House By The Sea: Amazon.ca: May Sarton: Books

Product Description

Book Description

In 1973, May Sarton moved to a house on the seacoast of Maine. It was a place that was alone in all but a few months in the summer, with the sea and the woods, and a wide sky ever present. She discovered that what she has to give does not depend on others. This is her journal of that time.

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First Sentence
AT LAST I am ready to start a journal again. Read the first page

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Concordance

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Front Cover | Copyright | Excerpt | Back Cover

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Customer Reviews

10 Reviews

5 star:		(7)
4 star:		(2)
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Average Customer Review

4.6 out of 5 stars (10 customer reviews)

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3 of 3 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars An Most Interesting Read, Jan 14 2001

By A Customer

This review is from: House By The Sea (Paperback)

The House by the Sea: A Journal

After Nelson, New Hampshire, Sarton sought what she thought would be a totally "different" life as far as neighbors, company and the like in York, Maine. She was in her mind seeking "personal space". In this succinct journal Ms. Sarton chronicles her "new home" and life in Maine with often great detail and a wide range of emotions. While I am not particularly found of Journals, this one drew me in. I, too, yearn for the harsh ocean environment that the house at York afforded Sarton; the seasons; working in the garden(s);and, relaxing in those veranda recliners and gazing out over the field of tall grass to the ocean(glass of wine in hand). A most excellent piece. If you are not a Sarton reader, this will bring you into the fold.

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4.0 out of 5 stars A companion piece to A Journal of a Solitude, Mar 24 2004

By

frumiousb "frumiousb" (Amsterdam, the Netherlands) - See all my reviews

This review is from: House By The Sea (Paperback)

Interesting about the mixed results that Sarton achieved when she began this journal, which was intended as a journal of happiness and a kind of counterweight to her book A Journal of a Solitude which was clearly, well, *not* about happiness.

I can see why some people find it irritating to read, although I never do. She contradicts herself frequently-- complains of how she never gets time to herself and then runs around the Eastern seaboard like a bandersnatch. She's often pray to muddled thinking and faulty logic and sounds as though she'd be a real pain to be around much of the time.

But still, it's inspirational to read as someone who wants to keep a journal. It's not a constantly ecstatic experience in the way that Annie Dillard can be or an idea journal in the vein of Walden, it's more like reading somebody fumbling through towards bigger ideas and willing to expose the joints and creaky bits in the process. There are moments of vision and transcendence, but also a lot of the petty crap that gets people down from day to day.

I like reading Sarton because she is so human. I feel like I miss her even though I never knew her, and reading her is like getting to know her-- in all her fulness as a flawed and talented human being.

I'd probably begin with A Journal of a Solitude, as I think it's the more complete work, but I wouldn't hesitate to recommend this as a follow-up.

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5.0 out of 5 stars *****A Balm When The Spirit Needs Soothing*****, Nov 21 2000

By A Customer

This review is from: House By The Sea (Paperback)

This is the book which introduced me figuratively and literally to May Sarton! I saw this title in a bookstore and looked through it. WHAT A TREASURE this book became. May Sarton has the ability to cast light across darkness in such a way that the reader is revitalized and nourished. Inner strength is rediscovered. Life is redefined - routine events reclaim their original joy. What is old becomes refreshed. What a gift May Sarton continues to give through her work: life is to be lived and used and appreciated and given for as long as one can. *The House By The Sea* celebrates life, its beauty, serenity and joy. Sarton was most alive when she created life through her work. This theme resonates in all her work and teaches by demonstration the importance of exploring the inner self to find abundance.

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Most recent customer reviews

3.0 out of 5 stars Fanfare For The Common Man
Literary journals and diaries written for publication are notoriously dicey cultural products. Harold Nicholson's extensive journals were written self consciously with a reading... Read more

Published on May 7 2003 by J. E. Barnes

5.0 out of 5 stars A House by the Sea
Simply a superb observation of everyday in an idyllic setting by an insightful and honest author. I agree with other reviewers that May Sarton's best work is in her journals... Read more

Published on May 24 2000 by reader_123