The Candy House: A Novel

Written by Jennifer Egan

Narrated by Michael Boatman, Nicole Lewis, Thomas Sadoski and 20 more

A NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER

ONE of the TOP 10 BOOKS OF THE YEAR by THE NEW YORK TIMES * ENTERTAINMENT WEEKLY * SLATE* THE PHILADELPHIA INQUIRER *

Also named one of the BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR by Vanity Fair, Time, NPR, The Guardian, Oprah Daily, Self, Vogue, The New Yorker, BBC, Vulture, and many more!

OLIVIA WILDE to direct A24's TV adaptation of THE CANDY HOUSE and A VISIT FROM THE GOON SQUAD!

From one of the most celebrated writers of our time comes an “inventive, effervescent” (Oprah Daily) novel about the memory and quest for authenticity and human connection.

The Candy House opens with the staggeringly brilliant Bix Bouton, whose company, Mandala, is so successful that he is “one of those tech demi-gods with whom we’re all on a first name basis.” Bix is forty, with four kids, restless, and desperate for a new idea, when he stumbles into a conversation group, mostly Columbia professors, one of whom is experimenting with downloading or “externalizing” memory. Within a decade, Bix’s new technology, “Own Your Unconscious”—which allows you access to every memory you’ve ever had, and to share your memories in exchange for access to the memories of others—has seduced multitudes.

In the world of Egan’s spectacular imagination, there are “counters” who track and exploit desires and there are “eluders,” those who understand the price of taking a bite of the Candy House. Egan introduces these characters in an astonishing array of narrative styles—from omniscient to first person plural to a duet of voices, an epistolary chapter, and a chapter of tweets. Intellectually dazzling, The Candy House is also a moving testament to the tenacity and transcendence of human longing for connection, family, privacy, and love.

“A beautiful exploration of loss, memory, and history” (San Francisco Chronicle), “this is minimalist maximalism. It’s as if Egan compressed a big 19th-century novel onto a flash drive” (The New York Times).

• Language: English
• Publisher: Simon & Schuster Audio
• Release date: Apr 5, 2022
• ISBN: 9781797128412

Reviews for The Candy House

[Raphael Orenstein · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Imaginative about future technological advances that are scary because they are so plausible. Seems like a collection of captivating short stories with wonderful character development

[Sierra Sue · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

So Good!! No spoilers.. Highly recommend. Fresh, insightful about to read again!

[Amy Harrington · Rating: 1 out of 5 stars]

I gave up 2/3 of the way through. Kept waiting for a plot to connect all the stories and it never came.

[Eric Leong · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

diffficuly for me to follow. It jumps time periods and changes narrators often. Each individual section or chapter was interesting but I failed to see how they connect.

[Amy Fortin · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Bizarre structure. Difficult to follow in audio form, possibly would have done better in traditional book form. I’m not likely the demographic for this.

[Catherine Beeman · Rating: 2 out of 5 stars]

I kept waiting for the point. I don't get it, and I wish I hadn't wasted my time hoping that the story would come full circle.

[Rosie John-Baptiste · Rating: 1 out of 5 stars]

I tried to read this book several times. I gave up, and returned. I even loaned the hard copy to read simultaneously whilst listening to the audiobook.

I just really didn’t like this book. I wanted to. I got almost halfway through. But I finally admitted defeat.

It is engaging and beautifully written, yet it feels disjointed. I tried in vain to see the connections between characters. I went back to the book info to actually find out what the book was meant to be about, as I became more confused as the boom progressed. Then I reread reviews that I’d unwisely ignored. I now understand the mixed reception.

My recommendation; if you want a typical book with an understandable plot and sequence of events, this isn’t it.

[Brenda McFarlane · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

This is interesting, unique, and fresh. Even though it feels like a series of short stories, I was totally enthralled. Highly recommend.

[debbaworks · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

The story unfolds in a series of linked chapters, each a different point of view from a different character, who is somehow related to other characters. It doesn't unfold linearly, but takes a circuitous route. I haven't read the first book, "A Visit from the Goon Squad," which won a Pulitzer, but I suspect CANDY HOUSE is not as good. Still entertaining, and for me, Chapter 5, which is told from the POV of the neurospicy son of one of the other characters, so perfectly captures the speech pattern, thought process, and delivery of such a person is one of the best things I've ever heard read. It is a perfect blend of writer and reader and that chapter alone is worth the price of admission for me.

[Lizzy Chen · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

What a wild ride through so many interconnected lives. I like the different voices.

[Rosemary Banks · Rating: 2 out of 5 stars]

Not for me. Too many characters and didn’t care about any. Not believable, memorable or enjoyable, but I suffered through it because I’m told this is quality literature.

These stories show how oblivious white people are to the suffering all around them. And just because a writer says a character is black does not make it real unless she takes the time to legitimately create him, and Ms. Egan is clueless.

[Amber Grant · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

A little confused ..I think I gotta go back and read it