The House of Sleep revolves around four adults who knew each other in college, each with their own troubled relationship with sleep. Sarah’s narcolepsy has come at great personal cost; Robert has found himself chasing after . Gregory Dudden’s sleep clinic belies his obsession with sleep as a disease to be eradicated; Terry has switched from sleeping fourteen hours a day to an almost sleepless existence.
The House of Sleep captures a peculiar intersection between sleep and self, especially when dreams and reality aren’t quite as clear-cut as they should be.
The timelines of the various characters intersect satisfyingly. Rather like Ruth Rendell or Donna Tartt, The House of Sleep involves a lot of reflection on human relationships. Though the subject matter seems heavy, The House of Sleep is lightened with occasional moments of snark, especially around the characters who take themselves too seriously - especially around the men who are so absurdly self-absorbed they barely see what they look like to everyone else. This saved it from devolving completely into melodrama.
Two things for readers to be aware of: the resolution of one of the storylines, involving a transgender character, is an absolute cliché - perhaps sadly representative of writing trends during the late 90s? Also, there are descriptions of sex - not necessarily graphic nor violent per se, but hard to avoid, and not always loving.
The House of Sleep is a exploration into sleep and the mind - a book in which long-lost loves and long-held obsessions do not find rest.
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