The Summer Guest
by Justin Cronin
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With a rare combination of emotional insight, narrative power, and lyrical grace, Justin Cronin transforms the simple story of a dying man’s last wish into a rich tapestry of family love.“A work of art . . . a great American novel.”—The Philadelphia Inquirer
On an evening in late summer, the great financier Harry Wainwright, nearing the end of his life, arrives at a rustic fishing camp in a remote area of Maine. He comes bearing two things: his wish for a day of fishing in a place show more that has brought him solace for thirty years, and an astonishing bequest that will forever change the lives of those around him.
From the battlefields of Italy to the turbulence of the Vietnam era, to the private battles of love and family, The Summer Guest reveals the full history of this final pilgrimage and its meaning for four people: Jordan Patterson, the haunted young man who will guide Harry on his last voyage out; the camp’s owner Joe Crosby, a Vietnam draft evader who has spent a lifetime “trying to learn what it means to be brave”; Joe’s wife, Lucy, the woman Harry has loved for three decades; and Joe and Lucy’s daughter Kate—the spirited young woman who holds the key to the last unopened door to the past.
As their stories unfold, secrets are revealed, courage is tested, and the bonds of love are strengthened. And always center stage is the place itself—a magical, forgotten corner of New England where the longings of the human heart are mirrored in the wild beauty of the landscape.
Intimate, powerful, and profound, The Summer Guest reveals Justin Cronin as a storyteller of unique and marvelous talent. It is a book to treasure. show less
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I knew Cronin as the author of post-apocalyptic books like The Passage. But this book came before that series and is a much different type of book. The Summer Guest centers around a fishing camp in Maine. We gradually learn the backstories of the camp's owners, Joe and Lucy Crosby; a frequent guest and wealthy businessman, Harry Wainwright; and camp employee, Jordan Patterson. But the action centers on one day, a day marked by what may be Harry's final visit to the camp and that may change the lives of everyone associated with the camp. Although the shifting viewpoints slows the pace of the story a bit, it is handled masterfully and adds depth that sets this book apart. I felt connected to each character, to their struggles and their show more deep relationships to the camp. It is a high compliment from me to compare this book to the journeys to Maine that I've taken with Elizabeth Strout. show less
[[Justin Cronin]] is more well known for his vampire trilogy, which is a wonderful and unique entry in that world. But this book is unfairly overlooked as a result. Though not quite on the same scale as the trilogy, the book is still an epic historical fiction tracking one family in northern Maine at a campground. The patriarch is battle-scarred, physically and emotionally, from his service in World War II. The character for whom the book is named is an Uber-wealthy tycoon who is living with his own pain, and now at the end of his life. He arrives at the camp for one last fishing expedition but with a lot more on his mind than fish. The writing is poetic and evocative, and the story not the overly saccharin into which many of these sort show more can fall. Part of what elevated the vampire trilogy was Cronin's literary mindset he used to tackle the genre. This earlier book puts that wonderful ability on display. Highly recommended. show less
This was an engrossing tale of a family in Maine who own a wilderness camp and how their lives become intertwined with one wealthy gentleman. The contemporary action takes place over a single day, but there are a lot of flashbacks, and my only quibble with the read was that I sometimes had trouble keeping clear in my mind what happened when.
There are various POVs and Cronin gives each a distinct voice, and he handles the time shifts well - that is to say, they are smooth even if a bit confusing (at least to me...). As I was reading it, I kept thinking of how the book was one in a long line of books about fathers and sons, and then reading the Author's Note, Cronin calls it a book about fathers and daughters - which also makes sense. show more Either way, it was a very compelling read.
4.25 show less
There are various POVs and Cronin gives each a distinct voice, and he handles the time shifts well - that is to say, they are smooth even if a bit confusing (at least to me...). As I was reading it, I kept thinking of how the book was one in a long line of books about fathers and sons, and then reading the Author's Note, Cronin calls it a book about fathers and daughters - which also makes sense. show more Either way, it was a very compelling read.
4.25 show less
The only other book by Justin Cronin that I've read was The Passage, a post-apocalyptic non-traditional vampire road saga. I liked it pretty well, although I thought the ending was rather weak. Whether you like that kind of novel is irrelevant for this review, because I am here to tell you that this book is about as far from The Passage thematically and stylistically as you can get.
The Summer Guest is set at a remote fishing camp in Maine, during the time span from post World War II to more or less the present. It follows several generations of owners, employees and guests of the resort as they come together and drift apart in a complex waltz of love, friendship, desire, anger, illness, and fear. The viewpoint shifts among several of show more the main characters and gradually reveals each of their secrets and desires.
There are no car crashes and certainly no vampires lurking — this is not Stephen King's Maine! It is a lovely, gentle story told in a lyrical fashion that honors its characters enough to let them speak for themselves. And it may well make you want to book your next vacation at a New England fishing camp even if, like me, you prefer to encounter fish battered and fried with a squeeze of lemon. show less
The Summer Guest is set at a remote fishing camp in Maine, during the time span from post World War II to more or less the present. It follows several generations of owners, employees and guests of the resort as they come together and drift apart in a complex waltz of love, friendship, desire, anger, illness, and fear. The viewpoint shifts among several of show more the main characters and gradually reveals each of their secrets and desires.
There are no car crashes and certainly no vampires lurking — this is not Stephen King's Maine! It is a lovely, gentle story told in a lyrical fashion that honors its characters enough to let them speak for themselves. And it may well make you want to book your next vacation at a New England fishing camp even if, like me, you prefer to encounter fish battered and fried with a squeeze of lemon. show less
The Summer Guest is an exceptionally beautiful novel which moved me to tears, laughter, and pure delight. The characters and setting were so real -- so authentic, that when I'd lay the book aside -- I had to take a moment to clear my head in order to resume my real life.
I've had this lovely book on my shelves for years (this is 2005 paperback edition) and during a recent grey and foggy weekend I roamed my shelves looking for something "summery" to read...and chose this.
However, The Summer Guest is not a lightweight summer beach book. This is a complex story of a family over time, children and their parents, love and loss -- all told simply and beautifully .
In Mr. Cronin's spare but expansive novel we begin in 1947, aboard a train show more chugging through a snowy Maine night and end up in 1997 on a tranquil late-summer evening lake, aboard an old wooden rowboat. Included in between -- the living, loving and loss of a family united by a remote Maine fishing camp with an expansive fish-rich lake - "lovely in its pure beauty of having been forgotten".
"the camp held a ninety-year lease from Maine Paper for two hundred acres rimming the lake to the north and west ... I didn't know exactly where the lines fell, but I didn't have to. It was so much land it didn't matter."
There are the obligatory rutted roads through the deep Maine woods to get to the camp, the idyllic rustic cabins, with fireplaces and creaky porches. The days are filled with early morning coffee with the loons, the intricate symphony of fly fishing and home cooked evening meals in the communal dining room. You can smell the pine trees, baked beans and wood smoke.
The title and the main story line refers to Harry -- a guest who has been coming to the camp for many years and is now an old and dying man. Different characters narrate each chapter and tell the past and present story from their individual viewpoints. So there's also Jordan, a local loner who has become fishing guide and winter caretaker of the camp. Then there are the long-time owners of the camp, Joe and Lucy who have an enviable inner strength and warmth.
Mr. Cronin knows the area and has rendered the voice of his story through dry and acerbic Maine eyes:
"He gave me a curt nod from the chin, the North Woods equivalent of a full body hug." and then this,
"this was an inbred town in northwest Maine where, as we said, half the people spoke French and the other half yelled."
When Jordan, the local fishing guide takes out a group of big city lawyers, the author deftly captures the inevitable situation.
"By this point Bill had actually managed to get his fish under control and was thrashing around in the shallows, his rod hand held high over his head to keep the line tight while, with the other, he made unsuccessful, scooping lunges with his net. Done properly, this can be one of the most satisfyingly graceful moments in the sport, but in Bill's case it was like watching a man trying to hail a taxi while simultaneously chasing a piece of blowing litter down the street."
Mr. Cronin has precisely penned the words to express emotions we have all felt -- from mournful sections which wrap the reader into the characters' brave sadness and loss - to the exquisite joy of first love...
"...the thought of Kate was suddenly woven like a thread through everything, all that had ever happened to me, the clean smell of the pines and the lake and the memory of my lonely winters, the very turning world we stood on. They say that the moment your life appears before your eyes will be your last, but I'm here to say that it's not so very different when you kiss a woman like Kate, whoever your Kate may be."
Justin Cronin paints a beautiful picture of this remote Maine camp where the summers of deep woods and deep lakes come alive on the pages -- "enough silence to let you hear the planet spin or make you mad if you thought too long about it."
The Philadelphia Inquirer called The Summer Guest -- "A work of art, Justin Cronin has written a great American novel."
That captures it perfectly. I can only add it's a must read (and a must keep on my shelves) novel. I highly recommend it.
See more at http://www.bookbarmy.com show less
I've had this lovely book on my shelves for years (this is 2005 paperback edition) and during a recent grey and foggy weekend I roamed my shelves looking for something "summery" to read...and chose this.
However, The Summer Guest is not a lightweight summer beach book. This is a complex story of a family over time, children and their parents, love and loss -- all told simply and beautifully .
In Mr. Cronin's spare but expansive novel we begin in 1947, aboard a train show more chugging through a snowy Maine night and end up in 1997 on a tranquil late-summer evening lake, aboard an old wooden rowboat. Included in between -- the living, loving and loss of a family united by a remote Maine fishing camp with an expansive fish-rich lake - "lovely in its pure beauty of having been forgotten".
"the camp held a ninety-year lease from Maine Paper for two hundred acres rimming the lake to the north and west ... I didn't know exactly where the lines fell, but I didn't have to. It was so much land it didn't matter."
There are the obligatory rutted roads through the deep Maine woods to get to the camp, the idyllic rustic cabins, with fireplaces and creaky porches. The days are filled with early morning coffee with the loons, the intricate symphony of fly fishing and home cooked evening meals in the communal dining room. You can smell the pine trees, baked beans and wood smoke.
The title and the main story line refers to Harry -- a guest who has been coming to the camp for many years and is now an old and dying man. Different characters narrate each chapter and tell the past and present story from their individual viewpoints. So there's also Jordan, a local loner who has become fishing guide and winter caretaker of the camp. Then there are the long-time owners of the camp, Joe and Lucy who have an enviable inner strength and warmth.
Mr. Cronin knows the area and has rendered the voice of his story through dry and acerbic Maine eyes:
"He gave me a curt nod from the chin, the North Woods equivalent of a full body hug." and then this,
"this was an inbred town in northwest Maine where, as we said, half the people spoke French and the other half yelled."
When Jordan, the local fishing guide takes out a group of big city lawyers, the author deftly captures the inevitable situation.
"By this point Bill had actually managed to get his fish under control and was thrashing around in the shallows, his rod hand held high over his head to keep the line tight while, with the other, he made unsuccessful, scooping lunges with his net. Done properly, this can be one of the most satisfyingly graceful moments in the sport, but in Bill's case it was like watching a man trying to hail a taxi while simultaneously chasing a piece of blowing litter down the street."
Mr. Cronin has precisely penned the words to express emotions we have all felt -- from mournful sections which wrap the reader into the characters' brave sadness and loss - to the exquisite joy of first love...
"...the thought of Kate was suddenly woven like a thread through everything, all that had ever happened to me, the clean smell of the pines and the lake and the memory of my lonely winters, the very turning world we stood on. They say that the moment your life appears before your eyes will be your last, but I'm here to say that it's not so very different when you kiss a woman like Kate, whoever your Kate may be."
Justin Cronin paints a beautiful picture of this remote Maine camp where the summers of deep woods and deep lakes come alive on the pages -- "enough silence to let you hear the planet spin or make you mad if you thought too long about it."
The Philadelphia Inquirer called The Summer Guest -- "A work of art, Justin Cronin has written a great American novel."
That captures it perfectly. I can only add it's a must read (and a must keep on my shelves) novel. I highly recommend it.
See more at http://www.bookbarmy.com show less
I heard about Justin Cronin's earlier book, on LIbraryThing and found a copy in my own library where it has been waiting for me to discover it since he wrote it in 2004. I've read his books, [The Passage] and [The Twelve] and loved them. And, I have already pre-ordered the third book in this trilogy. The Summer Guest is nothing like those books and that's okay. This is a wonderful book and I loved every word. It's set in the woods of Maine and is the story of the family who have owned and run a fishing camp, for several generations, in these beautiful backwoods. It is also the story of Harry Wainwright, a great businessman who has been coming here for 30 years.
Harry comes back to the camp at the end of his life, he wants to spend one show more more day fishing and remembering his life and the people who were an important part of it. It was a real treat to, not only find out about this book, but to find it here at home and read it immediately. Now to track down his first book, [Mary and O'Neil]. Highly recommended! show less
Harry comes back to the camp at the end of his life, he wants to spend one show more more day fishing and remembering his life and the people who were an important part of it. It was a real treat to, not only find out about this book, but to find it here at home and read it immediately. Now to track down his first book, [Mary and O'Neil]. Highly recommended! show less
The Crosby family is at the center of this sprawling novel. They have operated a fishing camp in rural Maine for two generations. Also featured heavily in the narrative is a wealthy businessman, “The Summer Guest” who has a deep fondness for the camp and becomes deeply entrenched with this family. From World War II through the Vietnam era, we follow this family, through a wide range of joys and difficulties. Secrets kept and secrets revealed. I can not recommend this novel high enough and I also think this could be a contender for one of the Great American Novels.
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Justin Cronin is a graduate of the Iowa Writer's Workshop, and a professor of creative writing at La Salle University in Philadelphia. His work has appeared in many literary journals. (Publisher Provided) Justin Cronin was born and raised in New England. He is a graduate of Harvard University and the Iowa Writers' Workshop. He has written several show more books including The Summer Guest, The Passage Trilogy, and Mary and O'Neil, which won the PEN/Hemingway Award and the Stephen Crane Prize. He taught creative writing and was the author in-residence at La Salle University from 1992 to 2005. He is currently a professor of English at Rice University. (Bowker Author Biography) show less
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Common Knowledge
- Canonical title*
- De zomergast
- Original title
- The Summer Guest
- Original publication date
- 2004
- People/Characters
- Harry Wainwright; Joe Crosby; Lucy Crosby; Jordan; Kate Crosby
- Important places
- Maine, USA; Canada; Boston, Massachusetts, USA
- Important events
- World War II; Vietnam War
- Epigraph*
- I'll look for you in old Honolulu,
San Francisco, Ashtabula,
Yer gonna have to leave me now, I know.
But I'll see you in the sky above,
In the tall grass, in the ones I loves,
Yer gonna make me lonesome whe... (show all)n you go.
- Bob Dylan, 'You're Gonna Make Me
Lonesome When You Go' - Dedication
- Voor Leslie en Iris
For Leslie and for Iris - First words
- Ten noorden van Boston reden ze langs de zee.
North of Boston they followed the sea. - Quotations
- There are regulars, too, people who come up here every year at the times they like best: early summer for the big mayfly hatches, or else the long dry days of August, after the blackflies have gone, the days are as crisp as a... (show all) butterfly on pins, and the fish have wised up and aren’t especially hungry besides – not the easiest time to catch then, but that’s not why these folks are here, and not why I’m here, either.
Of all the concessions one must make to age, I have discovered this is actually the easiest to face, because its theme is not scarcity but abundance: we have simply loved too many others – spouses, lovers, children, dogs, i... (show all)n all the golden days and hours in our lives – to add one more to the pile. Love there is between us, but it’s an impersonal sort of love, more like a recollection of love than the thing, itself, and what we have to offer one another is the chance to sip together from the cup of memory.
“Here’s the question, Harry. Do you want to go home? Because if you do, there are things that can be done.” He nods me along. “To make you comfortable.” He is asking me where I want to die, of course. It is no... (show all)t a question one longs to hear. And yet I am glad he has asked it.
I loved him as one can only love such a dog; but I also knew what he was. Behind his eyes, twin chestnuts of the most tender soulfulness, lay encased in its suitcase of bone, a brain that knew nothing at all of time or sorro... (show all)w or even the true joy that sorrow makes possible – only its own desire to please, an aching, needful love that could achieve its fullest contentment with the most meager offering: a stale biscuit, a walk around the block to do his business, a pat on his golden head. His own existence, its nature and finitude, was a mystery to him; he might have thought he was a person, or else I was a dog. The day I took him to the vet to have him put down – he was thirteen, his hips so bad he could barely walk to his bowl – I could think of only this to say: “You have been a good dog, and a great comfort to me, and I thank you.” It was all he wanted to hear. I’d never wished so badly to be the dog he thought I was. - Last words
- (Click to show. Warning: May contain spoilers.)Net als liefde bedrijven, dacht ik, en dat was wat ik dacht toen ik het hoorde: het geluid van Jordans gelukkige gesnik en de schelle muziek van het eerste kreetje van een kind.
(Click to show. Warning: May contain spoilers.)Like love, I thought, and that’s what I was thinking when I heard it: the sound of Jordan’s happy weeping, and the sharp music of a child’s first cry.
*Some information comes from Common Knowledge in other languages. Click "Edit" for more information.
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