only b/c I've seen a number of references to it) and forced myself to complete it (reading 3 or 4 other books in between - which is indicative of its ability to capture the average reader's interest).

Overall, I wouldn't recommend this book for reading if you're a passive literary buff. But if you want to say you've read an author's author (for casual conversation) or you are given this as assigned-reading (lucky you!), then you're going to have to make an effort to stay awake. This book can easily lose you (and your interest) with its level of detail. The story is very basic - family cheats another family; cheated family curses cheating family; cheating family experiences generations of misfortune - but the message, theme, etc. gets lost in the soup of details.

Don't be suckered into thinking this is any kind of supernatural thriller. It's definitely not scarey and is far from a thriller. One prop I will give is the description of the house has seemed to make it into every B-horror-flick (either in look or spirit) I've seen.