Sun House

By David James Duncan,

Book cover of Sun House

Book description

A random bolt from a DC-8 falls from the sky, killing a child and throwing the faith of a young Jesuit Jesuit into crisis. A boy's mother dies on his fifth birthday, sparking a lifetime of repressed anger that he unleashes once a year in reckless duels with the Fate,…

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Why read it?

2 authors picked Sun House as one of their favorite books. Why do they recommend it?

This is an extraordinary novel.

Sun House is a sprawling, challenging, intimate, and deeply engaging book that follows the lives of a dozen or so amazing characters as they struggle to find meaning and purpose in their lives. Although they are all extreme people in various ways, you can find yourself in each of them.

The setting is the Pacific Northwest, especially Oregon, Washington, and Montana from 1958-2016. The characters' lives intertwine in remarkable ways, both with each other and with the urban, rural, and wilderness landscapes that they inhabit.

As you read about their developmental journeys, you will…

At almost 800 pages, this book was a whole-life spiritual experience. Not a light read, but for people whose primary concern is enlightenment and self-awareness, it is a great leap forward in that understanding.

Through a host of full characters, I got a lived experience of how everyone is necessary—people who have no idea that there are any subtleties or not-so-visible layers of life as well as people who dedicate themselves to knowing All That Is.

The ending, which I cannot give away, took root in me and continues to influence my life.

There is humor, philosophy, metaphysical debates, a…

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