Model Home
by Eric Puchner
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Warren Ziller moved his family to California in search of a charmed life, and to all appearances, he found it: a gated community not far from the beach, amid the affluent splendor of Southern California in the 1980s. But his American dream has been rudely interrupted. Despite their affection for one another-the "slow, jokey, unrehearsed vaudeville" they share at home-Warren; his wife, Camille; and their three children have veered into separate lives, as distant as satellites. Worst of all, show more Warren has squandered the family's money on a failing real estate venture.As Warren desperately tries to conceal his mistake, his family begins to sow deceptions of their own. Camille attributes Warren's erratic behavior to an affair and plots her secret revenge; seventeen-year-old Dustin falls for his girlfriend's troubled younger sister; teen misanthrope Lyle begins sleeping with a security guard who works at the gatehouse; and eleven-year-old Jonas becomes strangely obsessed with a kidnapped girl.When tragedy strikes, the Zillers are forced to move into one of the houses in Warren's abandoned development in the middle of the desert. Marooned in a less-than-model home, each must reckon with what's led them there and who's to blame-and whether they can summon the forgiveness needed to hold the family together. Subtly ambitious, brimming with the humor and unpredictability of life, Model Home delivers penetrating insights into the American family and into the imperfect ways we try to connect, from a writer "uncannily in tune with the heartbreak and absurdity of domestic life" (Los Angeles Times). show lessTags
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JGoto Another good read about a dysfunctional family with quirky characters and a father who makes unconventional decisions.
Member Reviews
Jonas waited in the police station, sitting by himself in the corner and listening to the noisy smacks of a policeman sucking on a cough drop at his desk. Earlier the guy had shown Jonas his gun. It was the third one he'd been asked to admire that day. "Wow," Jonas had said, because the man so clearly wanted him to say this. He'd asked the guy if he was ever tempted to turn the gun on himself, since police officers had the third-highest suicide rate of any profession. The policeman frowned and moved to the other side of the office, where he'd remained for the past hour in a suicidal funk.
The Ziller family looks great from the outside. They're living in a gated neighborhood near the beach in California, it's the summer of 1985 and things show more are looking good. Except that each member of the Ziller family is going through things in ways that mean that the parents aren't noticing that the kids aren't fine and while Camille knows something isn't right with her husband Warren, his silence has her thinking he's having an affair. As each person deals with their problems on their own, they become problems that affect the entire family, leading to a moment where everything collides.
This is a slow burn kind of novel, where a lot of the allure at the beginning is in how well Puchner evokes that specific place and time. The author takes his time establishing each member of the Ziller family and letting their crises develop over the long summer days, so that when the crisis is reached, it's both surprising and inevitable. And then Puchner takes the time to sit with the family through the entire aftermath, not just the dramatic bits, but the parts that are hard and grinding. And the characters remain true to themselves even as they change in small and large ways. It's a well-balanced and thoughtful novel and I'm eager to read more by this author. show less
The Ziller family looks great from the outside. They're living in a gated neighborhood near the beach in California, it's the summer of 1985 and things show more are looking good. Except that each member of the Ziller family is going through things in ways that mean that the parents aren't noticing that the kids aren't fine and while Camille knows something isn't right with her husband Warren, his silence has her thinking he's having an affair. As each person deals with their problems on their own, they become problems that affect the entire family, leading to a moment where everything collides.
This is a slow burn kind of novel, where a lot of the allure at the beginning is in how well Puchner evokes that specific place and time. The author takes his time establishing each member of the Ziller family and letting their crises develop over the long summer days, so that when the crisis is reached, it's both surprising and inevitable. And then Puchner takes the time to sit with the family through the entire aftermath, not just the dramatic bits, but the parts that are hard and grinding. And the characters remain true to themselves even as they change in small and large ways. It's a well-balanced and thoughtful novel and I'm eager to read more by this author. show less
The Short of It:
Puchner creates one of the most heartbreaking stories of our time. Sad and beautiful, its message resonates.
The Rest of It:
Dreaming of untold riches in the real estate market, Warren Ziller moves his family to a gated community in (Rancho) Palos Verdes, California. There, they live the American dream. Nice house, nice neighborhood. But Warren has a secret. The real estate development that he’s invested in has tanked, and his family has no idea what looms ahead.
Once in a while a book comes up out of nowhere and just slaps you in the face. I first heard about Model Home when it was featured in this year’s Tournament of Books. Simply put, it sounded like my kind of book. It was set in Southern California, it had all the show more family dynamics that I seem to crave, and dysfunction… lots of it. I expected to enjoy it, but I did not expect to love it as much as I did.
This book will break your heart.
You will re-read passages over and over again because Puchner’s writing is so exquisite. His writing is both beautiful and raw, which doesn’t even sound right when put together in one sentence.
Puchner creates one of the most heartbreaking stories of our time. Sad and beautiful, its message resonates.
The Rest of It:
Dreaming of untold riches in the real estate market, Warren Ziller moves his family to a gated community in (Rancho) Palos Verdes, California. There, they live the American dream. Nice house, nice neighborhood. But Warren has a secret. The real estate development that he’s invested in has tanked, and his family has no idea what looms ahead.
Once in a while a book comes up out of nowhere and just slaps you in the face. I first heard about Model Home when it was featured in this year’s Tournament of Books. Simply put, it sounded like my kind of book. It was set in Southern California, it had all the show more family dynamics that I seem to crave, and dysfunction… lots of it. I expected to enjoy it, but I did not expect to love it as much as I did.
This book will break your heart.
You will re-read passages over and over again because Puchner’s writing is so exquisite. His writing is both beautiful and raw, which doesn’t even sound right when put together in one sentence.
"You’ve got your whole life ahead of you, people liked to say. In truth. there was not much time, a blip, and most of what you did was a mistake. You were lucky to find a safe and proper home. In the end, even the world cast you out, withdrawing its welcome."show less
The characters are so well-developed, that I cried for them. Their predicament is so dire at one point, so delicate and precarious that I had to pace my reading or be overwhelmed by grief.
If you search for reviews on this book, you’ll see that many found this book to be depressing. I didn’t. It’s an honest account of a family falling apart, but in many ways it’s hopeful too.
I want everyone to read this book. It’s my fave of the year (so far) and if you happen upon the interview with Eric Puchner, discussing the book, hold off on it until you’ve read it because it gives a huge plot point away!
For more reviews, visit my blog: Book Chatter
I thought this story of the American Dream gone horribly awry would have a wry humor, but instead it was just overwhelmingly depressing. Everything bad that could happen to this family did, and there was little joy to redeem the story. The book was well-written and the characters rang true, but reading it became a bit of an ordeal as the depressing events just piled up on one another. I would recommend this book for the vibrant literate writing, but definitely don't pick it up if you're in the mood for a light beach read because this novel is gloomy enough to depress any beach vacation.
A quirky and astonishing novel, equal parts melancholy and humorous. I found myself comparing it to Jonathan Evison's All About Lulu--the 80s California setting, the offbeat characters and events, the occasionally heart-breaking prose struck similar chords. What Puchner does within these parameters is switch points of view, mostly effortlessly, between the five members of the Ziller family: dad Warren, mom Camille, oldest son Dustin, daughter Lyle, and youngest child Jonas. He wrings a lot of tension out of the dramatic irony: we know important information that other characters don't. A character will do something, and three pages later another character will witness the action yet not understand it as we do. But rather than ratcheting show more up a hokey sense of suspense, Puchner slowly turns the pressure up, and we are driven to care because we're invested in his characters. The tragedy that strikes the family--alluded to on the dust jacket flap--completely surprised me, and changed the story rather dramatically without throwing me off.
I will say that Warren, the father, whose dream of California bliss and riches comes up short, was at times the least compelling of the characters. The novel's events spin around Warren's choices and bad luck, and Puchner draws him well enough, but when I was reading about Warren, I found myself wanting to go back to the other characters. As for the ending...well, I'll leave that to others. But Model Home is an excellent read. show less
I will say that Warren, the father, whose dream of California bliss and riches comes up short, was at times the least compelling of the characters. The novel's events spin around Warren's choices and bad luck, and Puchner draws him well enough, but when I was reading about Warren, I found myself wanting to go back to the other characters. As for the ending...well, I'll leave that to others. But Model Home is an excellent read. show less
Wow, I really liked this. I went in expecting it to be just one more of the family-in-crisis books that seem to be dominating the Tournament of Books this year. But I loved it. The writing is good, I cared about all the main characters--I thought it was fantastic. (Having said that, it probably should really be 4 1/2 stars because there are some anachronisms--although that sort of thing doesn't bother me as much as it bothers others--and some meandering in the second half, with the introduction of a couple of characters who didn't really work.)
Although I prefer to not make comparisons, it is inevitable after reading Model Home. I love American Beauty, in large part due to the excellent character development, and Model Home hits that same mark for me. Even though I found most of the characters completely aggravating and I wanted to reach through the pages to grab them by their shoulders to shake the holy heck out of them, wow - what strong writing to elicit my emotion! I did have to remind myself several times that the story is set in 1985...what a difference 25 years has made in our awareness of some of the issues presented.
First off, if the story were set in present day, loveable and quirky Jonas would have a diagnosis of high-functioning autism or Aspergers Syndrome. Yet show more the Ziller family does not question Jonas' idiosyncracies. I would consider that a positive for Jonas if it weren't for how, in their ignorance, the Zillers tend to treat him as an embarrasment to their family.
Also, the parents are just so non-reactive to the behavior of their teenagers Dustin and Lyle (short for Delilah). They use such disrespectful language when talking to their parents, but no reaction. Sixteen year old Lyle informs her mother of her physical relationship with the security guard for their gated utopia, and still nothing...are these people just numb or what?
I loved the mental images created at the thought of living in an abandoned neighborhood in the middle of the desert! I had the displeasure of living in the Antelope Valley myself in the early 90's and the author's descriptions took me right back to the oppressive feeling of barrenness, sand-filled wind, and tumbleweeds blowing across my yard in the scorching heat. Add in the pungent smell of a toxic waste dump and a disgruntled postal carrier; I could feel the Ziller's sense of defeat!
Having the story set in 1985 was a wise choice in my opinion. If set presently, the stigma of the Ziller's situation would have been completely different. Rather than feeling the shame of deteriorating in front of their Stepford SoCal neighbors, they would have simply been another recession statistic; part of the forclosure-club. In this time period, they were outcasts for daring to drive a beater car down the streets of Herradura Estates or for having patio furniture in their living room. This is a novel that I will not soon forget. show less
First off, if the story were set in present day, loveable and quirky Jonas would have a diagnosis of high-functioning autism or Aspergers Syndrome. Yet show more the Ziller family does not question Jonas' idiosyncracies. I would consider that a positive for Jonas if it weren't for how, in their ignorance, the Zillers tend to treat him as an embarrasment to their family.
Also, the parents are just so non-reactive to the behavior of their teenagers Dustin and Lyle (short for Delilah). They use such disrespectful language when talking to their parents, but no reaction. Sixteen year old Lyle informs her mother of her physical relationship with the security guard for their gated utopia, and still nothing...are these people just numb or what?
I loved the mental images created at the thought of living in an abandoned neighborhood in the middle of the desert! I had the displeasure of living in the Antelope Valley myself in the early 90's and the author's descriptions took me right back to the oppressive feeling of barrenness, sand-filled wind, and tumbleweeds blowing across my yard in the scorching heat. Add in the pungent smell of a toxic waste dump and a disgruntled postal carrier; I could feel the Ziller's sense of defeat!
Having the story set in 1985 was a wise choice in my opinion. If set presently, the stigma of the Ziller's situation would have been completely different. Rather than feeling the shame of deteriorating in front of their Stepford SoCal neighbors, they would have simply been another recession statistic; part of the forclosure-club. In this time period, they were outcasts for daring to drive a beater car down the streets of Herradura Estates or for having patio furniture in their living room. This is a novel that I will not soon forget. show less
Eric Puchner is responsible for a collection of short stories, Music Through the Floor, which I came across when one of his stories, “Essay No. 2: Leda and the Swan” was reprinted in the Sun magazine. He recently published his first novel, Model Home, and it’s one of the best of the year so far.
Set in the mid-’80s, Model Home is a portrait of a family coming apart. That said, despite the various tragedies and missteps the family endures there is a lightness of tone at work.
Warren Ziller , a moderately successful real estate developer, has uprooted his family from their comfortable middle-class existence in Wisconsin to follow his dream of making it big in the Southern California market. His supportive wife, Camille has found show more employment making educational films and his kids are beginning to assimilate. Soon after their arrival in California Warren’s opportunity goes belly-up, taking his family’s last cent with it. With no way to support his family he tries to keep his reversal of fortune from his wife and maintain a “normal” life for his kids. Things go from bad to worse when the rented furniture is repossessed and the bill collectors come calling.
Having grown up in the ‘80s I enjoyed the setting, but I didn’t find it oppressively nostalgic. The characters are all genuinely likable, if a bit off-kilter. And Jonas’ experience wandering through a parking lot full of Deadheads is worth the price of admission. If you enjoy Anne Tyler’s or Alice Hoffman’s books, you’ll like this. - Scott show less
Set in the mid-’80s, Model Home is a portrait of a family coming apart. That said, despite the various tragedies and missteps the family endures there is a lightness of tone at work.
Warren Ziller , a moderately successful real estate developer, has uprooted his family from their comfortable middle-class existence in Wisconsin to follow his dream of making it big in the Southern California market. His supportive wife, Camille has found show more employment making educational films and his kids are beginning to assimilate. Soon after their arrival in California Warren’s opportunity goes belly-up, taking his family’s last cent with it. With no way to support his family he tries to keep his reversal of fortune from his wife and maintain a “normal” life for his kids. Things go from bad to worse when the rented furniture is repossessed and the bill collectors come calling.
Having grown up in the ‘80s I enjoyed the setting, but I didn’t find it oppressively nostalgic. The characters are all genuinely likable, if a bit off-kilter. And Jonas’ experience wandering through a parking lot full of Deadheads is worth the price of admission. If you enjoy Anne Tyler’s or Alice Hoffman’s books, you’ll like this. - Scott show less
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Eric Puchner is the author of the collection Music Through the Floor, a finalist for the New York Public Library's Young Lions Fiction Award, and of the novel Model Home, a finalist for the PEN/Faulkner Award and Barnes & Noble Discover Award and winner of a California Book Award. He has received a Pushcart Prize, an NEA fellowship, and an Award show more in Literature from the American Academy of Arts and Letters. His work has appeared in The Best American Short Stories, GQ, The Best American Nonrequired Reading, Tin House, Granta, and Zoetrope. He teaches at Johns Hopkins and lives in Baltimore with his wife, the novelist Katharine Noel, and their two children. show less
Awards and Honors
Common Knowledge
- Canonical title
- Model Home
- Original publication date
- 2010-02
- People/Characters
- Warren Ziller; Camille Ziller; Dustin Ziller; Lyle Ziller; Jonas Ziller
- Important places
- California, USA
- Dedication
- For Katharine, through love and loss
- First words
- Two days after his car-an '85 Chrysle LeBaron with leather seats and all-power accessories-vanished from the driveway, Warren Ziller crept past the expensive homes, of his neighbors, trying to match his dog's limp.
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- 14
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- (3.70)
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- 11
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