4.5 stars

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an ARC of the soon-to-be published (Feb 11, 2025) novel by one of my great favourites, whose every new book I’ve been reading now for—what?—40 years? (Yikes!)

As we know to expect from Anne Tyler, this is set in Baltimore and peopled by hapless, imperfect people in the throes of some kind of family crisis. Enter 61-year-old Gail Baines, who lacks people skills, according to the boss who suggests she’d be better suited to another line of work. (She’s assistant headmistress at a private school.) This comes as a shock to Gail, who’d been counting on taking over as headmistress upon her boss’ imminent retirement—and what the heck? She’s maybe blunt, but only straightforward, surely? Where does this “lack of people skills” thing come from, right out of left field? And that’s how Gail’s Friday begins, as she flounces away from her job and home to find her ex-husband on her doorstep, with an elderly foster cat in tow, expecting to be put up for the weekend, as he’s from out of town and their daughter is getting married the next day. Then we’re soon enmeshed in all the drama of the wedding, with serious last-minute tension between the bride-and-groom-to-be and Gail and ex-husband re-encountering all the things that they liked—and did not—about each other and their relationship. But wait! Are there still embers there? You’re definitely not going to hear that from me! You’ll have to read this thoroughly warm, wise and delightful book for yourself to see how this wedding weekend unfolds for all involved.

This is the first Anne Tyler novel that I've read, but I'll be on the lookout for more. Her characters are so real that reading this story feels like talking to your next door neighbor. It's a short novel and all the events take place over three days, but Tyler has managed to pack in an entire lifetime into it so seamlessly and with such charm that it's like slipping into a warm bubble bath. No one in this story is exceptional, not even the adopted cat -- but that's part of what makes the story exceptional.

I received a copy of this novel from the publisher via NetGalley.

Gail hosts her ex-husband Max for a few days around their daughter's wedding, although this is put in doubt by a revelation about the groom. I liked Gail and Max and the story of their marriage was poignant, although amidst the excellent characterization and dry humour, there was a lot that was mundane detail of every day life.

In some ways this felt like a really long short story.

This is the story of Gail Baines during the weekend of her daughter Debbie's wedding. It starts off with her quitting her job after being passed over for a promotion. She's also feeling a little left out of the wedding plans. Then her ex shows up at her house as an uninvited houseguest, with a foster cat, no less. Then Debbie shares an intimate detail with her parents that questions whether the wedding should go forward as planned.

This is a short book but as you can tell from the synopsis Tyler packs a lot into it. Gail has a lot to deal with over these three days in June. I love the way Tyler writes about ordinary life. I felt like I was reading about a friend telling me her deepest thoughts and concerns. How the author developed so much of a story into so few pages and did it with such skill is beyond me.

I think any reader especially those of a certain age can relate to Gail and as usual, Tyler writes a wonderful story about a family and one woman's place in it. Gail's expectations of the family and the family's expectations of each other. How can you not love an Anne Tyler book? It's filled with humour, sensitivity and love. It's about the ups and downs of life and how everything can still turn out okay even in the downs. All. The. Stars.

As I get older I find myself mesmerized by portrayals of older women in fiction. I love when they reach a stage in life where it's time to reassess, refocus and take stock of your life and the people who - by choice or by chance - are your people.

Like a giant ball of fluffy wool, this absolutely delightful read will tangle you up completely, so sweetly snug you will want to stay more than a while.

Written to take place over a three-day period, this book is narrated in the first-person voice of Gail Baines, a sixty-one year old character you will swear you know. The aloof lady next door, the practical, rational, nit-picky, highly hard-to-please neighbor or acquaintance (very rarely a “friend”), Gail is divorced from lovable, messy Max and together they are facing the wedding day of their only child - the beautiful, but emotionally opaque, Debbie.

Part Olive Kitteridge, part Elizabeth Zott, Gail is maybe on the spectrum, or at the very least, admittedly non-adept socially. A wonderful, repressed, vulnerable, deeply-loved woman, who is capable of so much more — now if only Gail could discover that for herself.

As Debbie’s wedding rehearsal and celebration unfolds, quipped continuously by Gail’s hilariously-shrewd mother, Joyce, (and including a messy fidelity crisis, an employment fiasco, a newly-available haughty foster-cat, and necessitating, throughout it all, a lengthy home-visit from Max) — all the associated emotions coalesce into a perfect storm, and Gail’s world is, not unexpectedly, turned completely upside-down.

Just where it will lead, the reader can only imagine. And getting there, of course, is all the fun!

A great big thank you to #Netgalley, the consistently wonderful author, #AnneTyler, and the publisher, for an ARC of this book. All thoughts presented are my own.

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