THREE DAYS IN JUNE by Anne Tyler is a slim but substantial novel that appealed to me immediately. As soon as I read the first sentence of the synopsis, I just knew that I had to read it:

“𝘈 𝘯𝘦𝘸 𝘈𝘯𝘯𝘦 𝘛𝘺𝘭𝘦𝘳 𝘯𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘭 𝘥𝘦𝘴𝘵𝘪𝘯𝘦𝘥 𝘵𝘰 𝘣𝘦 𝘢𝘯 𝘪𝘯𝘴𝘵𝘢𝘯𝘵 𝘤𝘭𝘢𝘴𝘴𝘪𝘤: 𝘢 𝘴𝘰𝘤𝘪𝘢𝘭𝘭𝘺 𝘢𝘸𝘬𝘸𝘢𝘳𝘥 𝘮𝘰𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳 𝘰𝘧 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘣𝘳𝘪𝘥𝘦 𝘯𝘢𝘷𝘪𝘨𝘢𝘵𝘦𝘴 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘥𝘢𝘺𝘴 𝘣𝘦𝘧𝘰𝘳𝘦 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘢𝘧𝘵𝘦𝘳 𝘩𝘦𝘳 𝘥𝘢𝘶𝘨𝘩𝘵𝘦𝘳’𝘴 𝘸𝘦𝘥𝘥𝘪𝘯𝘨.”

The publisher had me at socially awkward mother. And we all know that a wedding brings oodles of family drama. I was SOLD! I am very happy to report that Tyler most certainly delivered. THREE DAYS IN JUNE has themes of marriage, motherhood, family life, and SO much more.

Tyler’s latest is a slow-moving, character-driven novel that also showcases the supporting characters wonderfully. The protagonist, Gail is the star of the show, but her daughter, Debbie and her ex-husband, Max also get plenty of time to shine. The reader learns all about the family’s past, why Gail and Max’s marriage failed, and Debbie’s hesitation to walk down the aisle. There’s plenty of drama, entertainment, and humor throughout.

If you’re a fan of Elizabeth Strout, and in the mood for a quick and satisfying read, then THREE DAYS IN JUNE is just the book for you. It’s just shy of 180 pages, so you can even read it in a day. This little gem releases on February 11th! Be sure to grab a copy!

I love Anne Tyler's writing. This novel follows Gail for the day before, the day of, and the day after her only daughter's wedding. She is in the midst of a crossroads in her life. Her ex-husband comes to stay with her during the wedding and their friendship builds. This novel is more internally focused on Gail and her feelings about her daughter getting married and what she will do with the rest of her life.

This was a nice quick read. I loved the quirkiness of the main character while also appreciating the way the author conveyed the self doubt as the mother of the bride.

This is my first book by the author. Even though it's a novella the characters are very well developed and there is a lot of depth to the storyline.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for the advanced readers copy.

Gail, mother of Debbie who’s getting married quits her job after being passed over for a promotion. At the wedding, her ex shows up at the house with a cat, and Kenneth is allergic to cat.

Debbie shares an intimate secret with her parents that questions whether the wedding should go on. Gail is already dealing with a lot, especially being passed up, but to deal with her ex and a cat has became a bit too much.

This was my 1st time reading a book by Anne Tyler and I must say I enjoyed it.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the Advance Readers Copy.

This was a short quickie about the 3 days before, during and after Gail's daughter's wedding. It is a a character driven dive into the lives of Gail, her ed husband and her daughter and I found it very quirky and entertaining.

This book is vintage Ann Tyler--warm, sweet, beautifully written, full of characters you care about. A gentle book, it is a quick read, but a wholly enjoyable one. Highly recommend!

I was not familiar with Anne Tyler's work so I was not sure what to expect wtih Three Days in June. The premise drew me in but I was left wanting.

Gail is a divorced mom whose daughter is getting married. The book covers three days: Friday (the day of the dress rehearsal), Saturday (the day of the wedding), and Sunday (the day after the wedding).

Typically I love books about quirky characters. I love stories where the main character really doesn't fit in. But Gail was not likable at all. Yes, I get that she is not comfortable in social situation and very likely is somewhere on the spectrum. But Tyler did not make Gail likable or even enjoyable to read about.

From reading other reviews, I am in the minority with this review which is fine. Not all books are for all people.

I received an ARC of this book from NetGalley and the publisher in exchange for an honest review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

* 5 stars, but I wish I could give more! Publishing 2/11/25.*

‘Three Days in June’ is exactly what it says it is—a story told over the days before, of, and after Gail Baines’ daughter’s wedding. I didn’t realize Anne Tyler was a Pulitzer-winning author until I read the note from the publisher included in my ARC, but it didn’t matter—her talent is obvious from the first page. There is a playfulness in the tone that I was a little wary of at first, but it quickly grew on me. The best way I can describe it is “pleasant”—so pleasant that I was completely bowled over once I realized how CLEVER the writing is. Anne Tyler reveals in a matter of sentences what it takes other writers hundreds of pages to say, but the prose itself is so unassuming that you really have to pay attention to notice all the work it’s doing. It is sly and it is brilliant. I imagine this is Tyler’s signature style and I’m sure her long-time readers are familiar with it, but it was such a treat for me to discover for the first time.

I’m purposely giving as little detail as possible about the story itself, because the true joy of this book, for me, is in the writing and how it’s crafted. But don’t take that to mean that I didn’t get swept up in the plot, because I absolutely did. The protagonist, Gail, takes her time revealing the history between her and her ex-husband, Max, with their daughter’s wedding as the backdrop. It is achingly sweet and sad. At the halfway mark, I was kicking myself for never reading Anne Tyler before—not just because she’s incredible, but because I was so invested in Gail that I wished I had some familiarity with how Tyler tends to end her books. Is she the sad ending type, or worse, the NO ending type? (Needless to say, because I think it’s clear at this point in the review that this book turned me into an Anne Tyler superfan, I needn’t have worried.)

I read for a lot of reasons. I read to quiet my mind, I read to escape, and I read for the love of writing. But I hardly ever find a book that can do all of those things. ‘Three Days in June’ is that rare book.

Huge thanks to NetGalley and Knopf, Pantheon, Vintage, and Anchor for providing an e-ARC in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

I will honestly say when I started reading this book I thought I would not enjoy it at all, the personality of the main character did not appeal to me at all BUT as I got further into the book I absolutely fell in love with the story line and the characters!! The ending was just perfect! Thank you so much to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC copy.

Delightful storyline which is so very relatable as the main character wrestles with life choices; past experiences that have shaped her personality, and decisions that may alter the day-to-day moving forward. Anne Tyler crafts a believable, bittersweet, humor-filled scenario over the course of 3 days that readers will immediately embrace and debate; perfect for book clubs. Thank you to NetGalley for an advanced copy to review.

Clearly a good writer, but this was a tough book for me to get through. It was filled with unlikeable, unrelatable characters and the plot was very stale. First Anne Tyler book, and had high hopes, but was not impressed.

A wonderful story of second chances. The title provides an apt description of the time spent with our heroine as she prepares for her daughter's wedding. Upon first meeting, the narrator seems dejected, flat and lacking; however, appearances in this case are deceiving as the story unfolds showing the depth of character. I very much enjoyed learning about the character's flaws and strengths. Overall, a beautifully told small story.

Three Days in June
Anne Tyler
February 11, 2025

Gail and Max Baines divorced twenty-some years ago. Each were teachers. When he abruptly left he found a job in Delaware teaching. It was a drive to see their daughter, Debbie but together he and Gail worked it out. Now after Debbie has graduated from college and become an attorney, they plan to spend the weekend celebrating her wedding. Although his plans to stay at Debbieś house fell by the wayside as she was gone when he arrived, Gail made the best of it and showed him to the guest bedroom.
This wedding journey gives readers a step by step look at Gail´s struggle of hoping to take on a new job at her school. Her boss felt that hiring someone younger than her 60 years worked out best for all involved. Now her Ex is staying with her. Next would come the job of entertaining and hoping the wedding would come off successful.
Three Days in June will be published by Alfred A. Knopf on February 11, 2025. I was able to read the digital edition of Tyler´s latest novel via NetGalley. It is a marvelous tale of women's fiction. It flows easily and successfully gives us a clear picture of the Baines lives, a very enjoyable read.

This was not one of my favorite books by Anne Tyler. It really wasn’t much of a story and I found all the characters except for Max unlikable. I kept waiting for the story to turn around with a wonderful conclusion, but unfortunately it never did

3.5 stars-Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an ARC of this book, releasing February 11th!

I requested this ARC because I thought I had read Anne Tyler before and liked her work-turns out after looking into it I've definitely never read one of her books before, BUT I did enjoy this one! It's a quick character study (my Kindle ARC didn't have page numbers but I suspect around 150-175 pages total) and her writing was easy to read. I liked Gail, the main character, quite a bit-we get a bit of her ex-husband but most of the characters aren't too fleshed out since it's a short little book. Not sure I loved some of the conclusions characters came to, but overall I enjoyed this one and would definitely recommend if you're looking for a quick. reflective read.

I adore Anne Tyler and her quirky characters. I thought this story was well-written and I liked the structure. It was composed of 3 chapters: the day before the wedding, the day of the wedding, and the day after the wedding, all with flashbacks to fill you in on the back story. I found Gail's insights into herself and her life to be spot on and very relatable, however I didn't really fall in love with any of the characters and found the pacing to be a bit on the slow side for my liking. My favorite aspect of the story was Gail and Max's friendship. It was very sweet and kept me reading.

Thank you Net Galley and the publisher for an ARC of this book for an honest review.
This is my first time reading anything written by Anne Taylor and I have to be honest, this just was not for me. I couldn’t get into the characters . I think if it was a longer book I could be drawn into it . I’m sure she’s a good author since I have heard good things about her.
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5 character stars

Anne Tyler is a master storyteller, there’s no doubt! This short novel perfectly gives us the perfectly fleshed-out character of Gail Baines. The story follows her over three days of her daughter’s wedding.

It starts with a bad day when her career as a school administrator appears to be over. Then, her ex-husband shows up at her house with a cat and states that he must stay with her for the wedding. And she’s not invited to her daughter’s spa day. How much worse can it get?

This story was the perfect length to make me invest in the characters and hope for second chances. It’s matter-of-fact writing that is also perfectly eloquent. Bravo, Anne Tyler!

Three Days in June by Anne Tyler

I enjoyed this novella by Anne Tyler. Gail Baines has spent her life being much more than just functional despite the fact some in her life consider her to be lacking in necessary compassionate social skills. Gail gets a big lesson in this fact at her place of work when she finds an avenue of advancement is closed to her. Employing the very lacking social skills that will keep her from advancing at her job, she just walks out of that job. Why waste another moment there, nothing to talk about, just walk out.

Gail is busy anyway, her daughter is getting married, her ex husband, Max, is staying at her house without being invited, and he brought a foster cat. I had problems with the treatment of a cat in another Anne Tyler book but I decided to give this one a try and and I'm happy to say it's a cat friendly story. In fact, I adore Gail's ex husband, he's a really good guy and he volunteers at a rescue when he's not working at his school job.

Being with Gail and and Max was funny and fun for me. Gail does a lot of reflecting which is triggered by her ex husband, her daughter's relationship with her fiancé, and her daughter's wedding. I could relate to both Gail and Max and I loved the way the story ended.

Thank you to Knopf, Pantheon, Vintage, and Anchor | Knopf and NetGalley for this ARC.