How I Built Myself a House

by Thomas Hardy

Short story.

Genres: Short Stories

Unknown Binding

About the author

Thomas Hardy, OM, was an English author of the naturalist movement, although in several poems he displays elements of the previous romantic and enlightenment periods of literature, such as his fascination with the supernatural. He regarded himself primarily as a poet and composed novels mainly for financial gain.

The bulk of his work, set mainly in the semi-fictional land of Wessex, delineates characters struggling against their passions and circumstances. Hardy's poetry, first published in his 50s, has come to be as well regarded as his novels, especially after The Movement of the 1950s and 1960s.

The term cliffhanger is considered to have originated with Thomas Hardy's serial novel A Pair of Blue Eyes in 1873. In the novel, Hardy chose to leave one of his protagonists, Knight, literally hanging off a cliff staring into the stony eyes of a trilobite embedded in the rock that has been dead for millions of years. This became the archetypal — and literal — cliff-hanger of Victorian prose.

Excerpted from Wikipedia.

Reviews

[Ted · Rating 3 out of 5]

One of Thomas Hardy’s first published works (1865), written when Hardy was working as an architect. The themes presented are universal ones: marital dynamics and the imagined vs reality. This is a whimsical and comedic story of a young couple's experience of building a new home. They begin by imagining their dream home and deciding on a budget. Then they choose a location and hire an architect and a contractor. Construction follows but it is not quite as planned. Some modifications are deemed necessary and there are a number of unforeseen and unbudgeted extras. It’s a trying experience for the couple but one that sounds familiar. In fact, the difficulties the couple encounters are similar to ones that might be experienced in a house building project today. Hardy gives the story a light touch, using self-deprecating humor to smooth over problems with the project and to maintain marital harmony. It’s a short and enjoyable read and for prospective home builders, a preview of “things to expect”.

[Carolien · Rating 3 out of 5]

If you have ever been involved in any house construction project on whatever scale, you will appreciate the author's experience of building a new family house within budget (not), specification (not) and expectation (not). Loved it.

https://people.stfx.ca/rnemesva/Hardy...

[Eveliina · Rating 3 out of 5]

Spotify audiobook (30 minutes)

A very timely and true story about all of the issues while building a house with professionals. Funny, that things haven't changed since the year 1865.

[Forked Radish · Rating 3 out of 5]

Innocuous housebuilding humour.

[Morgan Taylor · Rating 5 out of 5]

I laughed and laughed at this. So incredibly accurate to the real life aspects of home making and building. But written in such a light hearted way.

[Tobi ﾄﾋﾞ · Rating 3 out of 5]

It really is like that

[Maureen · Rating 3 out of 5]

Written in 1865, this short story illuminates the trials and tribulations of building one’s own house. It appears that nothing much has changed since then!