Some even say it could be seen as Harry Potter’s Hogwarts – though I would disagree with that one. I’ve seen many reviews comparing The Gray House to other authors, and I agree one cannot help but see Lord of the Flies, Alice in Wonderland, Peter Pan and the stream of conscience moments like The Sound and The Fury. Black, who still struggles with his identity around Sphinx indicates the House’s draw was more imagination than reality. One of my remaining questions after reading the synopsis and the entire book remains, is the House sentient? Are we meant to have a definite answer? Probably not. In an 800 page book I would usually make around 20 notes, so Petrosyan definitely made a herculean story. In my first read through, I made over 145 notes. It took the author 18 years to write and with all the symbolism, nuances and themes I don’t believe even she could remember all the details without an extensive chart. If anyone says they understand this novel, I wouldn’t believe them. Pin pointing my emotions first include, being mesmerized, sickened, fascinated, questioning and confused. (Courtesy of )Īs with all Russian novels, I was overwhelmed by the vast breadth of The Gray House.

As the tribe leaders struggle to maintain power, they defer to the awesome power of the House, attempting to make it through days and nights that pass in ways that clocks and watches cannot record.

From the corridors and crawl spaces to the classrooms and dorms, the House is full of tribes, tinctures, scared teachers, and laws-all seen and understood through a prismatic array of teenagers’ eyes.īut student deaths and mounting pressure from the Outsides put the time-defying order of the House in danger. Not that it matters to anyone living in the House, a hulking old structure that its residents know is alive. The Gray House is an astounding tale of how what others understand as liabilities can be leveraged into strengths.īound to wheelchairs and dependent on prosthetic limbs, the physically disabled students living in the House are overlooked by the Outsides.

The grey house mariam petrosyan