An ambitious historical epic that doubles as an intimate family saga.
Set against the backdrop of our nation\'s history, this is an emotional tour de force that digs deeply into questions of inheritance and what we owe each other--and captures to stunning effect the gravity of time, the double edge of progress, and the hubris of empire..
Spanning multiple generations and nearly eighty years, Last House tells the story of one American family during an age of grand ideals and even greater downfalls.
But when the Movement shifts in a more radical direction, each member of the Taylor family will be forced to reckon with the consequences of the choices they\'ve made for the causes they believed in.
As Katherine makes her first forays into adult life, she\'s caught up in the current of the time and struggles to reconcile her ideals with the stable and privileged childhood her Greatest Generation parents worked so hard to provide.
Protestors fill the streets to challenge everything from the Vietnam War to racism in the wake of MLK\'s shooting--to the country\'s reliance on Big Oil.
It\'s 1968, and America is on the brink of change.
Last House is a place that could survive the end of the world.
Bet doesn\'t have to worry about the Russian H-bombs that haunt her dreams, and the children roam free in the woods.
Deep in the Vermont mountains, the Taylors are free from the stresses of modern life.
Nick comes from humble origins but thanks to his work for American Oil, he can provide every comfort for his family, including Last House, a secluded country escape.
He takes the train into the city for work and returns to the peaceful streets of the suburbs and to his wife, Bet, former codebreaker now housewife, and their two children, Katherine and Harry.
It\'s 1953, and for Nick Taylor, WWII veteran turned company lawyer, oil is the key to the future.
The war is over, and America has entered a golden age: The Age of Oil. -- TOM PERROTTA From the New York Times bestselling author of The Women in the Castle comes a sweeping story of a nation on the rise, and one family\'s deeply complicated relationship to the resource that built their fortune and fueled their greatest tragedy, perfect for fans of The Dutch House and The Great Circle.
This is a wide-ranging novel to savor. . . .
Jessica Shattuck captures and connects it all--the imperial ambitions of the postwar generation, the rebellion of their offspring in the Sixties, and the fallout we\'re still sifting through today.
An ambitious historical epic that doubles as an intimate family saga
