Review: Tom Lake

If ever there was a marriage made in heaven, it is this beautiful book being narrated by Merryl Streep. I have read reviews that called this book boring, complaining that nothing happens in it. Did I read the same book? Because the book I read had so much happening in it. Certainly no car chases, or grisly murders, but it brims with emotions; with joy, and sorrow, and grief and love.

Lara and Joe’s three grown daughters return to the family orchard to pick cherries. Covid has isolated them from the rest of the world, and the girls beg their mother to tell them about her time, on the stage, and her romance with Duke who became a famous film star.

The blurb describes this book as ‘a meditation on youthful love, married love, and the lives parents have led before their children were born.’ Perhaps this book resonates more with older readers, who know what it is to look back at youthful passions with no judgment and gentle kindness.

Lyrical and beautiful, highly recommended.

• Review
• Ann Patchett