michelareads's reviews
599 reviews

Infinite Home by Kathleen Alcott

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3.0

Edith is a widowed landlady who rents apartments in her Brooklyn brownstone to an unlikely collection of humans, all deeply in need of shelter. Crippled in various ways—in spirit, in mind, in body, in heart—the renters struggle to navigate daily existence, and soon come to realize that Edith’s deteriorating mind, and the menacing presence of her estranged, unscrupulous son, Owen, is the greatest challenge they must confront together.

The heart of this book is not the story itself, but the people. Slowly introduced one by one and with enough backstory, the reader can easily feel like knowing them since a long time, to the point that some really feel like real people. That's it really: this is a novel of people, of families, bonded by blood or by choice. Love, friendship, community, pride, this book is filled with humanity and I really enjoyed it.

While I found the writing absolutely beautiful at times, I had the feeling it was too "dense" and slowing down the chapters where a lot is going on. Still I am glad I've read this book, would definitely recommend it if you like stories about people simply being humans, with their flaws and all.