Last House

A Novel

By: Jessica Shattuck

Narrated by: Maggi-Meg Reed, Mark Bramhall

"An ambitious historical epic that doubles as an intimate family saga. Jessica Shattuck captures and connects it all—the imperial ambitions of the postwar generation, the rebellion of their offspring in the Sixties, and the fallout we’re still sifting through today. . . . This is a wide-ranging novel to savor.”—TOM PERROTTA

From the New York Times bestselling author of The Women in the Castle comes a sweeping story of a nation on the rise, and one family’s deeply complicated relationship to the resource that built their fortune and fueled their greatest tragedy, perfect for fans of The Dutch House and Great Circle.

It’s 1953, and for Nick Taylor, WWII veteran turned company lawyer, oil is the key to the future. He takes the train into the city for work and returns to the peaceful streets of the suburbs and to his wife, Bet, former codebreaker now housewife, and their two children, Katherine and Harry. Nick comes from humble origins but thanks to his work for American Oil, he can provide every comfort for his family, including Last House, a secluded country escape. Deep in the Vermont mountains, the Taylors are free from the stresses of modern life. Bet doesn’t have to worry about the Russian H-bombs that haunt her dreams, and the children roam free in the woods. Last House is a place that could survive the end of the world.

It’s 1968, and America is on the brink of change. Protestors fill the streets to challenge everything from the Vietnam War to racism in the wake of MLK’s shooting—to the country's reliance on Big Oil. As Katherine makes her first forays into adult life, she’s caught up in the current of the time and struggles to reconcile her ideals with the stable and privileged childhood her Greatest Generation parents worked so hard to provide. But when the Movement shifts in a more radical direction, each member of the Taylor family will be forced to reckon with the consequences of the choices they’ve made for the causes they believed in.

Spanning multiple generations and nearly eighty years, Last House tells the story of one American family during an age of grand ideals and even greater downfalls. Set against the backdrop of our nation’s history, this is an emotional tour de force that digs deeply into questions of inheritance and what we owe each other—and captures to stunning effect the gravity of time, the double edge of progress, and the hubris of empire.

©2024 Jessica Shattuck (P)2024 HarperCollins Publishers

The good cultural descriptions of the different decades of the last 70 years

Overall Depressing. And not a good read for me especially after the recent national election.

Hearing different viewpoints about events and things.

It shows how clueless we can be of of how what we do affects others, and ourselves.

A pretty dull story made unbearable by reader

With a promising premise, WWII vet gets involved in overthrow of Iranian government in 1953 by the CIA & MI6, author drops the ball and glosses over the whole event. Story turns to the Vet's family life in Vermont which is devoid of interest or drama. I quite 1/3 of the way through The narrator sounds like he is reading an econ textbook. You can barely tell who is speaking. Why is this happening? There must be hundreds of talented readers to draw from. I am concurrently listening to "Close to Murder" by Anthony Horowitz,( terrific BTW) read by the author and Rory Kinear. Not only is each voice distinct, but it is entirely appropriate to the character.