I love the title, cover art, and story idea for French Braid, but the overall book wasn’t for me. I didn’t connect to the characters and at times found myself bored. This book is for people who love stories with generational family drama. I think many people will love this novel but it was just too long for me.

Thank you to Anne Tyler, Knopf Publishing Group, and NetGalley for an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

There is no one who can write a simple family story better than Anne Tyler. No one. She draws the reader in right to the sidelines, where we can watch life unfold in achingly simple language. The very language, the very people we recognize as our own. French Braid is her latest offering and once again she works her magic,
There is no climax to cause us to grip the book and read through the night, yet we can't seem to stop our meandering journey.
Some of the characters are odd, and a little annoying. But we are reminded that there are odd characters in all families and we are reminded that in spite of our differences, a family can overlook the uncomfortable things and in so doing, choose kindness.
I want to wholeheartedly thank NetGalley, Knopf Doubleday publishing, and Anne Tyler for this ARC of French Braid.

A story of the Garrett family told over 60 years. From the 1950's to today. I have never read a book by this author, but definitely have heard of her. Fabulous writer. Loved the character development. A little slow moving, but overall just a great book!

First I must tell you that Anne Tyler Is and always has been my favorite all time out there. I love her books. This is a fabulous book, as always she has the ability to write the best character driven novels. Your characters always being the simple people in life, who somehow and her books become extraordinary. I have read each of her books at least three times. I plan on reading this again and I cannot thank you enough for my advance copy.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for an advance copy of this book in return for an honest review.

We first meet the Garrett family in 1959 when Robin and Mercy take their three children on their first, and only, family vacation. Robin runs the plumbing supply store started by his father-in-law and his wife, Mercy, is an aspiring painter. Their teen-aged daughter, Alice, is the practical one who takes care of the family as Mercy is a bit egocentric at times. Their second daughter, Lily, is love-sick because she has to leave her boyfriend for a week, or at least leave him until she finds someone else. Their son, David, much younger than the girls, has a vivid imagination and is able to amuse himself by creating a rich fantasy life for his toys.

The story then follows the children’s lives through their marriages, children and grandchildren, up to the present time, pandemic and all. There is no plot, or anything memorable about the family. They are an extremely ordinary family, but totally disconnected from each other. They don’t appear to like each other, and can’t even remember each other’s names. A family get-together is an event to be endured. Each conversation between them is a source of tension, yet the analysis of each character barely scratches the surfaces of their feelings toward each other. The story comes up short as it stops right at the unveiling of any true feelings. For instance, Mercy decides to rent a run-down apartment for her art studio. She begins slowly moving her belongings in, but just the things that won’t be missed. She then begins spending her days there, then occasionally sleeping there, until she no longer lives with Robin. Not one of the children or grandchildren ever indicates that they know Robin and Mercy are separated. What does Robin feel about the situation? We know he misses her, but the subject is never a topic of conversation between the two.

At the very end of the book, David becomes sentimental, pondering what families do for each other: hide a few uncomfortable truths and allow for self-deceptions, as well as little kindnesses and little cruelties. It just didn’t seem to fit the reality of the family as portrayed.

Perhaps because Anne Tyler is a Pulitzer Prize-winning author, the book was less than my expectation.

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I really tried to like this book. Unfortunately, I didn't like the characters and was not drawn in by the story. I gave up about two-thirds of the way through. I rarely do not finish a book.
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the advanced review copy.

French Braid is classic Anne Tyler. It is a seemingly simple story about a seemingly ordinary family, but Anne Tyler strips away the layers and lets you inside in a way only she can do. The novel follows the Garrett family through 3 generations beginning with Mercy and Robin, their 3 children and then the grandchildren. At some point in the book you hear a family story through the perspective of each member of the family. The characters are expertly created. You are drawn in to each of their lives and perspectives, and you gain a deeper understanding of the family as a whole. You find yourself wishing that the other members of the family understood each character as you do, but as is usual with families, they are not sharing their actual thoughts and feelings with each other.
In the end, it is a book about family, and how as much as we may think we are separate, we are always connected in some way. Our shared experiences and history keep us bound together forever. It will make you wonder which assumptions you have about your own family members may not in fact be accurate.

This is such a nuanced and insightfully observed book. It follows the multiple generations of the Garrett family, a group of people who share a love for each other, but don’t exactly get along or like each other. Anne Tyler is a magical writer, and as a reader I felt such a sense of understanding with each of the characters. I teared your many times, with many of the small anecdotes pulling at my heartstrings. So many simple observations, small moments, passing comments that would ordinarily go unnoticed in everyday life became crumbs that added to the greater picture of each character. It’s often that so many things were unspoken - family accepted for who they are, life changes not discussed, feelings kept hidden - which was so beautiful and sad once it was revealed that the family understood and chose not to ask.

This is a sort of slice of life book; there’s no driving overall plot, and yet I absolutely loved it. May be wonderful for a beach read but be warned to have a few tissues nearby.

Thank you to NetGalley for providing me with a copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

I have been a huge fan of Anne Tyler's from the very beginning. She takes the mundane and turns it into something magical with every novel. The reason for the title is not revealed until towards the end of the story. It fits perfectly, as one of the characters says that families are like a French braid. Even after you take it out, there are crinkles left behind. How true that is of the life of most families where the past often affects the future in surprising huge ways.
As usual the author uses Baltimore as the primary setting. This time the city changes over the beginning in 1959 until the first year of the Covid pandemic. Sometimes I feel even in this third year of Covid that I am not ready to read accounts that refer to the impact it had on individual people. However, the lockdown and shelter in place plays a pivotal event that brings the book to a satisfying end.
When we first meet the Garret family they are going on their first ever vacation since father Robin always fears to leave his hardware business. The week doesn't turn out as well as planned. One of the daughters wants to spend most of her time with an older boy she meets. David, the youngest is traumatized after his father doesn't realize he has slipped under the water of the lake. The mother Mercy is trying to get the children to do vacation type events with limited success.
As time moves on, the reader sees how the Garrets may be related, but don't relate well to each other. As with many Tyler characters they are flawed, eccentric and quirky. It is hard to find Mercy very likable. As soon as the last child goes to college, she slowly moves into a studio where she can pursue the art she always dreamed of doing. Poor Robin is left wondering what is happening and is more than a little lonely. I was especially upset with Mercy's handling of a pet.
Although David is the one of the three siblings who doesn't come home often once he goes to college and even less after he marries an older woman. Despite all that, he was my favorite. He was able to connect with his step-daughter and his own son of a much deeper level than his parents ever did with their children.
Towards the end when one of the characters adopts a rescue dog during Covid my heart was filled with warmth. They specifically looked for a dog who was grown instead of a puppy. After working as a volunteer with the Humane Society for several years now, I see to0 many families adopt puppies and leave wonderful adult dogs behind.
Anne Tyler always brings new insights to me and I am thrilled that she has continued to write amazing novels for so many years. Thanks to Netgalley and the publishers for giving me the chance to read and review FRENCH BRAID.

Anne Tyler is a gifted storyteller and this book is no exception.

In French Braid, Tyler explores the intricate dynamics of family relationships. There are few fireworks here and no big mysterious twists; the beauty of this book is the slow exploration of character in Tyler's gifted prose.

Not for everyone, but I loved it.

Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for providing me an advance copy of this book to read in exchange for my honest review and opinion. I have read other books by Anne Tyler and have to say I liked them more than this one. I struggled through this book for some reason. I wanted to love it but just 'liked' it. Sort of slow moving and didn't really draw me in. I won't give up on her as she is a fantastic author.

I love Anne Tyler and, accordingly, loved this book, as expected.
I especially loved the book's opening, where two cousins, who aren't even sure they know each other, bump into each other and the family saga begins. The Garrett family and their relationships are all dissected in the brilliant way that the author always manages. She provides such insight into daily activities that would simply go unnoticed and feelings that would be submerged, never to reemerge.
The warmth, the cruelties, the misunderstandings and the love of family permeates this book. Sadness seems to be a large part of this family's relationships and Tyler is brilliant in how she conveys it all. Another wonderful addition to her collection!

In her inimitable style, Anne Tyler takes us on a journey of 60 years in the life of the Garrett family - their marriages, children, relationships, and lives. The book starts in 2010 when Serena and boyfriend, James, are waiting for their train in Philadelphia and she sees a man she thinks might be her cousin. As their take the train back to Maryland, Serena tries to explain her family relationships to James, setting the stage. The story then jumps back to 1959, and so begins the history of the unusual and somewhat dysfunctional family, taking us up to pandemic times.
Ms. Tyler is a master at capturing the American family and she does so again in French Braid. I imagine that most readers will be able to see some aspect of their families within the different generations and history.
Thanks to Netgalley and Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group for the opportunity to read French Braid in exchange for an honest review.

Anne Tyler is a wonderful story teller, but this book felt like a rambling tale of a disjointed family. A family that didn’t seem connected in any way. A family that didn’t share life moments with each other and didn’t seem to know each other at all. It felt undefined and sad by the time I reached the ending, and left me wondering what the true purpose of this story really was.

Not my favorite Anne Tyler read. It wasn't terrible, but it just didn't hit the spot for me. I don't know - I felt like I was reading a really long, kind of boring, account of a family full of people I just didn't really like. I felt like it lacked a solid plot and just sort of plodded along without much direction other than a family that isn't very kind to each other and honestly, doesn't have many redeeming qualities to make me invested in how their story turns out. This was just felt blah compared to other Tyler reads. It does have Anne Tyler's quality writing and there's some good character development - I just didn't find those characters to have much value or to be interesting enough to care about the outcome of their story. 2.5 stars rounded up to 3.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an advance copy in exchange for my honest thoughts.

The Garrett family holds center stage in French Braid. I found parts of the story covering the early years very interesting, but felt less engaged as the years progressed. Tyler nails the family dynamics to perfection in this dysfunctional situation with unique characters that set themselves apart. This is an interesting story that will hold you, it’s just not my favorite of hers.

Anne Tyler continues to bring the everyday family to life, with all its disfunctions and love. The Garretts live in Baltimore. Robin runs the family plumbing store, although the store is in his wife, Mercy’s name and they live in the house Mercy grew up in. Mercy, isn’t the model wife. She’s not a great cook. She would rather be painting. It’s 1959 and Mercy and Robin have two girls. The older girl, Alice, seems to be more a mother figure than Mercy. The younger girl, Lilly, is boy crazy, and flighty. David, the youngest of the three children struggles to find his place in the family. His father loves working with his hands, but David is much more interested in theater and reading. The story follows the family as the children marry and have children of their own. David’s wife, Greta, sums up the family relationship best when she says “That’s how families work. You think you’re free of them, but you’re never really free…this is what families do for each other—hide a few uncomfortable truths, allow a few self-deceptions. Little kindnesses.”

Anne Tyler's French Braid is another novel of "knowing," simple knowing about people, families, personalities, and traits. Her novel is "wise," emphasizing how, even when the identities in the old photographs are no longer known, they still exist. This is a novel of hope and how our lives continue on in generations to come whether we know this or not.

I really enjoyed his! I’ve never read an Anne Tyler novel before, but something about the description of this one intrigued me. I will now be reading more of her books! This novel is about a family who thinks they don’t like each other, but over time you see that they really do. Very sweet and enjoyable. I recommend!
Thank you Netgalley for the e ARC!

4/4.5 stars. Love Anne Tyler. She has a true gift to write a story driven completely by the characters assembled rather than plot. Family is messy and complicated and the Garretts are no exception. Each chapter takes on a new time period - starting with 2010, going back to 1959 and then going forward until 2020. The pandemic chapter was well done. Each chapter could be its own short story - but linked together, the reader finishes the book feeling like they really know this family. So many small moments in this book made me smile.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC. This book is available now - definitely recommend!