Tom Lake is a timely read about family that many people will relate to. I would suggest this to anyone into literary fiction who is looking for something new to read.

Another beautifully written story by a great author. She tells the story of three daughters who want to know about her relationship with a famous actor. It’s told in flashbacks in such a way that I couldn’t put the book down.

Well done, Ms. Patchett!

I enjoy Ann Patchett's books. I always feel a little sad when I finish a good book with characters that feel like friends.

Ann Patchett never disappoints. This is one of the best books I've read in a while, and it was one of the few my entire book club finished.

This is the story of Lara and the importance of past, present, and future in her life. It appears the focus of the story is her early life, her talents for the stage, and what could have been. But ultimately, it is about someone who has no regrets, despite the illusion that she gave up something wonderful, and is truly satisfied with her choices in life.

I did actually listen to the audiobook (although this review is for the print version), read by Meryl Streep. Meryl Streep is so good, I forgot I was listening to Meryl Streep. Now that is talent.

Ann Patchett can do no wrong. The sheer brilliance of this book also lies in the language used, in the quirky dialogues, in the unique monologues, in the word repetitions, even in the extraordinary visual arrangements of words aimed to imprint the meaning of those words into our souls and leave us shivering in their wake. Nothing is accidental and everything is just right.

This is a gentle telling of a relationship that was anything but gentle. Lara Kenison relates the story of her involvement with Peter Duke, a movie star, at a summer stock theatre when they were both young and undiscovered. She is sequestered at her family's cherry orchard in Michigan during the pandemic with her three daughters and her husband when the girls' dad lets news of Lara's earlier relationship slip, and from then on the book moves back and forth between modern (Pandemic) days and the past. As the past catches up with the present in a meandering way, Lara's relationships with her daughters are brought forward even as she relates details of her relationship with Peter Duke in the past.

There's a sense of languor in the telling of the story. Although the family works hard during the days to bring in a crop during a time when help cannot join them, their evenings in isolation allow them to revert to a sort of oral tradition of story telling. Patchett does a terrific job of portraying the Pandemic as both a time of frustration (particularly for the younger characters) and a time of joy (as Lara relishes spending so much time with her daughters).

Characterization is very strong, with the family feeling almost like the reader's own family by the end of the book. There are some scenes which, told in a different way, would be tough to read. But Patchett manages to brush her gentle hand over the words, diminishing the tragedy and allowing the lessons learned to shine.

I listened to this book, and highly recommend the audiobook. I cannot imagine a better reader for this than the actual reader, Meryl Streep. Patchett's world-building shines in Streep's voice.

I loved this book. That is the review. I fell in love with Ann Patchett's Tom Lake because of Meryl Streep's narration. Do yourself a favor and listen to the audio version.

The story is about a mother sharing the story of her youth with her young adult daughters, which doesn't sound exciting but it kept me engaged and wanting to hear the next chapter.

4.5*
Ann Patchett is a treasure. Her writing is effervescent and insightful. She has the ability to take readers inside the world of her characters and live their reality. Though not action packed, she makes the everyday life of her characters riveting and engaging.

Tom Lake is set during the pandemic. Lara and her husband have their three adult daughters staying with them at their cherry orchard. The girls want their mom to tell the full story of her youthful relationship with a famous actor. Lara agrees to recount how she met and fell for Peter Duke. She begins her story with her first acting role in the play Our Town. It launched her budding career as an actress which ultimately led to her living in Michigan and performing for a production company called Tom Lake. Lara was young and full of promise. She found the charming co-star Duke to be very enticing. The story of her romance was memorable and her children are fascinated with all the juicy details.

Just as the daughters are moved by the revelations of things they never knew, readers will also become captivated by the story. We are all part of Lara’s entranced audience, waiting for the next part of the story to unfold.

To read Patchett is to be invited into her fictional landscape that is beautifully brought to life by the narration of the phenomenal Meryl Streep. The writing is effortless yet stunning. This is another impressive title from a gifted writer.

Strong character development and an engaging plot told in a series of flashbacks will keep readers turning the page. Enjoyable read

Such a fun read, really I have no notes. I don't usually enjoy media that references covid (it tends to be jarring/isn't living it enough!?), but I actually very much enjoyed this premise. The storytelling was warm and nostalgic and the family dynamic was giving Little Women a bit. Truly a joy to read; fairly low stakes and yet so compelling.

Ann Patchett writes such beautiful stories! I was hooked from the beginning, as I read this novel of a mother telling her three grown daughters about her own youth, specifically a summer doing stock theater at Tom Lake. The setting of the cherry farm in MI was absolutely gorgeous and peaceful. And the combination of Ann Patchetts beautiful sentences and Meryl Streep's voice doing the narration for the audiobook could not have been more perfect.

Having daughters of my own, I connected with this on a personal level as well, thinking of sharing stories from my past with them someday.
A thoroughly enjoyable read!!

Thank you to Harper and Netgalley for the ebook arc. All opinions are my own.

I absolutely loved this book!! The story gave me Little Women vibes and I adored the characters! This is the story of a woman looking back on her life and sharing her past with her three daughters who are home during the Pandemic. It evoked so much nostalgia and caused me to reminisce about my own first love. Patchett is a genius at creating characters that you feel are friends. I highly recommend this book!

The setting and characters are so beautifully written. It was definitely one ultimate full five stars read for me.

Tom Lake is an absolute gem! It is a lovely, warm slice-of-life novel told by Lara, a former actress and mother of three girls. In the present timeline, Lara and her adult daughters are home on the family cherry tree farm waiting out the days of the 2020 pandemic. Lara is telling the story of her life to her daughters, who knew that once upon a time she had dated mega movie star Duke. The past timeline follows Lara as she seemingly falls into acting on a whim and ends up going to LA and then Michigan for a summer theater run of Our Town.

The novel brings you in right away and seamlessly moves between the timelines, with impatient daughters jumping in to the past story to ask questions and emote about the things they never knew about their mother. It is a coming of age story for both mother and daughters, and it is an awesome reminder that our mothers were once young and unknowable too.

Highly recommended for anyone who likes a family story or for anyone who has ever watched their life head down a path that diverged from their youthful fancies.

Tom Lake finds a family sheltering together on an orchard in Northern Michigan during the pandemic and the grown daughters of the house have questions for their mother who once dated a later Oscar winning actor when they shared the stage at a summer stock festival. It’s a moving story of coming of age and the moment that define us.

Ann Patchett has yet to disappoint. She is a writer who consistently delivers thoughtful and carefully written work. Tom Lake isn't a page turner with an exciting plot but it is still a great novel. This is a reflective work of fiction which uses characters (always fully rendered) to show the way life moves and changes. This includes relationships, career choices, choice of where to live and the effect of parenting on marriage and life. I really enjoyed this.

A compelling story of how we get to where we are. It was a beautifully layered story that allowed the reader to witness the mother showing herself to her daughters but also allowed us into some secrets that she only kept for herself. I love how it centered the complexities of identity. I'm not sure about the ending - still wondering why it landed the way it did. Was it too nice of a finish? Or do sometimes those moments that define us continue as tiny threads through it all?

Lara tells the story of her relationship with the famous actor, Duke, to her three daughters. Emily is the oldest, engaged and hoping to stay on the Michigan cherry farm; Maisie hopes to be a vet, and Nell wants to be an actress. All three are home due to the pandemic, and are engrossed in the story of their mother’s acting background, and the story of how she met their father, Joe. Well written, as Patchett has a way with words, but somehow lacking in the emotional impact I was expecting. A strong start, slow middle, and an interesting bunch of twists in the last part of the book. Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC.

Ann Patchett has done it* again

*written a beautiful novel

Warm, funny, heartbreaking, beautiful, I loved this.

I completely adored this book, Patchett's best. This story reminds us that the quiet and mundane are where we find contentedness and peace. Although a gentle, character-driven novel, there were unexpected reveals throughout that pulled the reader through the disorientation that is summer love.