A Good House

"Returning home from the Second World War with three fingers missing from his right hand, Bill Chambers is determined to restore his family life. He and his wife Sylvia have three children, Patrick, Daphne and Paul and with Bills steady job at the hardware store, a promising future stretches out before them. Bonnie Burnards exquisite novel tells the story of three generations of an ordinary small-town family from the 195 Os to the 1990s. Through years of family rituals weddings, funerals, births and holidays bonds deepen and widen, sometimes fray; loyalties are tested and love creates its own snares as each character faces the triumphs or tragedies that befall them. In A Good House, which won Canadas prestigious Giller Prize in 1999, Bonnie Burnard exposes the human heart with delicacy and daring. Exploring the hidden, often disturbing areas of love, she unravels the complexities of human experience, bringing to her story a clarity and grace that is both moving and profound." -back cover.