tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1092941621582901334.post7071945183197198532..comments2023-10-03T01:02:42.892-06:00Comments on Lily Oak Books: Dinner at the Homesick Restaurant by Anne TylerLee-Annehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04270201592696284797noreply@blogger.comBlogger12125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1092941621582901334.post-3916611833024873512014-01-28T15:11:11.781-07:002014-01-28T15:11:11.781-07:00She really does have an amazing way of drawing you...She really does have an amazing way of drawing you in to a story! I can exactly picture every interior scene, every outdoor scene, every exchange as if I had actually been present and part of the event. Her style reminds me of a literary version of what was dubbed The Ash Can School of art in early twentieth-century America. They tried to depict real life with all its grit and dirt to get to the truth of human existence. I think that's what Anne Tyler does. She takes us inside the dysfunctional family and brings it into focus. I suppose we become attached to the characters in all their naked humanity. I think I've grown to appreciate this novel a little more with a bit of distance. I think it's really just the ending that felt wrong. Thanks for your comment, BIP!Lee-Annehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04270201592696284797noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1092941621582901334.post-21770461630966397152014-01-27T17:49:26.135-07:002014-01-27T17:49:26.135-07:00I went through phase in later teens and early twen...I went through phase in later teens and early twenties when I inhaled her novels too, especially the early ones, reading at such a pace that, now, I cannot say what I did and did not read at the time. <i>The Accidental Tourist</i> was a favourite (and the film too) but I can't distinguish between the others. More recently, I've been impressed by the fact that I often think, at the half-way or three-quarters mark in her newer works, "well, nice, but....", and then find myself bereft when I've finished, surprised at how much the story affected me as a reader. Buried In Printhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00808249065026802365noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1092941621582901334.post-44316373364990482002014-01-27T17:15:47.940-07:002014-01-27T17:15:47.940-07:00A.S. Byatt's Possession was a love at first si...A.S. Byatt's Possession was a love at first sight for me, and has remained at the top of my list since I first read it soon after it won the Booker in 1990. I haven't read your other favourites but I do love Atwood, and although Tartt was not familiar to me until all the recent talk about The Goldfinch I feel that she is a writer that will excite me when I read her work. I think I can safely say we share quite similar taste in writing. (For what it's worth, my Top Three would be rounded out with Michael Ondaatje's The English Patient and Elizabeth Gaskell's North and South.)Lee-Annehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04270201592696284797noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1092941621582901334.post-45779273527420824492014-01-27T17:09:26.707-07:002014-01-27T17:09:26.707-07:00It was your post, Angeliki, that prompted me to bu...It was your post, Angeliki, that prompted me to buy Back When We Were Grownups and to revisit Anne Tyler! I loved your description of the marriage and I do look forward to reading it. Perhaps it will be best suited to the sunny days of July when I'm feeling especially upbeat. I highly recommend The Accidental Tourist. I loved the interplay between all the quirky characters, and the very distinct personality types. Lee-Annehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04270201592696284797noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1092941621582901334.post-60419555952711701992014-01-27T16:05:25.426-07:002014-01-27T16:05:25.426-07:00A summer, a few years back, I was obsessed with An...A summer, a few years back, I was obsessed with Anne Tyler and I read lots of her books in quick succession, but I haven't read the accidental tourist or dinner at the homesick restaurant. I'll definitely read the accidental tourist; it sounds very special and I'll keep the dinner at the homesick restaurant for the days I want to read something bleak; I'm actually intrigued by this book now. <br /><br /> Angelikihttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09051958234143058601noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1092941621582901334.post-79302379834369796402014-01-27T08:00:29.424-07:002014-01-27T08:00:29.424-07:00It is a dance! It makes me wonder how we ever find...It is a dance! It makes me wonder how we ever find that "perfect" book, and I have a few, at all. (My very very top favorites in all the world, besides the Bible, are: The Robber Bride by Atwood, Possession by A. S. Byatt, and The Secret History by Tartt. Except the first and last are so grim I'm not sure why they're in my list at all, except for the fine writing and mood created.)Bellezza https://www.blogger.com/profile/18073864187188953633noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1092941621582901334.post-5381922699178142752014-01-26T18:16:03.630-07:002014-01-26T18:16:03.630-07:00I might have wondered as I was reading this if I&#...I might have wondered as I was reading this if I'd missed my "Anne Tyler window" except for the fact that I re-read The Accidental Tourist again last year and loved it more than ever. I am learning how important it is to align my reading to my mood and my psychic aspirations for the most beneficial reading experience. It's like a dance, isn't it? Feeling low - read something cheerful to counterbalance, or read something sad to give a sense of affinity? Sometimes I miss the mark! Lee-Annehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04270201592696284797noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1092941621582901334.post-30057279500696918582014-01-26T18:07:16.963-07:002014-01-26T18:07:16.963-07:00Thank you for visiting and leaving a comment, Ali!...Thank you for visiting and leaving a comment, Ali! I haven't given up on Anne Tyler... I have another of her's on my shelf (Back When We Were Grownups) and I have heard such good things about Breathing Lessons that I'll give her another chance or two. Anyone who could touch me so much with The Accidental Tourist can't be discarded after just one book :)Lee-Annehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04270201592696284797noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1092941621582901334.post-44235207768849873472014-01-26T18:03:28.787-07:002014-01-26T18:03:28.787-07:00Perhaps the reason it bothers me so much is that i...Perhaps the reason it bothers me so much is that it's one of the qualities I most try to avoid myself. "A novel is a mirror!". Thanks for your comment, Brian. Lee-Annehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04270201592696284797noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1092941621582901334.post-8525542653263081722014-01-26T14:06:54.843-07:002014-01-26T14:06:54.843-07:00I, too, loved Anne Tyler in my 20s. I read all of ...I, too, loved Anne Tyler in my 20s. I read all of her work, enjoying each one, and now I can't separate them, what a shame to be at a loss of words after reading your fine post. But, I do like the occasional cautionary tale. It reminds me that we live, sadly, in a very fallen world.Bellezza https://www.blogger.com/profile/18073864187188953633noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1092941621582901334.post-63618546910194696782014-01-26T11:39:28.883-07:002014-01-26T11:39:28.883-07:00It is ages since I read any Anne Tyler - not sure ...It is ages since I read any Anne Tyler - not sure if I read this or not - I feel I must have but reading your reiew possibly not. My favourite of hers was The Amateur marriage and Breathing lessons. Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1092941621582901334.post-52886836503701196502014-01-26T08:27:23.645-07:002014-01-26T08:27:23.645-07:00I too become frustrated when I read about overly p...I too become frustrated when I read about overly passive characters. It is like I want to jump into the story and help them take the initiative :) I do think that these sort of personas are realistic as I know some real folks who are like that.Brian Josephhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15139559400312336791noreply@blogger.com