Jacqueline Thornley: Rose Red (Outside Reading #4)

One of the topics we discussed in class was how some architecture and dwellings have organic growth, that is, they seem to grow out of the relationships with people and the needs of the surroundings. I recently read Stephen King’s Rose Red and thought this idea applied particularly well. In the book the main character is actually the house, which continuously builds upon itself. The house gets the power to build upon itself from the relationship it has with the woman who owns the house, who eventually becomes a permanent part of the house. The story is terrifying (to me at least) but is beautifully written. In fact, though the house is made out to be the villain of the story, there is something really appealing about the house which grows organically into its surroundings. Obviously the idea we discussed in class wasn’t talking about monster houses that grow on their own, but it was the first connection I made in my head.