In a Nutshell Reviews

In a Nutshell Reviews are my version of mini-reviews, because sometimes, you just want the highlights.

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Tom Lake by Ann Patchett
Published by Harper on August 1,2023
Age/Genres: Adult, Fiction

Goodreads

In the spring of 2020, Lara’s three daughters return to the family's orchard in Northern Michigan. While picking cherries, they beg their mother to tell them the story of Peter Duke, a famous actor with whom she shared both a stage and a romance years before at a theater company called Tom Lake. As Lara recalls the past, her daughters examine their own lives and relationship with their mother, and are forced to reconsider the world and everything they thought they knew.

Tom Lake is a meditation on youthful love, married love, and the lives parents have led before their children were born. Both hopeful and elegiac, it explores what it means to be happy even when the world is falling apart. As in all of her novels, Ann Patchett combines compelling narrative artistry with piercing insights into family dynamics. The result is a rich and luminous story, told with profound intelligence and emotional subtlety, that demonstrates once again why she is one of the most revered and acclaimed literary talents working today.

A woman revisits her past when her children return home during the pandemic.

This was my first book by Patchett, and I was quite taken by her storytelling. She beautifully captured life on the farm and the complex family dynamics of the Nelsons. There was also something really special about the ways she wrote Lara's reflection on her past, as well as how and which parts she chose to share.

I think most people would be curious as to why Lara abandoned a burgeoning career as an actress. It seemed as though her star was rising when she left it all, and one would assume Lara lived with these regrets. I was brought through her past in such a way that I honestly believed she was living her best life and had no desire to be a star or be with the man from her past. 

The beauty of it all, was getting the opportunity to see Lara's past and present, and how they compared as the tale was told in dual timelines. The story bounced back and forth with great ease, and I felt the timelines were blended to perfection.

I think everyone benefitted from this sharing of the past. Each of Lara's daughters had parts of their family history undone or learned something that changed their understanding of things they always believed to be true. I also believe that Lara got to see those events through a different lens while reaffirming her feelings about her life, and perhaps, giving her more closure with her past.

For a story I considered to be on the "quiet" side, it packed quite an emotional punch. There were bursts of joy, but also moments that had me shedding tears, while others that made me rage. I found parts that pushed me towards thoughtful introspection and really moved me. Overall, this was a beautifully told story of life and family which captivated me from beginning to end.

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The Connellys of County Down by Tracey Lange
Published by Celadon Books on August 1, 2023
Age/Genres: Adult, Fiction

Goodreads

When Tara Connelly is released from prison after serving eighteen months on a drug charge, she knows rebuilding her life at thirty years old won’t be easy. With no money and no prospects, she returns home to live with her siblings, who are both busy with their own problems. Her brother, a single dad, struggles with the ongoing effects of a brain injury he sustained years ago, and her sister’s fragile facade of calm and order is cracking under the burden of big secrets. Life becomes even more complicated when the cop who put her in prison keeps showing up unannounced, leaving Tara to wonder what he wants from her now.

While she works to build a new career and hold her family together, Tara finds a chance at love in a most unlikely place. But when the Connellys’ secrets start to unravel and threaten her future, they all must face their worst fears and come clean, or risk losing each other forever.

The Connellys of County Down is a moving novel about testing the bounds of love and loyalty. It explores the possibility of beginning our lives anew, and reveals the pitfalls of shielding each other from the bitter truth.

I have now read two books by Lange, and I can attest to how well she explores complicated family ties.

This story began with Tara's homecoming. She finished her prison sentence and was returning to her childhood home where she would live with her sister (Geraldine), brother (Eddie), and nephew (Conor), but many things had changed since she went away.

At no time did I doubt how much love the Connellys had for each other, but they carried so many secrets and so much pain with them. A lot of their pain was a result of difficult childhoods. Their mother passed away when they were fairly young, and their father abandoned the family, but not before getting in a car accident which left Eddie with long term injuries. All of this led to Geraldine losing her childhood as she assumed the role of parent, Eddie experiencing difficulties due to the traumatic brain injury he sustained in the accident, and Tara with trust issues.

They sound like a hot mess, but I couldn't help but want the best for them all. I was especially fond of Tara. I knew it was going to be tough for her when she returned to civilian life with a criminal record, but she was determined. I loved her spirit and was so happy that she had people like Eddie, her PO Doreen, and the cop who put her away, Brian, in her corner. I wanted to hate Brian, but I loved him. He was full of surprises.

This family may have been messy, but they were steadfast in their love and loyalty for each other. They didn't hesitate to standup and protect one another even if it was to their detriment. I really enjoyed exploring this families dynamic and seeing how things would work out for everyone involved.

Favorite family drama?
Let us know in the comments!