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I didn't love this book as much as I loved State of Wonder. To me, Taft felt more than occasionally like a "contemplating your navel" book. It was beautifully written with well-drawn characters, but... I struggled to really relate to the story. And I certainly didn't love the ending. When I heard Ann Patchett speak, she said a difference between commercial fiction and literary fiction was the reader's experience. With commercial fiction, readers all experience it in basically the same way. Literary fiction, on the other hand, leaves much more to the reader's imagination and leaves the wanting to know more or to construct more. Although I buy that analysis, I find the "wanting more" at the end of Taft was a bit too much. It was a very unsatisfying conclusion. As I complete this review, I find myself changing my rating from 4 stars to 3. Although this book is beautifully written, it just didn't grab me.