Ann Patchett
Truth & Beauty

Truth & Beauty

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The publisher calls this "a tender, brutal book about loving a person we cannot save. It is about loyalty, and about being lifted up by the sheer effervescence of someone who knew how to live life to the fullest."

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The Magician’s Assistant

The Magician’s Assistant

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Kirkus Reviews says: "Having produced wonders in two earlier novels, Patchett here conjures up a striking tale of pain and enchantment as an L.A. woman, who lost the love of her life after a few short months of marriage, finds unexpected consolation from her husband's family--a family she never knew he had."

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The Getaway Car

The Getaway Car

Patchett realized she wanted to be a writer about the same time she learned to ride a tricycle. In this mini-memoir, Patchett sketches a path from childhood all the way to the completion of her first novel, The Patron Saint of Liars. Stops along the way include her college years (complete with fabulous teachers), a failed marriage, the Iowa writing program, and a waitressing stint at TGIFriday’s. You’ll come away inspired to sit down at your keyboard and write.

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Bel Canto

Bel Canto

This oddly structured pageturner from Nashvillian Ann Patchett fuses opera and a hostage crisis–and surprisingly, it works. Japanese businessman and opera buff Katsumi Hosokawa is celebrating his birthday in an unnamed South American country, in the company of diplomats, government officials, and businessman. Mr. Hosokawa has no intention of building the factory they're courting him for but he can't resist attending, because the South Americans have secured a performance by legendary soprano Roxanne Coss. The country's president is unable to attend (he's much too interested in what happens on his favorite soap opera on Tuesday nights), and his fixation spares him from being taken hostage when a militant group storms the gathering. Intriguing, highly readable, and loosely based on a true story.

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This Is the Story of a Happy Marriage

This Is the Story of a Happy Marriage

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From the publisher: "Blending literature and memoir, Ann Patchett examines her deepest commitments—to writing, family, friends, dogs, books, and her husband—creating a resonant portrait of a life. Stretching from her childhood to the present day, from a disastrous early marriage to a later happy one, it covers a multitude of topics, including relationships with family and friends, and charts the hard work and joy of writing, and the unexpected thrill of opening a bookstore."

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Taft

Taft

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From the publisher: "Best-selling novelist Ann Patchett's second, 'strikingly original' novel tells the moving story of John Nickel, an ex-jazz musician who wanted nothing more than to be a good father. When his lover takes away his son, he's left only with his Beale Street, Memphis bar. He hires a young waitress named Fay Taft who brings with her a desperate, dangerous brother, Carl. Nickel finds himself consumed with Fay and Carl's dead father—Taft—obssessing over and reconstructing the life of a man he never met. A stunning artistic achievement, Taft confirms Ann Pathcett's standing as one of the most gifted writers of her generation and reminds us of our deepest instincts to protect the people we love."

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Run: A Novel

Run: A Novel

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From the publisher: "As in her bestselling novel Bel Canto, Ann Patchett illustrates the humanity that connects disparate lives, weaving several stories into one surprising and endlessly moving narrative. Suspenseful and stunningly executed, Run is ultimately a novel about secrets, duty, responsibility, and the lengths we will go to protect our children."

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Best Contemporary Women’s Fiction: Six Novels

Best Contemporary Women’s Fiction: Six Novels

Six novels in one volume—including Ann Patchett (The Magician's Assistant), Elizabeth Benedict, Jenna Blum, Molly Gloss, Nicole Mones, and Maggie O'Farrell (The Vanishing Act of Esme Lennox)—a deal.

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The Dutch House: A Novel

The Dutch House: A Novel

I love sibling stories and meaty family sagas, as well as stories told with a reflective, wistful tone. This one delivers on all counts. Cyril Conroy means to surprise his wife with the Dutch House, a grand old mansion outside of Philadelphia. But a symbol of wealth and success for some is a symbol of greed and excess to others—including, crucially, Cyril's wife—and the family falls apart over the purchase. In alternating timelines, we get the whole story, over five decades, from Cyril's son Danny. The audiobook is narrated by Tom Hanks.

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These Precious Days: Essays

These Precious Days: Essays

In this broad essay collection (beloved by booksellers), Ann Patchett reflects on the writing life, significant friendships, bookstore ownership, and taking mushrooms (really!). I had read earlier versions of some pieces before—and maybe you have, too, because we shared them in Links I Love, but I enjoyed both revisiting those and reading her new work. While I adored peeking into Patchett’s writing life, my favorite essays in this collection center not on her authorial pursuits but on complex family relationships. This should come as no surprise to fans of her fiction: Patchett is decidedly gifted when it comes to stories of significant relationships. Flip right to "The Nightstand" and "Two More Things I Want to Say About My Father" for moving pieces on life’s unexpected turns.

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Tom Lake

Tom Lake

This is the novel I didn't know I was longing to read, with its tender familial relationships, Michigan cherry orchard setting, and insider look at summer stock theater. When Lara is nearing sixty and the pandemic is just beginning, her three adult daughters return home for the summer. The girls have long romanticized their mother’s once-upon-a-time romance with a megastar actor, and now, all together again, the girls direct Lara to tell them the whole story from the beginning. She unspools her story slowly, over three long weeks harvesting cherries on the family property. I’m still not sure how I feel about the ending, but this story? Absolutely gorgeous. I can’t wait to read it again. For fans of Rebecca Serle’s One Italian Summer and Anne Enright’s Actress.

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State of Wonder

State of Wonder

This is one of my favorite Patchett novels, and it's been on my mind because of the terrific story about it in Big Magic by Elizabeth Gilbert.

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The Patron Saint of Liars

The Patron Saint of Liars

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This is the strong debut from now-established novelist Patchett. I enjoyed this one, and recommend following it up with her mini-memoir The Getaway Car, where she tells the story of how the novel came to be.

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Commonwealth

Commonwealth

Finally, a new Patchett novel! And one the author says is largely inspired by her own family history. In the early pages, two families fall apart. We spend the rest of the story examining how each of the family members put themselves back together after the break—or, in some cases, didn't. I would have read this just for Franny's storyline, and I would love to hear Patchett talk more about the inspiration for this particular character. A sad story, but a good one—and one you'll NEED to talk with other readers about.

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