House of Sand and Fog (novel)
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 First edition cover |
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| Author | Andre Dubus III |
|---|---|
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Genre(s) | Fiction |
| Publisher | W. W. Norton & Company |
| Released | February 1, 1999 |
| Media type | Print (Hardcover and Paperback) |
| Pages | 365 pp |
| ISBN | ISBN 0393046974 |
House of Sand and Fog is a 1999 novel by Andre Dubus III. It was selected for Oprah's Book Club in 2000 as well as a finalist for the National Book Award.
[edit] Plot
The novel begins with Massoud Amir Behrani, a former colonel exiled from Iran after a political uprising who now works as a trash collector and convenience store clerk. Meanwhile, Kathy Nicolo, a former drug addict who is still recovering from her husband abruptly leaving her, has been wrongfully evicted from her home due to unpaid taxes the country claimed she owes.
When the house is placed for auction, Massoud seizes the opportunity and purchases it. He bets his son's entire college fund, but he plans to renovate the house and then resell it for much more than he originally paid. He moves his family from their spacious apartment into the house. Meanwhile, while Kathy moves out, she meets Deputy Lester Burdon, and they become close while they work to get Kathy's house back. They go through the system, hiring a lawyer, but they are not successful. In the eyes of the law, the Behranis legally own the house.
Out of desperation, Kathy goes to her home and attempts to commit suicide twice, first trying to shoot herself and secondly overdosing on pills. The Behranis manage to stop her both times, and she is put in a bedroom to rest. Lester soon arrives and locks the Behranis in their bathroom at gunpoint until they agree to sell the house back to Kathy. When Lester takes the Behranis to the county office, Massoud’s son, Esmail, gets a hold of the gun and is shot by the authorities that surrounded him. When Massoud finds out in the hospital that his son has died, he is overcome with grief and rage at both Lester and Kathy. When he returns to the house and finds Kathy waiting there, he attempts to strangle her to death. After he believes that Kathy has died, he dons his uniform and suffocates both himself and his wife, who was asleep in the bedroom.
Kathy and Lester are imprisoned and await trial. The novel ends when Kathy, pretending to be unable to speak after her final encounter with the murderous Behrani, mimes a request for one more cigarette.
[edit] Film adaptation
In 2003 the novel was adapted into a movie starring Ben Kingsley and Jennifer Connelly. Two main differences exist between the movie and the novel. First, the book gives the reader more detail into Lester Burdon’s life. Lester's father abandoned Lester and his family when Lester was a teenager, which explains why Lester was reluctant to leave his family for Kathy. The movie mentions the abandonment, but provides no background. Lester also endured bullying as a child and young man. The novel suggests these experiences in his youth led to some of his rash decisions.
Second, the movie has a different ending. The movie depicts the Colonel arriving at home after witnessing the death of his son, after which he poisons his wife by serving her tea with an overdose of her pain medication. He then commits suicide by taping a plastic bag around his head. Kathy finds the Colonel and his wife and tries to resuscitate the Colonel, but is too late. It is unknown whether or not Kathy is arrested for her part in the ordeal.
