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The Big House: A Century in the Life of an American Summer Home
(Adobe EPUB eBook, Kindle Book, OverDrive Read)

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Average Rating
Published:
Scribner 2012
Status:
Available from OverDrive
Description
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.
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Format:
Adobe EPUB eBook, Kindle Book, OverDrive Read
Street Date:
08/07/2012
Language:
English
ISBN:
9781439124918
ASIN:
B0088Q9QAI
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Citations
APA Citation (style guide)

George Howe Colt. (2012). The Big House: A Century in the Life of an American Summer Home. Scribner.

Chicago / Turabian - Author Date Citation (style guide)

George Howe Colt. 2012. The Big House: A Century in the Life of an American Summer Home. Scribner.

Chicago / Turabian - Humanities Citation (style guide)

George Howe Colt, The Big House: A Century in the Life of an American Summer Home. Scribner, 2012.

MLA Citation (style guide)

George Howe Colt. The Big House: A Century in the Life of an American Summer Home. Scribner, 2012.

Note! Citation formats are based on standards as of July 2022. Citations contain only title, author, edition, publisher, and year published. Citations should be used as a guideline and should be double checked for accuracy.
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Grouped Work ID:
01f564dd-8864-57f8-17e3-abbf5fa9c97f
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Needs Update?:
No
Date Added:
Jun 12, 2018 18:24:41
Date Updated:
Dec 06, 2020 02:47:00
Last Metadata Check:
Mar 24, 2024 09:53:11
Last Metadata Change:
Feb 14, 2024 06:09:32
Last Availability Check:
Mar 24, 2024 09:53:14
Last Availability Change:
Mar 21, 2024 13:13:04
Last Grouped Work Modification Time:
Mar 28, 2024 02:11:39

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      • name: George Howe Colt
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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.
reviews
      • premium: True
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      • content:

        May 12, 2003
        The epicenter of the Colt family is the Big House, built in 1903 on Wings Neck, a deserted strip of Cape Cod. It's not only an architectural gem but a device to chronicle family, local history and the culture of Boston Brahmins—and it accomplishes that task with charm, style and solid research. For 42 summers, Colt traveled from winter homes across the U.S. to partake in this magical place. It's where he learned to swim and play tennis, and where he kissed his first girl. Indeed, the Big House has seen five weddings, four divorces, parties, anniversaries and love affairs. The Colts, a once venerable tribe, had lost their money—"it is not wealth so much as former
        wealth that defines Old Money families"—but were determined to keep their ancestral home. Time may have marched on, but the Big House refused to cooperate: "Everything in this house breathes of the past." Gilbert & Sullivan sheet music, rotary telephones and ancient globes grace its interiors. Yet all is not perfect in this palace by the sea. Colt, like playwright A.J. Gurney, is adept at exposing the dark underbelly of WASP restraint, recording the mental illness, alcoholism and despair that have plagued his family. His one comfort? The Big House. This love letter to the past is a quiet delight. Agent, Amanda Urban.

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subjects
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      • value: History
      • value: Home Design & Décor
      • value: Nonfiction
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shortDescription
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.
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