The Dream House by Craig Higginson
Summary and Quotes
by Jade Campbell
, Character Summaries
Patricia - Unhappily married to Richard - only married because she became
(uMesis) pregnant
- Knows the house intimately and has lived there for most of her
life
- Overweight and cared for by Beauty
- Was very fond of a young boy, Looksmart, from the farm who she
helped get into a good school
Richard - Suffers from Dementia: forgetful and easily confused
(uBaas) - Very bitter towards Patricia
- Patricia suspects that he is faking his dementia
- “He gave up any pretense at being good at anything after her father
died.” - Patricia
Beauty - Works for Patricia and Richard - cares for Richard
- Will go for driving and English lessons when in Durban
- Afraid of Richard (uBaas) because of racial dynamics and his
history of power
- “The way Beauty tends to lean towards a thing before approaching it,
allowing her body to feel its pull and moving forward only when her
heart is in it.”
Bheki - Patricia and Richard’s driver (and gardener)
- Never took an interest in books but loves the car dearly
- Concerned only about his disabled son, Bheki
- Beauty has been in love with him for years, but he doesn’t love her
back
- “Bheki rarely speaks to (Patricia) outside of what is practical.”
Ethunzini - Patricia and Richard’s current rottweiler
Chloe - Patricia and Richard’s previous rottweiler
Patricia’s - Left the farm to Patricia when he died
father - Spoke against Richard only once, then never again
- Never complained: worked hard everyday, which Patricia
respected him for
- “The only good man in my life.” - Patricia
, John Ford - English teacher at Looksmart’s boarding school
- Had a 15 year affair with Patricia
- Wife died of bone cancer
- “Patricia likes to think she fell in love with him because he was
everything Richard was not.”
Looksmart - A smart boy from the farm who got a scholarship at the school
- Returns to Dwaleni Farm, thinking back to feelings of intense
hate and his attempt at escaping Grace, the farm worker he loved,
who was murdered
- “An unusually clever boy from the farm.”
Rachel - Patricia and Richard’s dead daughter: stillborn
- Buried on the farm in a grave that Richard constantly tries to
find
- “Her grave is marked with a simple stone.”
- “The skull of her small child, as fragile in the earth as a buried bird’s
egg.”
Grace - Worked on the farm many years ago, but died under questionable
circumstances
- Locksmart moved away to escape her
- Died (was murdered) on the farm years ago
- “Who died, or was killed, Madam?” - Looksmart
Plot Summary
Part One
Patricia - They’ve sold the farm and are moving to Glenwood, Durban, to
Patricia’s childhood house.
- Richard doesn’t understand that they are leaving. He has
dementia.
- Rupert and George, the alsatians, have been shot and buried,
Ethunzini, the rottweiler next.
- She’d decided to sell the farm when Finnegan, her last Chihuahua,
died.
- There is development going on on the farm.
Summary and Quotes
by Jade Campbell
, Character Summaries
Patricia - Unhappily married to Richard - only married because she became
(uMesis) pregnant
- Knows the house intimately and has lived there for most of her
life
- Overweight and cared for by Beauty
- Was very fond of a young boy, Looksmart, from the farm who she
helped get into a good school
Richard - Suffers from Dementia: forgetful and easily confused
(uBaas) - Very bitter towards Patricia
- Patricia suspects that he is faking his dementia
- “He gave up any pretense at being good at anything after her father
died.” - Patricia
Beauty - Works for Patricia and Richard - cares for Richard
- Will go for driving and English lessons when in Durban
- Afraid of Richard (uBaas) because of racial dynamics and his
history of power
- “The way Beauty tends to lean towards a thing before approaching it,
allowing her body to feel its pull and moving forward only when her
heart is in it.”
Bheki - Patricia and Richard’s driver (and gardener)
- Never took an interest in books but loves the car dearly
- Concerned only about his disabled son, Bheki
- Beauty has been in love with him for years, but he doesn’t love her
back
- “Bheki rarely speaks to (Patricia) outside of what is practical.”
Ethunzini - Patricia and Richard’s current rottweiler
Chloe - Patricia and Richard’s previous rottweiler
Patricia’s - Left the farm to Patricia when he died
father - Spoke against Richard only once, then never again
- Never complained: worked hard everyday, which Patricia
respected him for
- “The only good man in my life.” - Patricia
, John Ford - English teacher at Looksmart’s boarding school
- Had a 15 year affair with Patricia
- Wife died of bone cancer
- “Patricia likes to think she fell in love with him because he was
everything Richard was not.”
Looksmart - A smart boy from the farm who got a scholarship at the school
- Returns to Dwaleni Farm, thinking back to feelings of intense
hate and his attempt at escaping Grace, the farm worker he loved,
who was murdered
- “An unusually clever boy from the farm.”
Rachel - Patricia and Richard’s dead daughter: stillborn
- Buried on the farm in a grave that Richard constantly tries to
find
- “Her grave is marked with a simple stone.”
- “The skull of her small child, as fragile in the earth as a buried bird’s
egg.”
Grace - Worked on the farm many years ago, but died under questionable
circumstances
- Locksmart moved away to escape her
- Died (was murdered) on the farm years ago
- “Who died, or was killed, Madam?” - Looksmart
Plot Summary
Part One
Patricia - They’ve sold the farm and are moving to Glenwood, Durban, to
Patricia’s childhood house.
- Richard doesn’t understand that they are leaving. He has
dementia.
- Rupert and George, the alsatians, have been shot and buried,
Ethunzini, the rottweiler next.
- She’d decided to sell the farm when Finnegan, her last Chihuahua,
died.
- There is development going on on the farm.
