A review by rebeccazh
Tom Lake by Ann Patchett

4.0

Narrated by the incredible Meryl Streep, this is a very warm and feel-good read. There are two main stories - one in the past, of the narrator (the mother) during her teen years in the theatre scene, and one in the present, of the mother and her daily life with her three daughters on the orchard. This is a very warm and light and hopeful story; I much preferred the story set in the present. The interactions between mother and daughters were precious; there is love and warmth and I found myself smiling while listening. Meryl Streep's voices of the daughters, especially the eldest, were hilarious.

I found the theatre storyline pretty boring. What makes this novel special to me is that this is not about 'the one that got away' or missed opportunities in life, but how the less glamorous choices were the meaningful ones.