Welcome to Reading Revisited, a place for friends to enjoy some good old-fashioned book chat while revisiting the truth, beauty, and goodness we’ve found in our favorite books.
I've only read The Whistler but I totally agree about this feeling from Ann Patchett! What is it! And being "Harry Potter people" is a great thing to be :)
Thank you for wanting to discuss Ann Patchett! I LOVE her writing but am happy to know I am not the only one who feels off kilter and unsure what to do with my feelings at the end. Her books stay with me. The journey of The Dutch House was fascinating. I saw an interview with Ann Patchett in which she said she was inspired to write that book after thinking about one of her fears: how awful it would be to be a bad step parent! And what that might look like.
Tom Lake is my favorite, I think the parallels between the story of the characters and the play Our Town are masterful! Read Commonwealth next, then Bel Canto. Bel Canto is very different from her other books, very unusual and beautifully written. In Commonwealth , I did not find the characters to be extremely likable but the story was mesmerizing, she writes beautiful truths about the human experience. Read the first line of Commonwealth and you will definitely want to read the rest to see what happens!
Finished Whistler recently I enjoyed it, but compared to other books it fell a little flat for me. Still four stars though!
I am really glad it is not me! I loved everything about Tom Lake until the last page…I just did not believe the character would do that (and have zero regret with all the themes of motherhood and family in the book)….trying to not totally spoil if people haven’t read it! Bel Canto, it has just been too long for me to have deep thoughts. I think I will pick up Commonwealth for my next vacation or break or something!
I know what you mean. And I think that’s part of why her books leave me feeling the way they do, there’s always something that digs at me but gosh her writing is so good. May have to wait a while but will be interested to see what you think about Commonwealth 😃
I've only read The Whistler but I totally agree about this feeling from Ann Patchett! What is it! And being "Harry Potter people" is a great thing to be :)
Okay this is good to know because I want to read The Whistler! But maybe I need to wait a bit…maybe this is a once a year feeling I can deal with!
Thank you for wanting to discuss Ann Patchett! I LOVE her writing but am happy to know I am not the only one who feels off kilter and unsure what to do with my feelings at the end. Her books stay with me. The journey of The Dutch House was fascinating. I saw an interview with Ann Patchett in which she said she was inspired to write that book after thinking about one of her fears: how awful it would be to be a bad step parent! And what that might look like.
Tom Lake is my favorite, I think the parallels between the story of the characters and the play Our Town are masterful! Read Commonwealth next, then Bel Canto. Bel Canto is very different from her other books, very unusual and beautifully written. In Commonwealth , I did not find the characters to be extremely likable but the story was mesmerizing, she writes beautiful truths about the human experience. Read the first line of Commonwealth and you will definitely want to read the rest to see what happens!
Finished Whistler recently I enjoyed it, but compared to other books it fell a little flat for me. Still four stars though!
I also really like Ann’s books of essays.
I am really glad it is not me! I loved everything about Tom Lake until the last page…I just did not believe the character would do that (and have zero regret with all the themes of motherhood and family in the book)….trying to not totally spoil if people haven’t read it! Bel Canto, it has just been too long for me to have deep thoughts. I think I will pick up Commonwealth for my next vacation or break or something!
I know what you mean. And I think that’s part of why her books leave me feeling the way they do, there’s always something that digs at me but gosh her writing is so good. May have to wait a while but will be interested to see what you think about Commonwealth 😃