10 h 19 minAudiobook14 minSummaryRead it, hear it, the 15-minute summary, and print and large print at cost
Audiobook edition · 10 h 19 minPaperback · 6 × 9 in · printing soonHardcover · 6 × 9 in · printing soonAbout this book
Above a town that waits for his downfall, a proud man makes his house a monument to his power.
In Barbie, a small Scottish town, John Gourlay runs the leading carting business and rules his family by force. His handsome house with its green shutters stands above his neighbours, demanding notice. When Wilson opens a rival business, the townspeople welcome a challenge to the man they envy.
Gourlay sends his sensitive son, young John, to Edinburgh with hopes of raising the family name. But the boy cannot meet his father's demands, while Mrs Gourlay tries to shield him from her husband's temper. In The House with the Green Shutters, George Douglas Brown brings family conflict and public spite into the same dark frame.
What you’ll discover
- A town that watches Enter streets where neighbours follow every event and wait for a powerful man to stumble.
- Pride behind green shutters See how Gourlay's imposing home makes his success visible to everyone below him.
- Father against son Follow the painful gulf between a forceful father's ambitions and his nervous son's limits.
- Scotland without the sweetness Discover Brown's challenge to cosy village tales through hardness, envy, and unsparing family conflict.
- Dark humour and sharp voices Hear the townspeople speak as gossip and bitter humour sharpen this portrait of small-town life.
Who will love it
This book suits readers who like dark family dramas, sharp portraits of small-town life, and stories where character decides fate.
What’s inside
The key ideas, in the 15-minute summary
- A proud man watches his carts roll down
- The town gathers to talk him down
- A weak wife and a spoiled son
- Wilson comes home with money and a plan
- Templandmuir breaks with his old friend
- Gibson's trap ends in a broken window
- The coach to Skeighan and the order for college
- Edinburgh, the Howff and the first drink
- A small success swells into a ruinous swagger
- What the book says about pride, envy and weakness
- How the story is told, through chorus, house and eyes
Who’s who
- John GourlayA dour, fiercely proud carrier and merchant who rules Barbie by force and has built a grand house to prove his worth.
- Mrs. GourlayHis thin, worn-out wife, who hides in cheap novels and fierce love for her son, and who is scorned for her untidy house.
- John Gourlay the youngerThe nervous, dreamy son who sees too much and understands too little, and who is sent to college to carry the family's hopes.
- Janet GourlayThe quiet, sickly daughter, her father's secret favourite, who watches the family's troubles and says little about her own.
- James WilsonThe mole-catcher's son who comes back from Aberdeen with money and a gift for spotting business chances, and who sets out to beat Gourlay.
- Deacon AllardyceA thin, lisping gossip who stabs with soft words and loves nothing better than seeing the Gourlays humbled.
- Johnny GibsonThe builder known as Cunning Johnny, who smiles over green teeth and plots with Wilson to trap Gourlay.
- The bakerA warm, witty admirer of Burns who defends the weak in Barbie and is one of the few kind voices in the town.
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The House with the Green Shutters
by George Douglas Brown · 1901
As his carts and brown horses pass through Barbie, John Gourlay reads the town's attention as tribute to his pride.
Medium level10–20 hours to readEnglish
Excellent
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In short
What does a proud man do when the whole town is waiting for him to fall? In The House with the Green Shutters, John Gourlay stands at his gate on a summer morning and watches his carts roll down the hill of Barbie.
The House with the Green Shutters at a glance
- Reading time
- About 6 h 5 min4 h 50 min fast, 7 h 10 min slow
- Length
- 86,300 words
- Library level
- Medium longer sentences, everyday words
- First published
- 1901by George Douglas Brown
Reading time at 238 words a minute (fast 300, slow 200). How long the classics take to read · Updated
From the 15-minute summary · Key idea 1
A proud man watches his carts roll down
The story opens on a still summer morning in the Scottish town of Barbie. John Gourlay stands before his new house at the top of the Square and smokes in private pleasure. He is the only carrier in town, a quarry master and a grain and cheese merchant.
He has scolded his men for starting late, but in his heart he is glad, because now all his carts will pass through the town together in a grand parade. Old men come to their doors, and fat Simpson of the Red Lion peeps out. Gourlay once crushed Simpson by carrying goods for nothing until the man had no trade left.
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Which edition is right for me
- 15-minute summary
- The key ideas of the whole book in about 14 minutes. A good first look, or a refresher.
Details
- First published
- 1901
- Language
- English
- Reading time
- 6 h 40 min
- Level
- Medium level
Cite this edition
Brown, George Douglas. The House with the Green Shutters. Library of Alexandria, 2026, libraryofalexandria.com/products/the-house-with-the-green-shutters.
Brown, G. D. (2026). The house with the green shutters. Library of Alexandria. https://libraryofalexandria.com/products/the-house-with-the-green-shutters (Original work published 1901)
Brown, George Douglas. The House with the Green Shutters. Library of Alexandria, 2026. https://libraryofalexandria.com/products/the-house-with-the-green-shutters.
@book{brown2026house,
author = {Brown, George Douglas},
title = {The House with the Green Shutters},
publisher = {Library of Alexandria},
year = {2026},
url = {https://libraryofalexandria.com/products/the-house-with-the-green-shutters},
note = {First published 1901}
}
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What is The House with the Green Shutters about?
It follows John Gourlay, a proud carrier and merchant in the small Scottish town of Barbie, as a clever rival and the town's gossip wear down his business, his family and his son, who is sent to college.
Why is the book called The House with the Green Shutters?
It is the name of Gourlay's grand home on the hill, which he built to show his success. The house stands for his pride, his family and the town's wish to see him fall.
Who is James Wilson in the novel?
Wilson is the son of a mole-catcher who returns to Barbie with money. He opens an Emporium, begins carting goods and uses his shrewd, flattering ways to take trade from Gourlay.
The author
George Douglas Brown
1869–1902 · Scottish novelist
George Douglas Brown was a Scottish novelist born in Ochiltree, Ayrshire, in 1869. He studied at the University of Glasgow and at Oxford. He later lived in London, where he died in 1902. His novel The House with the Green Shutters appeared in 1901 under the name George Douglas.
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