Maine by J. Courtney Sullivan
Summary
For the Kellehers, Maine is a place where children run in packs, showers are taken outdoors, and old Irish songs are sung around a piano at night. Their beachfront property, won on a barroom bet after the war, sits on three acres of sand and pine nestled between stretches of rocky coast, with one tree bearing the initials “A.H.” At the cottage, built by Kelleher hands, cocktail hour follows morning mass, nosy grandchildren snoop in drawers, and decades-old grudges simmer beneath the surface.
As three generations of Kelleher women descend on the property one summer, each brings her own hopes and fears. Maggie is thirty-two and pregnant, waiting for the perfect moment to tell her imperfect boyfriend the news; Ann Marie, a Kelleher by marriage, is channeling her domestic frustration into a dollhouse obsession and an ill-advised crush; Kathleen, the black sheep, never wanted to set foot in the cottage again; and Alice, the matriarch at the center of it all, would trade every floorboard for a chance to undo the events of one night, long ago.
By turns wickedly funny and achingly sad, Maine unveils the sibling rivalry, alcoholism, social climbing, and Catholic guilt at the center of one family, along with the abiding, often irrational love that keeps them coming back, every summer, to Maine and to each other.
Book Setting: Cape Neddick and Ogunquit, Maine
St. Peter's by the Sea Episcopal Chapel: Inspiration for Alice’s church in Cape Neddick.
The Leavitt Theatre: One of the first places in Ogunquit, Maine Alice and Daniel saw when driving to their new plot of land.
Ogunquit Playhouse: Alice and Rita would see plays and musicals here in the 1950s.
The Press Room: Ann Marie daydreamed of her, Pat, Steve and Linda stopping here on their way up to the house in Maine.
Barnacle Billy’s: Fiona and Little David’s favorite place to eat in Maine. Alice, Maggie and Ann Marie got dinner here one night.
Brown’s Clam Shanty: Patty and Josh’s favorite place to eat in Maine.
L.L. Bean: Alice’s kids would drive out at midnight to climb up the boot in front of the store.
Popham Beach: Where the family fished for bass off of one of Pat’s client’s boats.
Portland Seadogs Game: Little Daniel would bring his glove to catch fly balls.
Cliff House: Little Daniel is getting married here next summer.
Ogunquit Memorial Library: Alice donated all of Daniel’s thrillers to this library.
The Front Porch: Tourists would go here to watch male Judy Garland impersonators.
Kittery Point: Maggie, Father Donnelly and Alice went out to lunch in town.
Marginal Way: Alice and Maggie took a walk together after lunch with Father Donnelly.
Ogunquit Beach: Alice and Maggie ended their Marginal Way walk and hopped on a trolley.
Cape Neddick Lobster Pound: Maggie would pass this on her way every day.
Antiques on Nine: Ann Marie was considering buying Maggie a gift from here.
Nubble Light: Ann Marie, Linda, Pat and Steve stopped by here.
Cove Cafe: Ann Marie, Linda, Pat and Steve got breakfast here.
Reviews
“Sullivan beautifully channels Alice through her memories…The dialogue sizzles as the tension between the women’s love and anger toward one another tightens…You don’t want the novel to end.”
– The New York Times Book Review
“Like Elizabeth Strout’s conflicted junior high teacher, Olive Kitteridge, [the Kellehers] are appealing partly because of their oh-so-human shortcomings…I enjoyed every page of this ruthless and tender novel about the way love can sometimes redeem even the most contentious families. Like all first-rate comic fiction, Maine uses humor to examine the truths of the heart, in New England and far beyond.”
- The Washington Post
"I have never stayed at this cottage in Maine, or any cottage in Maine, but no matter: I now feel I know what it's like being in a family that comes to the same place summer after summer, unpacking their familiar longings, slights, shorthand conversation, and ways of being together. J. Courtney Sullivan's Maine is evocative, funny, close-quartered, and highly appealing."
– Meg Wolitzer, author of The Uncoupling