Three Days in June

 

Three Days in June by Anne Tyler

Fiction

2025

Finished on April 6, 2025

Rating: 4.5/5 (Very Good)

Publisher's Blurb:

A warm, witty, and wise instant classic about second chances.

Gail Baines is having a bad day. To start, she loses her job—or quits, depending on whom you ask. Tomorrow her daughter, Debbie, is getting married, and she hasn’t even been invited to the spa day organized by the mother of the groom. Then, Gail’s ex-husband, Max, arrives unannounced on her doorstep. He has no place to stay, no suit for the wedding. Instead he has a cat (never mind that the groom is deathly allergic).

But the true crisis lands when Debbie shares with her parents a secret she has just learned about her own relationship. It will not only throw the wedding into question but also stir up Gail and Max’s past.

Told with deep sensitivity and a tart sense of humor, Three Days in June is a triumphant novel full of the joys and heartbreaks of love and marriage.

Judging by my ratings for previously read works of Anne Tyler's, it's obvious that her books have been hit-or-miss with me. Some I've loved, but there are just as many that I didn't care for very well. When I first read about her new release, my curiosity was piqued simply by looking at the lovely cover art. Had I spotted the book in a store, I'm certain I would have bought it without bothering to read the description or the blurbs on the back cover. There's also something appealing about a slim novel, and Three Days in June is 165 pages in length (although, I'm a stickler for detail and I would say it's 163 pages as the first paragraph begins on page 3, not that anyone asked me.) After reading JoAnn's review followed by Tina's Goodreads update ("Great beginning, I'm hooked!"), I decided to accept Tina's generous offer to send me the book. I'm so glad I did. I loved it! 

Three Days in June turned out to be the perfect book to read on a rainy day while cooped up in our RV. I laughed out loud, exclaiming on several occasions to my husband (who is always so patient with me when I interrupt whatever he's doing to share a humorous line or two) that I was enjoying the book and was grateful for such a relaxing day. 

Gail Baines is somewhat insecure, and yet she reminded me of Olive Kitteridge with her no-filter, tell-it-like-it-is personality.

I wondered why it was that I had so many irritating people in my life.

and

Sometimes when I find out what's on other people's minds I honestly wonder if we all live on totally separate planets. 

and

Someday I’d like to be given credit for all the times I have not said something that I could have said.

Three Days in June is a character-driven novel, which may not appeal to those who require more action. Tyler's trademark examination of family relationships, coupled with entertaining dialogue, make this story sing. It's a keeper and one that I plan to read again! Highly recommend. 

French Braid (4/5)

Noah's Compass (3/5)

A Spool of Blue Thread (2/5)

Back When We Were Grownups (3.5/5) 

A Patchwork Planet (4/5) 

Digging to America (4/5)

Ladder of Years (4/5) 

Earthly Possessions (2/5) 

French Braid

 

French Braid by Anne Tyler

Fiction

2022 Alfred A. Knopf

Finished on December 14, 2023

Rating: 4/5 (Very Good)

Publisher's Blurb:

From the beloved Pulitzer Prize-winning author--a funny, joyful, brilliantly perceptive journey deep into one Baltimore family's foibles, from a boyfriend with a red Chevy in the 1950s up to a longed-for reunion with a grandchild in our pandemic present.

The Garretts take their first and last family vacation in the summer of 1959. They hardly ever leave home, but in some ways they have never been farther apart. Mercy has trouble resisting the siren call of her aspirations to be a painter, which means less time keeping house for her husband, Robin. Their teenage daughters, steady Alice and boy-crazy Lily, could not have less in common. Their youngest, David, is already intent on escaping his family's orbit, for reasons none of them understand. Yet, as these lives advance across decades, the Garretts' influences on one another ripple ineffably but unmistakably through each generation.

Full of heartbreak and hilarity, French Braid is classic Anne Tyler: a stirring, uncannily insightful novel of tremendous warmth and humor that illuminates the kindnesses and cruelties of our daily lives, the impossibility of breaking free from those who love us, and how close--yet how unknowable--every family is to itself.

Anne Tyler's latest novel (I believe it's her twenty-fourth) took me by surprise. If asked, I would admit with a bit of embarrassment that I am not a fan of Tyler's books. She is so popular and everyone I know seems to love her novels, but I've tried several, and have only finished a handful. 

As I began reading French Braid, I recognized Tyler's familiar style of a domestic story peopled with quirky family members. The novel opens in 2010 with a young couple, Serena and James, who are catching a train from Philadelphia to Baltimore. They had been visiting James' parents, and while waiting for the train, Serena spots her cousin, Nicholas. After a brief conversation with Nicholas, the couple boards the train and spends the duration of their trip bickering about their visit.

Jump back to 1959 in the following chapter and we meet Serena's family, specifically her grandparents, who are taking their three children on their first (and last) family vacation. This sudden shift in the timeline took me by surprise, and we don't meet back up with Serena until much later in the book.

The Garretts are an odd bunch, even disregarding Tyler's unusual names such as Mercy and Candle (the latter is actually Kendall, but she couldn't pronounce her name when she was little and Candle stuck). There are also two grandchildren named after their grandfather, Robin. One is referred to as "Robby the Boy," since his cousin was born first and she is Robby the Girl. Oh, and there's even a dog named John! 

It wasn't until I reached the second half of the novel that I began to care about this strange family, and more specifically, the last chapter (set during the lockdown period of the pandemic), which won me over, tugging at my heartstrings, and tempting me to start reading the book again from the beginning. Spanning sixty years, French Braid is a tender and beautifully rendered story about family, warts and all. Highly recommend.

Click on the links below to read my reviews for other Anne Tyler books:

Noah's Compass 3/5 stars

A Spool of Blue Thread 2/5 stars

Back When We Were Grownups 3.5/5 stars

A Patchwork Planet 4/5 stars

Digging to America 4/5 stars

Ladder of Years 4/5 stars

Earthly Possessions 2/5 stars

Looking Back - Back When We Were Grownups

Looking Back... In an effort to transfer my book journal entries over to this blog, I'm going to attempt to post (in chronological order) an entry every Friday. I may or may not add extra commentary to what I jotted down in these journals.

Back When We Were Grownups by Anne Tyler

Fiction

2001 Alfred A. Knopf

Finished in November 2001

Rating: 3.5/5 (Good)

Publisher's Blurb:

"Once upon a time, there was a woman who discovered that she had turned into the wrong person." So Anne Tyler opens this irresistible new novel.

The woman is Rebecca Davitch, a fifty-three-year-old grandmother. Is she an impostor in her own life? she asks herself. Is it indeed her own life? Or is it someone else’s?

On the surface, Beck, as she is known to the Davitch clan, is outgoing, joyous, a natural celebrator. Giving parties is, after all, her vocation—something she slipped into even before finishing college, when Joe Davitch spotted her at an engagement party in his family’s crumbling nineteenth-century Baltimore row house, where giving parties was the family business. What caught his fancy was that she seemed to be having such a wonderful time. Soon this large-spirited older man, a divorcé with three little girls, swept her into his orbit, and before she knew it she was embracing his extended family plus a child of their own, and hosting endless parties in the ornate, high-ceilinged rooms of The Open Arms.

Now, some thirty years later, after presiding over a disastrous family picnic, Rebecca is caught un-awares by the question of who she really is. How she answers it—how she tries to recover her girlhood self, that dignified grownup she had once been—is the story told in this beguiling, funny, and deeply moving novel.

As always with Anne Tyler’s novels, once we enter her world it is hard to leave. But in Back When We Were Grownups she so sharpens our perceptions and awakens so many untapped feelings that we come away not only refreshed and delighted, but also infinitely wiser.

My Original Thoughts (2001):

Typical Tyler! Strange names. NoNO, Poppy, Jeep, Patch, Biddy, and MinFoo. Explores questions of love & loss, of identity and of family. Self-absorbed family!

My Current Thoughts:

Anne Tyler has a huge following, but she's hit-or-miss with me. I have a copy of her new book, French Braid, on my TBR shelf and I hope it falls in the hit category rather than the miss!

Looking Back - A Patchwork Planet

Looking Back... In an effort to transfer my book journal entries over to this blog, I'm going to attempt to post (in chronological order) an entry every Friday. I may or may not add extra commentary to what I jotted down in these journals.

A Patchwork Planet by Anne Tyler

Fiction

1999 Ballantine Books (first published in 1998)

Read in January 2000

Rating: 4/5 (Very Good)

Publisher's Blurb:

In this, her fourteenth novel--and one of her most endearing--Anne Tyler tells the story of a lovable loser who's trying to get his life in order.

Barnaby Gaitlin has been in trouble ever since adolescence. He had this habit of breaking into other people's houses. It wasn't the big loot he was after, like his teenage cohorts. It was just that he liked to read other people's mail, pore over their family photo albums, and appropriate a few of their precious mementos.

But for eleven years now, he's been working steadily for Rent-a-Back, renting his back to old folks and shut-ins who can't move their own porch furniture or bring the Christmas tree down from the attic. At last, his life seems to be on an even keel.

Still, the Gaitlins (of "old" Baltimore) cannot forget the price they paid for buying off Barnaby's former victims. And his ex-wife would just as soon he didn't show up ever to visit their little girl, Opal. Even the nice, steady woman (his guardian angel?) who seems to have designs on him doesn't fully trust him, it develops, when the chips are down, and it looks as though his world may fall apart again.

There is no one like Anne Tyler, with her sharp, funny, tender perceptions about how human beings navigate on a puzzling planet, and she keeps us enthralled from start to finish in this delicious new novel.

My Original Thoughts (2000):

Wonderful story! Eccentric, quirky, memorable characters. I loved the idea of Rent-a-Back. What a great idea for a business. Barnaby is a fun, interesting character.

My Current Thoughts:

I might have to get a copy of this from the library for a re-read. 

Looking Back - Earthly Possessions

Looking Back... In an effort to transfer my book journal entries over to this blog, I'm going to attempt to post (in chronological order) an entry every Friday. I may or may not add extra commentary to what I jotted down in these journals.

Earthly Possessions by Anne Tyler
Fiction
1996 Ballantine Books (first published in 1977)
Read in December 1998
Rating: 2/5 (Fair)

Publisher's Blurb:

Charlotte Emory has always lived a quiet, conventional life in Clarion, Maryland. She lives as simply as possible, and one day decides to simplify everything and leave her husband. Her last trip to the bank throws Charlotte's life into an entirely different direction when a restless young man in a nylon jacket takes her hostage during the robbery--and soon the two are heading south into an unknown future, and a most unexpected fate....

My Original Notes (1998):

Not nearly as good as Ladder of Years, but I did manage to finish it. Odd story. Tyler's characters are definitely unique!

My Current Thoughts:

Huh. Once again, I have no memory of reading this book, let alone what it was about. I wonder if the movie (starring Susan Sarandon) is any good?

Looking Back - Ladder of Years

Looking Back... In an effort to transfer my book journal entries over to this blog, I'm going to attempt to post (in chronological order) an entry every Friday. I may or may not add extra commentary to what I jotted down in these journals.

Ladder of Years by Anne Tyler
Fiction
1997 Ivy Books (first published in 1995)
Finished in December 1998
Rating: 4/5 (Very Good)

Publisher's Blurb:

This entrancing and deeply searching novel will touch a nerve in every reader. Delia Grinstead, 40-year-old mother of three almost-grown children, on a sudden impulse, walks away from her marriage, hitches a ride into the unknown, and settles in a strange new town. But soon after she begins her impersonal, unencumbered new life, fresh responsibilities inevitably accumulate.


My Original Notes (1998):

My first exposure to Tyler. Wonderful story, yet quite different. I like her style of writing. Will read more!

My Current Thoughts:

I'm surprised I don't remember anything about this novel, especially since I enjoyed it so well that I immediately picked up another book by Tyler. I'm very tempted to give it a second reading.

A Spool of Blue Thread

A Spool of Blue Thread by Anne Tyler
Fiction
2015 Random House Audio
Read by Kimberly Farr
Finished on April 25, 2015
Rating: 2/5 (Fair)



Publisher’s Blurb:

From the beloved Pulitzer Prize-winning author—now in the fiftieth year of her remarkable career—a brilliantly observed, joyful and wrenching, funny and true new novel that reveals, as only she can, the very nature of a family's life.

"It was a beautiful, breezy, yellow-and-green afternoon." This is the way Abby Whitshank always begins the story of how she fell in love with Red that day in July 1959. The whole family—their two daughters and two sons, their grandchildren, even their faithful old dog—is on the porch, listening contentedly as Abby tells the tale they have heard so many times before. And yet this gathering is different too: Abby and Red are growing older, and decisions must be made about how best to look after them, and the fate of the house so lovingly built by Red's father. Brimming with the luminous insight, humor, and compassion that are Anne Tyler's hallmarks, this capacious novel takes us across three generations of the Whitshanks, their shared stories and long-held secrets, all the unguarded and richly lived moments that combine to define who and what they are as a family.

Depressing. Dull. Disappointing. 

These are the words I jotted down as soon as I finished A Spool of Blue Thread nearly eight months ago. Unfortunately, I didn't include any other details (and the plot has all but vanished from my memory), so I can't elaborate on my reaction to the novel.

After reading Noah’s Compass (another Anne Tyler novel) in 2010, I wrote:

I'm not sure why I keep reading Anne Tyler. I've yet to fall in love with anything she's written, but every time she writes something new, I feel compelled to give it a try. I've read (and liked) Ladder of Years , A Patchwork Planet , Back When We Were Grownups , The Amateur Marriage , and Digging To America, but I really can't say I loved any one of those.

Final Thoughts:

I think it’s time to admit that I’m simply not a fan of Anne Tyler’s writing.

Noah's Compass

Noah's Compass by Anne Tyler
Fiction
2010 Knopf
Finished on 6/2/10
Rating: 3/5 (so-so)





Product Description

From the incomparable Anne Tyler, a wise, gently humorous, and deeply compassionate novel about a schoolteacher, who has been forced to retire at sixty-one, coming to terms with the final phase of his life.

Liam Pennywell, who set out to be a philosopher and ended up teaching fifth grade, never much liked the job at that run-down private school, so early retirement doesn’t bother him. But he is troubled by his inability to remember anything about the first night that he moved into his new, spare, and efficient condominium on the outskirts of Baltimore. All he knows when he wakes up the next day in the hospital is that his head is sore and bandaged.

His effort to recover the moments of his life that have been stolen from him leads him on an unexpected detour. What he needs is someone who can do the remembering for him. What he gets is—well, something quite different.

We all know a Liam. In fact, there may be a little of Liam in each of us. Which is why Anne Tyler’s lovely novel resonates so deeply.

When Noah's Compass first came out, I read the opening paragraphs and thought it sounded like something I'd enjoy, so when I saw it on the New Release table at my library, I was excited to give it a try.

In the sixty-first year of his life, Liam Pennwell lost his job. It wasn't such a good job, anyhow. He'd been teaching fifth grade in a second-rate private boys' school. Fifth grade wasn't even what he'd been trained for. Teaching wasn't what he'd been trained for. His degree was in philosophy. Oh, don't ask. Things seemed to have taken a downward turn a long, long time ago, and perhaps it was just as well that he had seen the last of St. Dyfrig's dusty, scuffed corridors and those interminable after-school meetings and the reams of niggling paperwork.

In fact, this might be a sign. It could be just the nudge he needed to push him on to the next stage—the final stage, the summing-up stage. The stage where he sat in his rocking chair and reflected on what it all meant, in the end.

Tyler's characters tend to be on the quirky side. Even the names are a bit unusual. (One of Liam's daughter's is called Xanthe and another character is named Eunice.) While likeable, I never felt a connection to any of the characters and I especially had a hard time believing Liam was only 61. My husband is only three years younger than Tyler's main character and yet I never once felt they were contemporaries. Liam came across as an elderly old man, ready to spend his days in a rocking chair—certainly not one to climb on a motorcycle and go out for an afternoon ride when the mood strikes, as my husband often does.

Noah's Compass is a quiet story. A slice of life, one might say. It was an easy, light read, but as I finished, I felt disappointed, hoping for more. I was mildly annoyed that the mystery behind the attack on Liam was never revealed, but I suppose that's life. We don't always get all the answers we are looking for.

I only found a couple of passages to mark, and, coincidentally, Nan noted one of the same in her review! But, unlike me, Nan loved this book. I wonder if I would've enjoyed it more had I listened to the audio rather than reading the printed version?

It had been years since he had had any sort of romantic life. He'd more or less given up on that side of things, it seemed. But now he remembered the significance that a love affair could lend to the most ordinary moments. The simplest activities could take on extra color and intensity. Days had a purpose to them—an element of suspense, even. He missed that.

and

He leaned back against the cushions with a contented sigh. ... Socrates said ... What was it he had said? Something about the fewer his wants, the closer he was to the gods. And Liam really wanted nothing. He had an okay place to live, a good enough job, a book to read, a chicken in the oven. He was solvent, if not rich, and healthy.

Final thoughts: I'm not sure why I keep reading Anne Tyler. I've yet to fall in love with anything she's written, but every time she writes something new, I feel compelled to give it a try. I've read (and liked) Ladder of Years, A Patchwork Planet, Back When We Were Grownups, The Amateur Marriage, and Digging To America, but I really can't say I loved any one of those. And, I still have Morgan's Passing, Dinner at the Homesick Restaurant, Clock Winder, Celestial Navigation, and Breathing Lessons all in my stacks! What's your favorite Anne Tyler book?

Be sure to pop over and read Nan's glowing review here.

Digging To America

Digging To America by Anne Tyler
Contemporary Fiction
Finished on 6/2/06
Rating: A- (8/10 Very good)

I’ve been reading Anne Tyler’s novels on and off for several years, but I hesitate to say I’m a big fan. I enjoyed Ladder of Years, A Patchwork Planet, Back When We Were Grownups, and The Amateur Marriage, but I’d be hard pressed to say that any wowed me enough to think, “I have to buy her next new release!!” I even have to confess that I had to go to Amazon to look up the earlier titles and familiarize myself with the various plots and characters. I’m sure she’d hate to hear this, but I’m forever confusing her with Alice Hoffman.

This particular novel revolves around Jin Ho and Susan, Korean babies adopted by two families, who until “Arrival Day” at the Baltimore airport, were complete strangers. Jin Ho’s new parents are All-American Brad & Bitsy Donaldson and Susan’s are Sami & Ziba Yazdan, a young Iranian couple. Other key characters include Bitsy’s parents (Connie & Dave) and Sami’s widowed mother, Maryam. In spite of exchanging just a few polite words of congratulations, this shared life-altering experience turns what could have been a casual meeting into a close, and long-lasting, friendship as they watch their little babies grow up and become childhood friends.

In alternating chapters, the insecurities and challenges of parenting are gradually revealed through each of the major characters’ points-of-view. It wasn’t until I read Dave’s (Jin Ho’s grandfather) chapter that I began to feel an affinity for any of the characters and their roles as husbands, wives, mothers and fathers. Tyler hits her mark when it comes to understanding (and thus, expressing) the minutiae of the day-to-day process of grieving for a loved one.

Digging To America is a wonderful read and I’m glad my online book group chose it for this summer’s lineup. I zipped through it in just a few short days, in spite of a lackluster beginning. Tyler’s narrative is one of humor and tenderness, particularly in the closing chapters. Her characters have stayed with me, weeks later, in spite of moving on and finishing a couple of new books.