Infinite Home, Kathleen Alcott
Infinite Home, Kathleen Alcott
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Infinite Home

Author: Kathleen Alcott

Narrator: Christa Lewis

Unabridged: 8 hr 52 min

Format: Digital Audiobook Download

Published: 08/04/2015

Synopsis

A beautifully wrought story of an ad hoc family and the crisis they must overcome togetherEdith is a widowed landlady who rents apartments in her Brooklyn brownstone to an unlikely collection of humans, all deeply in need of shelter. Crippled in various ways—in spirit, in mind, in body, in heart—the renters struggle to navigate daily existence and soon come to realize that Edith’s deteriorating mind, and the menacing presence of her estranged, unscrupulous son, Owen, is the greatest challenge they must confront together.Faced with eviction by Owen and his designs on the building, the tenants—Paulie, an unusually disabled man, and his burdened sister, Claudia; Edward, a misanthropic stand-up comic; Adeleine, a beautiful agoraphobe; Thomas, a young artist recovering from a stroke—must find in one another what the world has not yet offered or has taken from them: family, respite, security, worth, love.The threat to their home scatters them far from where they’ve begun, to an ascetic commune in Northern California, the motel rooms of depressed middle America, and a stunning natural phenomenon in Tennessee, endangering their lives and their visions of themselves along the way.With humanity, humor, grace, and striking prose, Kathleen Alcott portrays these unforgettable characters in their search for connection, for a life worth living, for home.

About Kathleen Alcott

Kathleen Alcott was born and raised in Northern California and now lives in Brooklyn. Her work has appeared in American Short Fiction; Slice; Explosion-Proof; Rumpus Women, Vol. 1; and elsewhere, as well as on Vol. 1 Brooklyn and Rumpus. 

About Christa Lewis

Christa Lewis has narrated over two hundred audiobooks. She is a classically trained actress with a four-year conservatory training in voice and acting. She has a smart and funny vibe, but can also meet the moment in straightforward or somber works of nonfiction thanks to a seventeen-year stint as a newsreader. Christa speaks accent-free German fluently and offers a variety of believable accents and dialects. Her narrations are well received—there have been seven Earphones awards across a variety of genres—YA, literary fiction, biography and memoir—a 2019 SOVAS Voice Arts Award in Biography and two Audie nominations. Pippa Jayne was the Sultry Listeners’ Award Winner 2019 in the Erotica category.

Reviews

Goodreads review by Cher 'N Books on July 07, 2016

2.5 stars - It was alright, an average book. Felt overwritten and slow in places. To illustrate what I mean by overwritten, below is the first chapter in its entirety (all the chapters are short). This writing style can be beautiful when used sparingly but is over the top when it flows continuously. T......more

Goodreads review by Emily M on September 25, 2015

Kathleen Alcott is a tremendous writer, and she delivers extremely strong prose here. However, I strangely felt like there was both way too much and not nearly enough going on throughout this book. A worthwhile read, but not as unputdownable as I would have liked.......more

Goodreads review by Jill on November 25, 2016

Once, when I was getting ready for a move, a friend said, “Remember, home is nothing more than a piece of real estate.” But I knew then – and I know now – that it is really much more. Home is the place where you are your most authentic self, a place of sanctuary and acceptance. Kathleen Alcott wisely......more

Goodreads review by Christopher on October 11, 2015

Always, always, it's about the writing. And boy, oh boy, does this young lady know how to compose beautiful sentences. Lyrical, powerful writing. I loved this book!......more

Quotes

“If The Island of Misfit Toys were recast as a sleepy Brooklyn apartment building, it might look a bit like Alcott’s Infinite Home, where a collection of vividly drawn characters seem to breathe right out of the pages.” Entertainment Weekly

“Wise, fresh…The joy of reading comes from how these seemingly insular people fall in love and help each other, melding lonely lives into an improvised family. Along the way, expect to find insights that make you stop, go back, and read again…You don’t know what’s coming in the last third of this book, and you will be astounded.” O, The Oprah Magazine

“Don’t expect this novel to deliver trite messages about the redemptive power of makeshift families. Yet these damaged characters, in spite of themselves, provide one another with unexpected offerings of consolation and love.” New York Times

“Prepare to be moved, because this one will reach deep inside of you.” Bustle magazine

“Alcott calls into question what ‘home’really means—is it a physical space populated by the belongings you acquire or a state of mind achieved when you’re surrounded with those you feel most at ease with? In Infinite Home, she posits that it’s somehow both.” Huffington Post

“At turns despondent and darkly funny, Alcott has woven a uniquely beautiful story which challenges the way we view the concept of home.” Brooklyn Magazine

“In her quietly wonderful second book, Alcott displays a deft hand with every one of her odd and startlingly real characters…The voices in this book speak volumes. A luminous second novel from a first-class storyteller.” Kirkus Reviews (starred review)

“The challenge presented by this novel for narrator Christa Lewis is portraying a small cast of highly diverse characters. Listeners will be enthralled by her consistent portrayals of these individuals, who seem to have little in common beyond living in the same Brooklyn brownstone…Lewis’ sensitive performance keeps listeners fully invested in this character-driven audiobook. Winner of the AudioFile Earphones Award.” AudioFile

“A delectably subtle yet sublimely fierce study of many forms of bravery and loyalty.” Booklist

“This quirky little tale is sad, yet funny and ultimately redemptive. Christa Lewis expertly captures the voices of the characters.” Library Journal

Awards

  • Bustle Pick
  • AudioFile Earphones Award
  • Amazon Best Books of the Year
  • Kirkus Reviews’ Best Books
  • BuzzFeed Books Pick
  • Huffington Post Best Book
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