Some houses have all the luck! Concord's Old Manse! Built for a minister rich only in faith, in love for his family and for his country; occupied for many years by a stern Calvinist minister who yet made it a sanctuary to Ralph Waldo Emerson; happiest home to Nathaniel Hawthorne and his bride; seat of learning for a scholarly retired minister and his brilliant wife; summer home to an ebullient artist, and now a museum showing signs of its every occupant. What a fascinating house is Concord's Old Manse! I would like to wrap my arms around it. Paul Brooks has told its story in clear and graceful prose, bringing the reader as a welcome guest to each of the people to whom the Old Manse was home. -David Little