The Children's Home

The Children's Home
by Charles Lambert
Hardcover, 210 pages
Scribner, January 5, 2016
2 stars

Morgan Fletcher, heir to a mysterious fortune, lives in seclusion on his family estate, hiding himself away to avoid showing the world his disfigured face, the result of an "accident" in his youth.  One day his housekeeper, Engel, brings him a baby left on their steps, and asks to keep her. This baby is quickly followed by a little boy, and then other children begin to appear. This odd family lives together alone until a doctor must be called. Dr. Crane, the town physician, arrives and soon becomes a beloved part of the household, eventually moving in to take advantage of the extensive medical library that Morgan's grandfather acquired on his travels. Before long, Morgan realizes how strangely the children act, how adult-like, how they all seem to know each other from before they arrived. Morgan is sometimes surprised that he can't hear the children, almost as though they're not there at all.

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"I was taken away and left somewhere safe. That's what they thought, anyway."

This is a book with a compelling premise  that just failed to do much for me. Described as "neo-gothic horror" and "perfect for fans of Roald Dahl and Shirley Jackson," it missed all of the creeping dread, the brilliant writing, and the clever plot twists that are the hallmarks of those talented authors. The writing was unremarkable other than to note that it was a bit scattered, jumping around in time and from topic to topic, serving only to confuse an already muddled story. The plot played out like a dark reverse Narnia, with mysterious children arriving in the real world, but even as a fairy tale it falls flat, leaving us no lesson or moral imperative to look to. In the end, the book took a dark turn toward a dystopian view of the world and then abandoned the reader in a confused conclusion. 

On the bright side, this book is closer to a novella than a novel, coming in at 210 pages. The problem this causes is there's just not enough room to explore the characters all that much. Morgan, the protagonist, is the only character the reader walks away feeling as though they really know, and it's only because, as the narrator, Morgan tells you everything that runs through his head, coherent or not. The rest of the characters are one-dimensional. They're creepy, certainly, but none are very compelling.  

This book was a good idea with poor execution. 

My recommended beverage-of-choice for this book would be a steaming mug of hot cocoa. Considering both the luxury cocoa was during WW2 and how easily you can slip a nip of something stronger into it should you share my opinion of this book, it's really the perfect choice.