A Spool of Blue Thread: A Novel

I've been a fan of Anne Tyler for many, many years. In my opinion, there are few authors who can consistently weave compelling, moving stories about both the seemingly mundane and the more dramatic moments families experience. Apparently Tyler has said that A Spool of Blue Thread, her 20th novel, will be her last. I tried not to let that fact influence my expectations or color my perceptions of the book. Abby Whitshank has known her husband Red for as long as she can remember. They grew up in the same Baltimore suburb, and she can even remember the summer day in 1959 that she fell in love with him. Through the years the couple has lived in the stately old house his father built (a house that at times meant more to him than his entire family), raising four children and having their share of wonderful memories as well as arguments, frustrations, sadness, and struggles. "The disappointments seemed to escape the family's notice, though. That was another of their quirks: they had a talent for pretending that everything was fine." Although their relationship has grown a bit more cantankerous as they have aged, and following Abby's retirement from social work, both she and Red know they would be lost without each other. But after a series of health problems affect the two of them, their younger son Stem (aka Douglas), his wife, and his family move back into the house with Red and Abby, ostensibly to help take care of them, which doesn't sit too well with either of them. It also doesn't please their older son Denny, the one child who has caused the most friction in their lives. Denny, too, moves in to help. A Spool of Blue Thread is the story of the joys, angst, and frustrations that are a part of family dynamics. It's a look at the secrets we keep, the lies we tell, what we say and what we don't, and how there are always people in your family you don't always understand. It's also a bit of a multi-generational love story, as the book not only looks at Abby and Red's relationship both at the start and in the present, but also looks at the relationship of Red's parents, Junior and Linnie Mae. I have always loved Tyler's writing, and her use of language and storytelling is in fine form once again. Her characters are quirky and a little eccentric, but they have a lot of heart, and you really get drawn into their lives. I enjoyed this book a great deal, although it took a while for me to warm up to the section about Junior and Linnie Mae, because I felt that Junior was a fairly unlikeable character, although Tyler gradually unveiled his depth. I wouldn't necessarily count this among Tyler's best, but it's another example of why she is one of the most enduring and celebrated writers of our time. I hope that she changes her mind and shares her talents with the world again, but if not, we have 20 wonderful novels to enjoy again and again. And for that I am truly grateful.

Anne Tyler's 20th novel, A Spool of Blue Thread, is a departure of sorts for her. While it explores the themes of family dysfunction familiar to fans of Tyler's work, she widens the lens in this multi-generational family saga. The Whitshanks seem like a family everyone can admire. Red is a second-generation home builder who owns a construction company. Abby, his wife, is a retired social worker who cannot resist trying to fix everybody with whom she comes into contact. The present-day action in the novel centers on the failing health of Red and Abby, who are in their early 70s. Red suffers a heart attack and is beginning to go deaf. Abby suffers from occasional memory loss and is prone to wandering the neighborhood while her family searches for her. Concerned about the safety of their parents, the siblings rally around them. The loyal son, Stem, who is not a Whitshank by birth, his do-gooder wife, Nora, and their children move in with the Whitshanks. When their rootless and unpredictable son, Denny, shows up to pitch in with his parents' care, it stirs smoldering hostilites in the family. The Whitshanks' spacious, well-appointed home on Bouton Road serves as both a character and a metaphor for this family, in which appearances and myths mask secrets and resentments. Junior, Red's father, built the house to his exacting standards for a wealthy family, the Brills. Through a bit of chicanery, he convinced the Brills to sell the house to him. Like a lot of Tyler's characters, Junior learns that when he attains what he craves, it doesn't make him happy. This is a topic Tyler has explored throughout her body of work--the restlessness that inflicts family members as they sacrifice their ambitions and their individuality in the service of family harmony. In this novel, a catastrophic event is the trigger that Tyler uses to send the narrative back in time. Tyler peels back the layers of the Whitshank family, first by exploring the events that led to the relationship between Red and Abby. There is a beautifully rendered scene in which Red wins Abby's affections away from a rebellious boyfriend. There is a passage about Red's father, Junior, who is entrapped by a precocious 13-year-old girl into a relationship that causes him to flee North Carolina, but eventually brings about their marriage. There is also a quiet battle waged between Junior and his wife over the color of a porch swing he has lovingly restored for her. These types of passages, which date all the way back to the Great Depression, are not typical in Tyler's novel, but there is a comon thread of wishes, aspirations, pretensions, and deceit. In the end Tyler provides a glimmer of hope that Denny might turn his life around, but, like life, the finale is ambiguous. This is what i like about Tyler's endings, a true-to-life quality. Ths is one of the most ambitious and satisfying of Tyler's novels, and that is saying a lot.

I didn't love this book but I liked the writing...a lot. It's a voyeuristic look at a family, today and in the past. From that perspective it was thoughtful although slow moving. Kind of like life. It was a great book club discussion.

As usual for AT, a wonderful read. A fun and touching story about 3 generations of family, starting with today and going backward. Lovely.

I listened to the audiobook of A Spool of Blue Thread and really really enjoyed it. Many of the other reviews mention that the book doesn't really "go" anywhere, theres no real conclusion and that's true. It's a winding tale of several generations of the same family, moving back and forward. Although its not a fast paced book, I really looked forward to the next page and enjoyed every part of it. Its probably an ideal beach book or a curl up by the fire read, just a nice easy read which I would thoroughly recommend.

Another great book by Anne Tyler

Als leidenschaftliche Leserin von Anne Tylers Werken gestehe ich nur ungern ein, dass mich ihr neuster Roman, A Spool of Blue Thread, enttäuscht hat. Es handelt sich dabei um eine Familiengeschichte, die aus mehreren Blickwinkeln erzählt wird und zeitlich Vergangenheit und Gegenwart einbezieht. Der Schwerpunkt liegt auf dem wie immer feinen Skizzieren (Tyler ist da eine Meisterin ihres Faches) der Wesenszüge und Eigenarten der Einzelnen sowie der Beziehungen der Familienmitglieder zueinander. Für mein Empfinden gelingt es ihr diesmal allerdings nicht so gut eine abgerundete Geschichte zu erzählen. Alles wird ein bisschen angeritzt, aber nicht vertieft und die Handlungsstränge werden nur lose verbunden, so dass nicht klar wird, was genau Tyler eigentlich erzählen möchte . Wäre nicht ihr Stil nach wie vor eine Klasse für sich, ich hätte für die insgesamt schwächliche Geschichte nur drei Sterne vergeben.