i love anne tyler books. i find them moving, sometimes very sad sometimes funny but always thoughtful and engaging. i cannot say this for her last one; i was very eager to read it and i was prepared to enjoy it but i found it slim in plot, in ideas, generally i thought that it might be better as a short story. the main character did not convince me; the character of the girlfriend convinced me even less. people in the book had the 'outsider' traits of an anne tyler novel, odd people, unsual jobs, loners, etc but they were somehow without substance and conviction, it was a book where the reader was following a familiar path but was not engaged. did other people feel the same? i wonder ( )

A simple, but charming tale. Not a lot happens in this story, but it is a thoughtful description of a man entering old age and downsizing his life in general. Like many of us....his life has been varied and interesting, with no high drama, but a feeling of contentment and acceptance envelops him at the end of the story. Those looking for pace and excitement will not appreciate this novel, but it is worth a read for it's human interest alone. ( )

I have read several of Anne Tyler's book and enjoyed them and I enjoyed this one too. This is not a dramatic story where a lot happens but it is well written with believable characaters. The main character is Noah, a 60 year old, who has just lost his job as a teacher of classics. He feels he needs to simplify his life so moves into a smaller flat. On his first night there he is attacked and wakes up in hospital with no memory of what has happened to him and this troubles him, although his family are most unsympathetic and cannot understand why he needs to know. He feels he has lost control of his life. He sets out to try and regain the memory of that lost time and on the way meets and seeks the help of an unusual woman , Eunice, who has secrets of her own. Liam has been widowed, remarried and divorced, and through the pages of the book we meet all his family, his ex wife Barbara, his sister, and his children. There is Kitty who is sent to stay with him to keep and eye on him, Louise a born again Christian with her son Jonah, and his oldest Xanthe, the child of his first marriage. I thought the character and life of Noah was particularly well drawn. I felt a sense of sadness for him for the life he had had thus far, but Liam himself seemd almost content at the end of the book..... He had an okay place to live and a good enough job....he could almost convince himself he had not been wounded at all. Worth a read. ( )

Now, I am a huge Anne Tyler fan. She is without a shadow of a doubt my favourite author so I was overjoyed at her writing another book. Shes one of a very few authors that i buy in hardback....

I read it quite quickly but I'm just not sure that I engaged with it, which is not an experience I have really had with her books, apart from 'Dinner at the homesick restaurant' that I couldn't get into at all for some reason.

Liam is made redundant from his job as a teacher and moves into a new apartment. The first night he is there he is attacked by an intruder and wakes up in hospital. The rest of the book examines memory, loss, growing older and broken families.

Very little happens but I dont think that's the problem as that can be a common theme in Tyler's work. Part of it might be that the secondary characters are not very well drawn, or at least I didn't really like any of them. Perhaps Liam himself is not strong enough as a character.

I can't quite believe I am going to say I was disappointed but (hidding behind my hand) I think I was...

If you're new to Anne Tyler dont start here, many many other wonderful books to choose from. ( )