What it all comes down to is that there is no real definition of family. Interestingly, it’s a couple of the in-laws who smooth the rough edges and help their spouses understand.
Over time, the family reassembles in haphazard ways. For example, I didn’t like Mercy because I thought she was selfish, but later when I saw how she connected with her granddaughter, Candle, I felt I understood her better. At first, it seems to be only a bunch of unrelated snippets of time, but then you begin to see a connection between generations. The Garretts are frustratingly distant, especially Mercy. I’ve had to think about this book to let it sink in. I don’t want to give more away, so I’ll stop here. Robin and Mercy talk about their empty nest and what they will do together, but Mercy has her own plans, edging bit by bit away from her husband. Next it’s 1970 and David heads off to college. He does not want to learn to swim and grows quiet at the suggestion. Robin heads to the lake and David, just seven years old, seems happy to stay out of the water and play by himself. Mercy spends her time painting, leaving the meals to Alice. Soon we’re back in 1959 when Robin and Mercy take their three children on their only family vacation This first generation of Garretts are all a little detached. He used to be so outgoing when he was a little boy…” She tries to explain why they don’t see that side of the family much. The boyfriend is baffled by Serena’s detached comments, especially after they’d run into a cousin she’d barely recognized at the train station.
She begins with Serena in 2010, returning from Philadelphia with her college boyfriend. Tyler jumps around and readers get to know the family through a variety of situations and points of view. And Mercy is too caught up in her painting to notice.įrench Braid isn’t a chronological story. Robin, for example, adores Mercy, but he’s awkward around her. Many of them have solitary personalities.
Past hurts remain buried, but show themselves in unexpected moments. They’re disjointed and noncommunicative, even when they’re together. Set in Baltimore, Tyler looks at three generations of the Garrett family and asks the question, “What is a normal family?” Because the Garretts seem anything but normal. Despite the time lapse, I’ve found it easy to fall back into the familiar rhythm of Tyler’s writing style.Īs with her other books, French Braid is about marriage and family relationships. I had to wait a long time to get Anne Tyler’s twenty-fourth novel from the library, but it was worth it! Back in the 80s and 90s, I read a lot of her books.
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