Stiltsville

By: Susanna Daniel

Narrated by: Suzanne Toren

Length: 13 hrs and 40 mins

Publisher's summary

One sunny morning in 1969, near the end of her first trip to Miami, 26-year-old Frances Ellerby finds herself in a place called Stiltsville, a community of houses built on pilings in the middle of Biscayne Bay.

It's the first time the Atlanta native has been out on the open water, and she's captivated. On the dock of a stilt house, with the dazzling skyline in the distance and the unknowable ocean beneath her, she meets the house's owner, Dennis DuValand, and a new future reveals itself.

Turning away from her quiet, predictable life back home, Frances moves to Miami to be with Dennis. Over time, she earns the confidence of his wild-at-heart sister and wins the approval of his oldest friend. Frances and Dennis marry and have a child, but rather than growing complacent about their good fortune, they continue to face the challenges of intimacy and the complicated city they call home.

Stiltsville is the family's island oasis - until suddenly it's gone, and Frances is forced to figure out how to make her family work on dry land. Against a backdrop of lush tropical beauty, Frances and Dennis struggle with the mutability of love and Florida's weather, as well as temptation, chaos, and disappointment. But just when Frances thinks she's reached some semblance of higher ground, she must confront an obstacle so great that even the lessons she's learned about navigating the uncharted waters of family life can't keep them afloat.

With Stiltsville, Susanna Daniel weaves the beauty, violence, and humanity of Miami's coming-of-age with an enduring story of a marriage's beginning, maturity, and heartbreaking demise. Suzanne Toren's limpid narration perfectly complements Daniel's incandescent prose.

©2010 Susanna Daniel (P)2010 Audible, Inc.

Critic reviews

"This soulful novel will inspire you to reflect on your own definitions of house, home, and what really makes a couple close." (Redbook)

"Both structurally and in tone, the book recalls linked short-story collections such as Alice Munro's The Beggar Maid, following one character chronologically through a long period. Each piece can stand alone, but the whole is enriched when they are read together…. Lovely." (Laura C. J. Owen, Minneapolis Star Tribune)

"A deeply engrossing tale of love, family, friendship, and motherhood, Stiltsville is both an elegantly crafted work of art and a great read. The love story effortlessly spans decades, and the characters are as real and vivid as the novel's South Florida backdrop. Susanna Daniel is an extraordinary writer." (Curtis Sittenfeld, author of Prep and American Wife)

"Susanna Daniel offers an understated but compelling human story that carries with it the distinctive character of life in southern Florida. Narrator Suzanne Toren's voice is as rich and honeyed as the slow, sunny days that paint the backdrop for this appealing chronicle of a life and a marriage. Her soft drawl immediately establishes the persona of Frances, the main character, and remains convincing through the unfolding of the quiet dramas and passions that listeners will recognize as common to the passage from youth to middle age. Minor variations of tone and intensity produce smooth transitions and create credible identities for the characters. The skillful presentation of this satisfying novel gives the listener a delicious treat." (AudioFile)

Home

I grew up in Miami and have been out to Stiltsville so often as a child and as and adult we drive by it often. So this story was about home to me. The different parts of Miami she speaks of is what kept me listening. The story itself is about a women who Marty's a man who owns one of the homes. So you get the history of it. At times it rambled to much about nothing. At others it was like listening to someone at a table next to you share tidbits of their life. While I liked the book I was not glued to it or the characters in it. It gives a sweeping amount of information over a large period of time which rang mostly true. I guess what I'm saying is it was like listening to someone read their diary.

Time travel to mid twentieth century Miami

A woman's perspective on moving to Miami as a young adult, marrying and raising a family. The stiltsville of the title was a collection of small shacks perched in Miami Bay.
Her emotional development is explored as she marries, has a child, contemplates an affair, and becomes a widow when her husband dies of ALS.
A lot of local color about Miami.

touched miamian

this was such a beautifully written & touching story. ❤️

i am so glad that I added it to my list!

I loved this book!

I loved the characters, storyline and performance. I fell in love with these characters as well as Miami. What a beautiful story of love and endurance.

Resonates to a Miami transplant

Loved this book. Genuine look at how a women's life change through so many stages. I feel like the main character is a friend of mine. Also so many memories of Miami.

Miami since 1968 is the star of this book to me. An insightful and touching journey through a marriage.

Liked reading about a couple starting their married life and parenthood in Miami in the 70s through the 90s. My husband and could relate to that and to the descriptions of Miami in those years. Very honest and insightful book. Also very good writing about parenthood, marriage and friends and family relations. We could totally relate. Excellent narration, too. Would recommend mostly to older married people and to people who know South Florida.

Poignant and worthwhile!

A really good read, a quiet, sad and poignant read that leaves you feeling a quietness inside yourself. A reflective story that makes you feel sad and happy at the same time. I enjoyed it.

boring, slow, and... who cares?!

This book is full of minute details I did not care about. I did not care about the characters, ether, and stopped listening after about 6 hours of boredom. I don't understand all the praise. All this is "filler"! Who cares about you buying pink matching robe and slippers! Who cares your husband left the lights on! Complete crap and will be promptly forgotten.