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A Novel
by Anne Tyler
Book Reviewed by:A new Anne Tyler novel destined to be an instant classic: a socially awkward mother of the bride navigates the days before and after her daughter's wedding.
Gail Baines is having a bad day. To start, she loses her job—or quits, depending on whom you ask. Tomorrow her daughter, Debbie, is getting married, and she hasn't even been invited to the spa day organized by the mother of the groom. Then, Gail's ex-husband, Max, arrives unannounced on her doorstep, carrying a cat, without a place to stay, and without even a suit.
But the true crisis lands when Debbie shares with her parents a secret she has just learned about her husband to be. It will not only throw the wedding into question but also stir up Gail and Max's past.
Told with deep sensitivity and a tart sense of humor, full of the joys and heartbreaks of love and marriage and family life, Three Days in June is a triumph, and gives us the perennially bestselling, Pulitzer Prize–winning writer at the height of her powers.
This story is not a deep or complicated read, but instead a focus on the everyday lives of a family working through an important event. The setting is an ordinary one, but as happens in life, the day to day stuff gets tangled and what begins as ordinary gets complicated with choices large and small (Donna C). Anne Tyler has a magic touch for writing stories. Her ability to make daily life with her characters interesting and meaningful astounds me! She turns the most ordinary occasions into events that are far from mundane (Jennifer B)...continued
Full Review
(600 words)
(Reviewed by First Impressions Reviewers).
In Anne Tyler's Three Days in June, main character Gail Baines must deal with the chaos of her daughter's wedding while facing career disappointment and job loss. As weddings are landmark events in many people's lives and may reflect (or challenge) traditional family values, they can make for rich and meaningful story settings, and provide the impetus for juicy drama. Below, we look at just a few contemporary works that feature weddings in a significant way.
Death of the Author by Nnedi Okorafor
For those getting married, their wedding may be the happiest day of their lives. But with so much emphasis placed on this being the case, weddings are also often a time when others end up feeling excluded and bitter. In Nnedi ...
If you liked Three Days in June, try these:
by Camilla Barnes
Published 2025
An often hilarious, surprisingly moving portrait of a long-married couple, seen through the eyes of their wickedly observant daughter—for fans of A Man Called Ove and The Royal Tenenbaums.
by Elizabeth Strout
Published 2024
From Pulitzer Prize–winning author Elizabeth Strout comes a hopeful, healing novel about new friendships, old loves, and the very human desire to leave a mark on the world.
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