After 50 years, Anne Tyler still going strong with 20th novel

“A Spool of Blue Thread” (Alfred A. Knopf), by Anne Tyler

Anne Tyler published her first novel in 1964, and some 50 years later she is still going strong. “A Spool of Blue Thread,” her 20th novel, is a miracle of sorts, a tender, touching and funny story about three generations of an ordinary American family who are, of course, anything but.

At the center of the novel are Abby and Red Whitshank and their four adult children. Abby was a stay-at-home-mom turned social worker, Red a building contractor. They still live in the spacious, old-fashioned house with tall sash windows, a full-length porch and flagstone walk that Red’s father painstakingly built by himself in a shady neighborhood of Baltimore.

The story takes place in the recent past: Abby and Red are in their 70s, and Abby has begun “disappearing,” both physically and mentally, while Red, who is hard of hearing, struggles to recover from a heart attack. For the first time their beloved house is starting to show signs of neglect, and Denny, the third-born and now in his late 30s, is still frustratingly adrift.

Denny’s estrangement from his family is one of the domestic mysteries that animates the novel. A problem child who grew into a troubled adult, he picks up and discards identities like a restless kid in a Halloween shop. Even he is at a loss to understand the source of his misery.

Might it have been the arrival of the Whitshanks’ last child, nicknamed Stem, when Denny was just 4, which triggered feelings of hostility that grew only larger when Stem ended up taking over their dad’s business? Then again, sometimes the Whitshanks’ clannish ways just drive Denny nuts.

Abby, a 1960s-style earth mother who feels compelled to look after society’s misfits and orphans, is the novel’s most commanding presence, even with her cognitive impairment. Tyler’s depiction of the thought processes of an elderly demented person — “a gear sort of slips in your head,” Abby thinks — is poetic and deeply moving.

Early on in this novel, the affable, folksy narrator informs us that “there was nothing remarkable about the Whitshanks” — none was famous or exceptionally beautiful or intelligent — but “like most families, they imagined they were special.”

Tyler’s accomplishment in this understated masterpiece is to convince us not only that the Whitshanks are remarkable but also that every family — no matter how seemingly ordinary — is in its own way special.

Ann Levin, Associated Press

Talk to us

> Give us your news tips.

> Send us a letter to the editor.

> More Herald contact information.

More in Life

Brandon Hailey of Cytrus, center, plays the saxophone during a headlining show at Madam Lou’s on Friday, Dec. 29, 2023 in Seattle, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
Lynnwood-based funk octet Cytrus has the juice

Resilience and brotherhood take center stage with ‘friends-first’ band.

FILE - In this April 11, 2014 file photo, Neko Case performs at the Coachella Music and Arts Festival in Indio, Calif. Fire investigators are looking for the cause of a fire on Monday, Sept. 18, 2017, that heavily damaged Case’s 225-year-old Vermont home. There were no injuries, though a barn was destroyed. It took firefighters two hours to extinguish the blaze. (Photo by Scott Roth/Invision/AP, File)
Music, theater and more: What’s happening in Snohomish County

Singer-songwriter Neko Case, an indie music icon from Tacoma, performs Sunday in Edmonds.

Dominic Arizona Bonuccelli
Tangier’s market boasts piles of fruits, veggies, and olives, countless varieties of bread, and nonperishables, like clothing and electronics.
Rick Steves on the cultural kaleidoscope of Tangier in Morocco

Walking through the city, I think to myself, “How could anyone be in southern Spain — so close — and not hop over to experience this wonderland?”

chris elliott.
Vrbo promised to cover her rental bill in Hawaii, so why won’t it?

When Cheryl Mander’s Vrbo rental in Hawaii is uninhabitable, the rental platform agrees to cover her new accommodations. But then it backs out. What happened?

The Moonlight Swing Orchestra will play classic sounds of the Big Band Era on April 21 in Everett. (submitted photo)
Music, theater and more: What’s happening in Snohomish County

Relive the Big Band Era at the Port Gardner Music Society’s final concert of the season in Everett.

2024 Honda Ridgeline TrailSport AWD (Honda)
2024 Honda Ridgeline TrailSport AWD

Honda cedes big boy pickup trucks to the likes of Ford, Dodge… Continue reading

Would you want to give something as elaborate as this a name as mundane as “bread box”? A French Provincial piece practically demands the French name panetiere.
A panetiere isn’t your modern bread box. It’s a treasure of French culture

This elaborately carved French antique may be old, but it’s still capable of keeping its leavened contents perfectly fresh.

(Judy Newton / Great Plant Picks)
Great Plant Pick: Mouse plant

What: Arisarum proboscideum, also known as mouse plant, is an herbaceous woodland… Continue reading

Bright green Japanese maple leaves are illuminated by spring sunlight. (Getty Images)
Confessions of a ‘plantophile’: I’m a bit of a junky for Japanese maples

In fact, my addiction to these glorious, all-season specimens seems to be contagious. Fortunately, there’s no known cure.

2024 Hyundai IONIQ 6 Limited (Hyundai)
2024 Hyundai IONIQ 6 Limited

The 2024 Hyundai IONIQ 6 Limited is a sporty, all-electric, all-wheel drive sedan that will quickly win your heart.

The 2024 Dodge Hornet R/T hybrid’s face has the twin red lines signifying the brand’s focus on performance. (Dodge)
2024 Hornet R/T is first electrified performance vehicle from Dodge

The all-new compact SUV travels 32 miles on pure electric power, and up to 360 miles in hybrid mode.

Don’t blow a bundle on glass supposedly made by the Henry William Stiegel

Why? Faked signatures, reused molds and imitated styles can make it unclear who actually made any given piece of glass.

Support local journalism

If you value local news, make a gift now to support the trusted journalism you get in The Daily Herald. Donations processed in this system are not tax deductible.