The Dead of the House

Beautiful, almost melodious in tone, The Dead of the House is a rare specimen of nearly perfect writing. Told from the perspective of a young girl growing up in the 1930s and '40s, one can feel the mellow Ohio summer, smell the musty family history books and know the degree of love felt by the members of the family. Green tells the story in three parts. Part one, ""In My Grandfather's House,"" is largely Grandpa Nye's stories of childhood, youth, marriage and death. He recalls swimming so much it seemed to him they never dressed. He shows his grandchildren the rough tattoo carved by a penknife. ""Other afternoons, taking one of his favorite canes, Grandpa Nye would go out the back door and down and slowly up over the stile into his woods where he walked among the giant oaks, his feet shuffling through the leaves, his old hand reaching to touch the bark of a tree, the voice of his wandering mind occasionally speaking. `Oh, my dear boys,' he said, `My sons.'"" The second part, ""Summer Afternoon, Summer Afternoon,"" is largely Vanessa's story. She is typically adolescent: she worries about her looks, is jealous of her prettier sister and daydreams about a boy kissing her. During the annual summer vacation on the shores of Lake Michigan, Vanessa learns of the death of her first love, a boy from this summer place, and some of the magic dissolves into reality. The last section, ""And Here Tecumseh Fell,"" is the story of the girls returning home to reminisce with their family and wait for Grandpa Nye's death. Green is known for being a perfectionist in her writing, and this long-out-of-print work is absolute proof. The characterizations are flawless, the descriptions excellent and the overall effect sublime. (May)