Average customer rating:
- A wonderful tale of coming-of-middle-age
- NOT FANTASTIC BUT A GOOD YARN
- Turning back time
- I have read this book over and over!
- The Summerhouse
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The Summerhouse
Jude Deveraux
Manufacturer: Pocket
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Mass Market Paperback
 Contemporary | General | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books
Deveraux, Jude | ( D ) | Authors, A-Z | Romance | Subjects | Books
General | Romance | Subjects | Books
General | Contemporary | Romance | Subjects | Books
Contemporary | General | Literature & Fiction | 4-for-3 Books Store | Stores | Books
Deveraux, Jude | ( D ) | Authors, A-Z | Romance | 4-for-3 Books Store | Stores | Books
General | Contemporary | Romance | 4-for-3 Books Store | Stores | Books
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ASIN: 0671014196
Release Date: 2002-04-30 |
Amazon.com
What if a woman could go back to the beginning and rethink her choices for love and life? When Leslie Headrick, Madison Appleby, and Ellie Abbott first met, they were in their early 20s and the world lay before them with its infinite possibilities. Now that they're about to turn 40, they reunite for a weekend at a summerhouse in Maine where they share the details of their lives during the past 20 years. Each woman has serious doubts and questions about the path she chose to follow, but none of them suspect the startling opportunity they're about to be offered to relive those choices and change their futures.
Thought-provoking, entertaining, and downright delightful, Jude Deveraux's The Summerhouse deftly develops the individual stories of the three women in fascinating detail while maintaining the overall focus on the central tale. The ties of sisterhood and shared experience that bind the three resonate with depth and clarity--no wonder then that Deveraux is a perennial favorite with readers. There is little doubt that this volume will join her lengthy list of bestsellers. --Lois Faye Dyer
Book Description
Have you ever wanted to rewrite your past?
Three best friends, all with the same birthday, are about to turn forty. Celebrating at a summerhouse in Maine, Leslie Headrick, Madison Appleby, and Ellie Abbott are taking stock of their lives and loves, their wishes and choices. But none of them expect the gift that awaits them at the summerhouse: the chance for each of them to turn their "what-might-have-beens" into reality...
Leslie, a suburban wife and mother, follows the career of a boy who pursued her in college wonders: what if she had chosen differently? Madison dropped a modeling career to help her high school boyfriend recover from an accident, even though he'd jilted her. But what if she had said "no" when her old boyfriend had called? Ellie became a famous novelist, but a bitter divorce wiped out her earnings -- and shattered her belief in herself. Why had the "justice" system failed her? And could she prevent its happening the second time around?
Now, a mysterious "Madame Zoya," offers each of them a chance to relive any three weeks from the past. Will the road not taken prove a better path? Each woman will have to decide for herself as she follows the dream that got away...and each must choose the life that will truly satisfy the heart's deepest longings.
Download Description
"Have you ever wanted to rewrite your past? Three best friends, all with the same birthday, are about to turn forty. Celebrating at a summerhouse in Maine, Leslie Headrick, Madison Appleby, and Ellie Abbott are taking stock of their lives and loves, their wishes and choices. But none of them expect the gift that awaits them at the summerhouse: the chance for each of them to turn their "what-might-have-beens" into reality... Leslie, a suburban wife and mother, follows the career of a boy who pursued her in college wonders: what if she had chosen differently? Madison dropped a modeling career to help her high school boyfriend recover from an accident, even though he'd jilted her. But what if she had said "no" when her old boyfriend had called? Ellie became a famous novelist, but a bitter divorce wiped out her earnings -- and shattered her belief in herself. Why had the ""justice"" system failed her? And could she prevent its happening the second time around? Now, a mysterious "Madame Zoya," offers each of them a chance to relive any three weeks from the past. Will the road not taken prove a better path? Each woman will have to decide for herself as she follows the dream that got away...and each must choose the life that will truly satisfy the heart's deepest longings.
Customer Reviews:
A wonderful tale of coming-of-middle-age.......2007-03-28
What if you could go back in time and fix/change things you did in your past? Armed with what you know now. This is the premise of this book by Jude Deveraux. I read her back when I was a teenager in the 80's and I still love her storytelling style. I've pondered this question numerous times during my life and I just past the milestone these ladies are approaching I can feel their angst. 40 is a age where we women, look back, look ahead, regret things done/not done, etc. Jude weaves this milestone in a fresh, thought-provoking manner. I thoroughly enjoyed it and have passed it on to friends.
NOT FANTASTIC BUT A GOOD YARN.......2007-01-25
I liked this book. I would rate it 3.5 to 4 stars. It was like a trip back in time and I liked the story about 3 friends spending time at the Summerhouse. It told the story about the lives of these 3 women and the lady that they meet. It was a good book.
Turning back time.......2006-11-15
Madison, Leslie and Ellie all met on there 21st birthday in the D.M.V in NYC. They became friends, but did not keep in contact with each other. That is until their 40th birthday when Ellie invites the two others to a cabin in Maine. That is where their lives, and relationships change.
They all share their stories of what went wrong with their lives.
Ellie a former artist/best selling author got screwed by her ex-husband in a divorce and lost her money
Leslie got married to her boyfriend and has two kids, but her husband has a sexy secretary and she keeps taps on a very sucessful Presidential canidate.
Madison gave up a lucrative modeling career to care for the boyfriend that had jilted her and by the time that she had met the guy of her dreams she didnt feel she diserved him.
Then thanks to a woman in the town they are staying in they are able to go back to try to redue three weeks of their lives. What will happen. Will there lives be better, or worse. Read The Summerhouse.
I have read this book over and over!.......2006-11-03
This book is one of my top 2 favorite Jude Deveraux books! (the top one being Knight in Shining Armor, of course!)
It is excellent...Don't we all wonder what we would change if we could go back in time and have a "redo"? And would we really change anything? I know many times I have wondered if I made the best decisions in my life...and what if one little decision had been different?
If I had chosen a different college, I would not have met my husband. I might not have had infertility. I might not have adopted my daughter, or had my son, etc. My life, which is pretty darn great, would be different.
This book explores those possibilities...for 3 very different women, who had 3 very different lives. And then they had to decide if they wanted to keep their new life, or keep their old life.
What a choice! Who can resist finding out? If for no reason than to live vicariously thru them?
Buy this book. Read this book. I think you'll enjoy it! I know I did, and I have loaned it out to many of my relatives, from my granny to my mom to my sister!
(review courtesy of Kathy Smith, Robert's wife, who shares his account!)
The Summerhouse.......2006-08-09
This book was fantastic. This entire book was both tragic and uplifting. I love this story. The ending gave me chills because the room was so vivid in my mind.
Book Description
Swimming pool owners worldwide should rejoice as this unique 128-page catalog presents the newest, boldest and most beautiful pool house designs from leading registered architects. The catalog features 58 full-page renderings of pool house and garden house exteriors, along with corresponding floor plans for each to show space utilization and amenities provided. Also featured are five charming summerhouses from England. This section is beautifully photographed and offers an opportunity to obtain the perfect adornment for an English-style garden. The collection covers a broad range of styles and sizes so that a pool house or a garden house design can be selected to meet the requirements of almost any type of property and budget. An especially important aspect of the catalog is that the company offers a complete set of architectural plans for each pool house and garden house illustrated. The detailed building plans, which may be ordered by phone or by use of an order form provided in the back of the catalog, include architectural plans and elevations, so that each pool house and garden house can be built exactly the way it appears. While eight of the designs in the catalog are specifically designated garden houses, many of the pool house designs can be easily converted to garden houses, thereby increasing the variety of choices.
Customer Reviews:
TOTAL RIP OFF!!!.......2007-05-14
This book was a total rip off! The title does not lend way to the contents. It had nothing I was looking for. It was poorly bound and it fell apart at the spine the 2nd day I had it!!! Huge Waste Of Money!!!
Nice book, questionable designs.......2003-02-28
I will be returning this book. As a licensed professional landscape architect, I find the proportions and design qualities lacking in most of the proposed designs. The designs depict what I would expect to buy from a mass merchandising home center, not such a highly acclaimed book. I was very disappointed. Content aside, the book was nice. I believe actual photographs might have helped tremendously.
Dissapointed.......2002-10-10
The book is nice but didn't have what we needed. We are looking for a plan for a corner pool house big enough to accomodate a billiard table and there is nothing like that in the book. Also, the exteriors are mostly too contemporary, nothing that would blend with our brick Georgian home. In a word, DISSAPOINTED. Had I seen the book at a bookstore, I would not have bought it.
Nice book.......2002-09-10
I was looking for design ideas/plans. This one has nice ideas but it is a book in which you can then proceed to order plans. Not what I was looking for. I was looking for ideas, measurements, planning etc..that sort of thing. If that is what you are looking for this book would not be the right fit for you.
Nice book.......2002-09-10
I was looking for design ideas/plans. This one has nice ideas but it is a book in which you can then proceed to order plans. Not what I was looking for. I was looking for ideas, measurements, planning etc..that sort of thing. If that is what you are looking for this book would not be the right fit for you.
Book Description
In nine luminous stories of love and loss, loneliness and hope, Judith Hermann's stunning debut collection paints a vivid and poignant picture of a generation ready and anxious to turn their back on the past, to risk uncertainty in search of a fresh, if fragile, equilibrium. An international bestseller and translated into twelve languages, Summerhouse, Later heralds the arrival of one of Germanys most arresting new literary talents.
A restless man hopes to find permanence in the purchase of a summerhouse outside Berlin. A young girl, trapped in a paralyzing web of family stories and secrets, finally manages to break free. A granddaughter struggles to lay her grandmother's ghosts to rest. A successful and simplistic artist becomes inexplicably obsessed with an elusive and strangely sinister young girl.
Against the backdrop of contemporary Berlin, possibly Europe's most vibrant and exhilarating city, Hermann's characters are as kaleidoscopic and extraordinary as their metropolis, united mostly in a furious and dogged pursuit of the elusive specter of "living in the moment." They're people who, in one way or another, constantly challenge the madness of the modern world and whose dreams of transcending the ordinary for that "narrow strip of sky over the rooftops" are deeply felt and perfectly rendered.
Customer Reviews:
Magnificent , descriptive and yet remote.......2005-01-03
This book is set of short stories translated from German. I am not sure whether it is the authors gift or this gift in combination with the translation which give these stories their sense of remoteness and in some cases alienation. In most fiction, the author strives to involve the reader as closely as possible with the character and the narrative, however in these stories, the reader is held at a remove, the characters seem to carry on almost in suspended animation and at times the stories do not work towards an understandable conclusion. However for all that, they are magnificent, memorable and thought provoking. I won't say more, read them
Average customer rating:
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Country Architecture: Old-Fashioned Designs for Gazebos, Summerhouses, Springhouses, Smokehouses, Stables, Greenhouses, Carriage Houses, Outhouses...
Lawrence Grow
Manufacturer: Main Street Pr
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
Home Improvement | Home & Garden | Bargain Books | Stores | Books
General | Home & Garden | Subjects | Books
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American Country Building Design: Rediscovered Plans for 19th-Century Farmhouses, Cottages, Landscapes, Barns, Carriage Houses & Outbuildings
ASIN: 0806974192 |
Average customer rating:
- "The honeymoon will soon put the roses back in her cheeks."
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The Summerhouse Trilogy
Alice Thomas Ellis
Manufacturer: Virago Press Ltd
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
Contemporary | General | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books
ASIN: 1844080846 |
Customer Reviews:
"The honeymoon will soon put the roses back in her cheeks.".......2005-08-27
Alice Thomas Ellis skewers the attitudes and expectations which her characters bring to love and marriage, both as they live their own lives and as they judge the lives of others. But she is also an understanding author, recognizing that their foibles and limitations stem from their upbringing and experience, as they muddle along as best they can, aided by each other, and sometimes the church. This three-part novel concerns the imminent marriage of twenty-year-old Margaret to Syl, a man in his forties, and is told through three points of view: Margaret, who does not love Syl but intends to go through with the wedding; Syl's mother, the sensible Mrs. Monro, who, abandoned by her husband, does not want the marriage to take place; and Lili, a friend of Margaret's mother from school in Egypt, who arrives in a whirlwind, determined to upset the status quo.
From Margaret we learn of her passionate first love and a shocking death that have occurred during the year she spent away at school in Egypt. Devoutly religious, Margaret is torn between the concepts of romantic and religious love, and she cannot seem to reconcile the church's teachings regarding love, sex, sin, and death. Mrs. Monro, an elderly lady for whom death is very real, if not imminent, is hiding secrets associated with her own past love life. For her, too, love is associated with death and God, though in ways vastly different from Margaret's experience. Into this mix comes Lili, half Egyptian, half English, a free spirit unconcerned with traditional, churchly definitions of sin, and sexually liberated in her own life. Lili is determined to save Margaret from the "pointless secular martyrdom" of marriage.
A sensitive, philosophical exploration of love and sex, God and sin, and life and death, the novel is also an examination of the compromises people make, willingly or unwillingly, in order to find happiness during their lives and loves. Sparkling dialogue and thoughtful interior monologues reveal the sadness, loneliness, and confusion within many of the characters, while Ellis's sense of irony and ability to create absurd scenes lift the mood with cathartic comedy. Gently satirical and full of wise observations, this is an insightful and thoroughly entertaining study of several characters, interconnected by love and marriage, as they try to "muddle through." Mary Whipple
Book Description
Every year a rented pink cottage full of family, swapping stories, and riding waves mean Summerhouse Time for Sophie. Best of all is sharing a room with her favorite cousin and laughing and trading secrets like two happy peas in a cousin pod. Sophie can't wait! But when she asks the now-a-teenager Colleen if she's looking forward to their time together, Colleen just says "I guess so."
What? It's the best time of the year, the time they both love. In just a little bit, they will all be together in the cottage on the beach. Will this year be just as wonderful, just like always?
Accompanied by charming black-and-white illustrations, classic growingup experiences radiate throughout the pages of this sunny, anytime story.
Customer Reviews:
Perfect leisure reading for summer!.......2007-07-10
Eileen Spinelli's SUMMERHOUSE TIME tells of cousins who share yet another summer together and who find their worlds are changing. As they grow up. From blossoming romances to new interests, SUMMERHOUSE TIME charts the evolution of family closeness against the backdrop of a summer off. Perfect leisure reading for summer!
It's about the strength and importance of family.......2007-06-05
Eleven-year old Sophie can't wait for August to arrive. As soon as school lets out for summer vacation, Sophie counts the days until the first day of that month. For as long as she can remember, August 1st is when her family leaves for the New Jersey shore and Summerhouse Time. She and her parents pack the car, crate up Orange (the cat) and spend a month at a rented cottage with her aunts, uncles, grandparents and cousins.
But this year is different.
Sophie's dad is a high school American History teacher who has always had a part-time job during his summer break --- except, of course, during the month of August. This year Dad works hard at his part-time job, but he is unusually cranky and doesn't look well. Mom is a substitute teacher whose favorite saying is "The best things in life aren't things." She practices simple living, shops at thrift stores and gets upset when her old bathing suit no longer fits but refuses to buy a new one.
Also, a boy named Jimmy Gabbiano has just moved into Sophie's neighborhood. He is cute and shy and has a beagle puppy. Sophie wants him to notice her and thinks up ways to meet him without looking too obvious. After they finally become acquainted with each other, she decides to learn Italian and feels sad when she has to leave him for a whole month.
Sophie can't wait to share a room --- and some secrets --- with her favorite cousin, 14-year old Colleen, who has always made Sophie feel grown up and special during Summerhouse Time. After Sophie and her family arrive at the cottage on the beach, she is excited to see Colleen, but Colleen acts bored and ignores her. Then Sophie discovers that she won't be sharing a room with Colleen after all. Instead, Sophie is rooming with five-year-old cousin Tammy, a chatterbox who acts like a baby. And Sophie's cousin Cooper is afraid of water and won't swim in the ocean.
This year, Summerhouse Time isn't anything at all like it has been in the past. To pass time, Sophie practices her Italian, teaches Cooper to swim and writes letters to Jimmy while awaiting one from him. She fears that Jimmy has forgotten her and wonders if things will get any better before the month is over and it's time to return home.
SUMMERHOUSE TIME is a story about events that change and shape our lives. But most of all it's about the strength and importance of family, no matter what time of year.
--- Reviewed by Donna Volkenannt
Average customer rating:
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Summerhouses of Virginia
Gwynn Cochran Prideaux
Manufacturer: Published under the auspices of the Mary Wingfield Scott Fund of the Research Library, the Valentine Museum
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Unknown Binding
General | Architecture | Professional & Technical | Subjects | Books
Residential | Building Types & Styles | Architecture | Professional & Technical | Subjects | Books
ASIN: B0006CPQN8 |
Average customer rating:
- Finally! But . . .
- Reread Two Days Ago, Still Fun
- Another wonderful Hall Family Chronicle!
- One of my favorite books
- Claudia in Venice: This is the Book!
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The Swing in the Summerhouse (Hall Family Chronicles, Book 2)
Jane Langton , and
Erik Blegvad
Manufacturer: HarperTrophy
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
Action & Adventure | Literature | Children's Books | Subjects | Books
Mysteries, Espionage, & Detectives | Science Fiction, Fantasy, Mystery & Horror | Literature | Children's Books | Subjects | Books
Science Fiction, Fantasy, & Magic | Science Fiction, Fantasy, Mystery & Horror | Literature | Children's Books | Subjects | Books
General | Ages 4-8 | Children's Books | Subjects | Books
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ASIN: 0064401243
Release Date: 2001-12-18 |
Book Description
Keep Out!
When Prince Krishna is called away, he leaves behind some strict instructions for the Hall children about one of the openings in the mysterious summerhouse: Keep Out! As Eddy and Eleanor swing through each of the other openings, they refuse to break the rule, even as their temptation grows. But when Oliver and little Georgie disappear through the forbidden archway, Eleanor and Eddy know that they must either break their promise or risk never seeing their friends again.
Customer Reviews:
Finally! But . . ........2002-11-07
Yes! It's back in print . . . but nostalgia hounds, beware. The 2001 paperback edition does not include Erik Blegvad's illustrations (except for the frontispiece.) How unfortunate they chose to reprint it this way; the illustrations were such a huge part of what made this book special and memorable. Well, maybe the next edition will get the proper treatment this incredible book deserves.
Reread Two Days Ago, Still Fun.......2002-03-11
I read the first three books of the Hall Family Chronicles when I was a girl. I was lucky enough to find hardcover copies of all three at the same library used book sale in 1982. I decided to reread them all again over this past weekend.
Prince Krishna has built a lovely summerhouse for Eleanor and Eddy Hall. This is no ordinary summerhouse. There's a magical adventure built into each archway. You enter the adventure by jumping off the swing. Once the magic starts, there's only so many swings until the summerhouse disappears forever. The bugs haven't been worked out of the last adventure before Prince Krishna has to fly back to his native country to avert war. Prince Krishna takes precautions by boarding up the archway, painting "KEEP OUT" on the boards, getting Eddy and Eleanor to promise they won't go through that archway, and not putting a swing in the summerhouse.
Prince Krishna's precautions are in vain. Eddy hangs a swing in the summerhouse. Of course Eddy wouldn't break his promise, but his obnoxious friend, Oliver, didn't promise anything. Oliver sees the "keep out" notice as a challenge. He swings until he breaks the boards with his feet, then sails off the swing -- and vanishes! What's poor Eddy going to do? Oliver's parents are very worried, but he can't tell them that Oliver jumped off the swing and disappeared into thin air. They'd think he was nuts. Eddy can't go through the SAME archway because of his promise, but that doesn't mean he can't go through the OTHER archways.
Meanwhile, Eleanor is very suspicious of Uncle Fred's new student, Mrs. Dorian, who has moved next door along with her little girl, Georgie, who isn't even in school yet. Eleanor is sure that Mrs. Dorian is a witch and has bewitched Uncle Freddy, because her uncle acts so silly around her. If you're older than Eleanor, you can probably figure out why.
Eleanor and Eddy don't get along as well as they did in THE DIAMOND IN THE WINDOW. Eddy has become a normal, messy boy who loves junk. He makes Eleanor so mad because she's become a prissy prig. Eleanor can hardly wait until she's old enough to wear pretty dresses and go to dances. She hates the fact that her uncle's school isn't making them rich because Uncle Freddy cares more about teaching than making money. Will the summerhouse show Eleanor the error of her ways?
My favorite archway adventure was "Make New Worlds". Sure, the man-castle and the big clipper ship were neat and the giant cash-register can teach you how much you're worth, but what's that compared to having the worlds you create come alive? (If you don't like the world of Princess Cinderellanor, wait until it's invaded by Eddy and Georgie's worlds!)
Time goes by. There's a tick-tock every time the swing is swung. All the adventures before the dangerous one have been tried, but Oliver is still missing. Eddy boarded up the archway after his friend disappeared, but Georgie is tempted. Georgie wants so much to be able to read and add two and two. Georgie is sure that she'll get what she wants if SHE breaks the boards and goes through. Will she? Of course she will. Who's going to rescue her (not to mention Oliver)? Eddy and Eleanor don't know it, but time is running out....
Another wonderful Hall Family Chronicle!.......2002-02-10
The magical Prince Krishna, who is uncle to Eddy and Elanor Hall, has built a summerhouse in their backyard. Eddy and Elanor are warned they may use any opening in the summerhouse except the one entitled "Grow Up Now." They agree, and hang a swing in the middle of the summerhouse. Eddy and Elanor use it to swing into all of the other openings, having magical adventures. But what happens when someone goes through the forbidden archway? Read this book and find out! It is suspenseful, well-written, and above all, a wonderful book. I highly reccomend to other kids, and any grown-ups who are young at heart.
One of my favorite books.......2001-09-01
This book had a great influence on me as a child. I found it in a library and read it to my own children. If it was back in print, I'd buy it in a second.
I highly recommend it.
Claudia in Venice: This is the Book!.......2000-03-02
Edited February of 2002--Finally, this book is back in print!!!! I read this book so many times as a child and as an adult. I probably borrowed it from the library more often than anyone else in my town. I am buying this book today now that it's back in print!
This is the book you're thinking of. I too read this book as a child and was fascinated by it. There were a number of areas the kids could jump out to through the windows in the Gazebo. I particularly remember one where the children end up inside another person looking out through his eyes. And the last window was "Grow Up Now." I've been looking for a copy of this book for years. Recently I wrote a letter to HarperCollins asking them to consider reprinting it. It's odd that they'd reprint Diamond in the Window but not this one.
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