Mrs. Pamela Evans lives a lonely new widowhood outside of Baltimore, with only a house full of ticking clocks for company. Then she hires eccentric...
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Feb 02, 2012
notgettingenough
rated it: 
Noting the relationship between my goodreads friends and acquaintances, and Anne Tyler makes me wonder. Is Jane Austen some sort of token? We have to like somebody who writes about domesticity, so...
Is that it? Tyler does indeed write about domesticity. Ordinary people living ordinary lives, mostly in their very ordinary houses. She does this fantastically well and I can't really imagine a more important job a writer could have.
But maybe it is despised precisely for being the More...
Is that it? Tyler does indeed write about domesticity. Ordinary people living ordinary lives, mostly in their very ordinary houses. She does this fantastically well and I can't really imagine a more important job a writer could have.
But maybe it is despised precisely for being the More...
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Nov 25, 2011
Giulia
rated it:
Questo libro era da un bel pezzo sul mio comodino. Lo ignoravo. In un periodo in cui avevo solo bisogno di certezze, quello che volevo era che le cose con le quali entravo in contatto fossero l'esatta fotocopia della mia vita, dei miei stati d'animo. Che fossero colme delle mie stesse incertezze. E quindi, quando lo prendevo in mano e ne rileggevo per l'ennesima volta la quarta di copertina, pensavo:"Ma no, questo non mi aiuterà a cavare un ragno dal buco".
Oggi sono felice di More...
Oggi sono felice di More...
Nov 03, 2009
Awallens
rated it:
Mrs. Pamela Evans lives a lonely new widowhood outside of Baltimore, with only a house full of ticking clocks for company. Then she hires eccentric Elizabeth
Abbott as a handyman and both discover that parts don't have to be a perfect match to work.
"Anne Tyler is a magical writer."
LOS ANGELES TIMES
From the Paperback edition.
I had no idea what to think of this book. First I hated it and thought it was boring. it seemed to have no plot, an More...
Abbott as a handyman and both discover that parts don't have to be a perfect match to work.
"Anne Tyler is a magical writer."
LOS ANGELES TIMES
From the Paperback edition.
I had no idea what to think of this book. First I hated it and thought it was boring. it seemed to have no plot, an More...
Jul 29, 2011
Gina
rated it: 
Hmmm. I love Anne Tyler. And there were absolutely sections of this book which were flawlessly written. However--and this is a huge however--there were 3 or 4 chapters which were completely baffling and confusing and even hard to follow. :) Most of the narrative involves Elizabeth--from her perspective and over the course of weeks. But in those 3 or 4 chapters you jump time and perspective. The narrators are drawn from minor, previously barely-mentioned characters--so their suddenly being
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Nov 10, 2009
Amy
rated it:
The story line was interesting and I found it a fast read. It was weird at the end of the book though when Peter comes home for a unexpected visit with his new wife, PJ. I found myself trying to figure out who Peter is and how he relates to Mrs. Emerson as he never played a role in the story until the very end. It was confusing and I couldn't figure out why the author added this part at the end.
I enjoyed the relationship between Mrs Emerson and Elizabeth, and then the romance be More...
I enjoyed the relationship between Mrs Emerson and Elizabeth, and then the romance be More...
Oct 16, 2011
Pf87
rated it:
The sort of sad-yet-pleasant story that women seem to be able to write well. The setting really leaps to life more than expected and the dialogue, while melodramatic and sorta quaint, is fun to read. I appreciate that the young, wanderlust-afflicted protagonist is portrayed as a truly aimless, somewhat empty person and not a Kerouacian zen master experiencing human fulfillment at its most sublime, as might be expected from the era. She says and does unwise things, and pays for them.
May More...
May More...
Dec 28, 2008
Kellie
rated it:
“He thought his mother was like a hunter who set traps and coaxed and baited until the animal was safely caught, and then she forgot she had wanted him and went off to some new project”. Interesting quote from this book. I have read quite a few books by this author. I have loved some of them and disliked others. One thing I am beginning to learn about this author, her character development seems to lean toward dysfunction. Not with just one character but several. This book was about Eliza
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Aug 06, 2011
Veronica
rated it:
What joy - a hitherto undiscovered (by me anyway) Anne Tyler - and just when I had a book token to spend!
This story of a dysfunctional (though rich) family, and the effect on them of being 'taken over' by a new 'handyman' (who is in fact a woman, lives in similar territory to many of her other novels: the way family cultures work and their response to the introduction of a new element. That doesn't make it any less absorbing or memorable. I shall shed a tear on the day when I discover that ther More...
This story of a dysfunctional (though rich) family, and the effect on them of being 'taken over' by a new 'handyman' (who is in fact a woman, lives in similar territory to many of her other novels: the way family cultures work and their response to the introduction of a new element. That doesn't make it any less absorbing or memorable. I shall shed a tear on the day when I discover that ther More...
Mar 31, 2008
Daniel
rated it:
This is one my mom bought for me because I was interested in reading something, whatever it was, that she had liked. After dabbing in a few other books, I finally picked up Clock Winder. The story centers around a matriarch whose children have spread around the country. She is trying to take care of herself and her estate in Baltimore some months after her husband dies (a great character in his own right, even though he never says a line), when Elizabeth happens by and helps move some furnitu
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May 20, 2011
Ardesia
rated it:
Inizialmente io e questa storia non ci siamo proprio capite. Lei procedeva dritta per la sua strada, troppo dritta per i miei gusti, senza darmi indizi, senza farmi arrivare da nessuna parte e senza farmi presagire nessun tipo di stravolgimento. Poi, a un certo punto, ecco il colpo di scena. Improvviso, secco, sconvolgente, senza capo né coda. Nulla a cui aggrapparsi, nessuna spiegazione. Procedendo però si capisce che la polpa del romanzo, di questo modo di raccontare, è riconoscere l'eclatante
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Aug 23, 2009
Swanbender2001
rated it:
An early work of Anne Tyler's; at first I didn't care for it and couldn't commit myself to the book. I caught myself wondering what the point of the story was. It didn't feel as though the author had a firm sense of conveying her point in her development as a writer. However the story grew on me and once I allowed myself to skip over long passages, I started liking the story and getting things out of it. Tyler certainly can write quirky characters.
May 10, 2008
Michelle
rated it:
A nice, quick and easy read to follow Wild Swans. I always enjoy Anne Tyler, and this was no exception. Favorite passage:
"Isn't it amazing how hard people work to raise their children? Human beings are born so helpless, and stay helpless so long. For every grownup you see, you know there must have been at least one person who had the patience to lug them around, and feed them, and walk them nights and keep them out of danger for years and years without a break. Teaching them how More...
"Isn't it amazing how hard people work to raise their children? Human beings are born so helpless, and stay helpless so long. For every grownup you see, you know there must have been at least one person who had the patience to lug them around, and feed them, and walk them nights and keep them out of danger for years and years without a break. Teaching them how More...
Aug 15, 2011
Labmom
rated it:
I am always amazed how Anne Tyler can take basically the same character types and plot - an irritating, real, quirky Baltimore family - and make it new and interesting time and again. Her theme is always how you can take or leave your family but never change them, and it seems new in each book. She is one of my favorite authors and I am even more impressed that this is one of her early books, written when she was very young.
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Jun 09, 2011
Carmen
rated it:
Anne Tyler revisits one of her common themes. A woman is employed by a family to take care of the mother's house. Elizabeth is not like the Emerson family. She doesn't argue, discuss or really take sides. She just gets the job done. But somehow she becomes a wedge between two of the sons until a tragedy happens. Written in the early 70's, it reflects the time so well.
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Jul 16, 2009
Melaniedk
rated it: 
Anne Tylers books are always an interesting journey. This book was very much a journal of a girl named Elizabeth. She had always grown up thinking she broke everything. Then, she finds the Emerson's and turns into the person who fixes everything for them. It's a very insightful book, and very quirkey. I love the realness of Anne Tyler's characters.
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Nov 14, 2010
Margherita Dolcevita
rated it:
Mi ha colpito meno rispetto agli altri della Tyler, forse la lunghezza inusuale, forse i troppi personaggi (7 figli, manco se fossero miei me li ricorderei tutti). Rimane comunque un buon romanzo, vividamente umano ed essenziale, che arriva al punto senza perdersi in troppe parole e scorre bene come solo i romanzi della Tyler sanno fare.
Jan 13, 2009
Sull
rated it: 
This was better than 'Slipping Down Life' but was not excellent. I finished this one, though. Another quirky young girl, but at least this one bonds with a decent (if also quirky) old woman instead of self-destructing. Strong characters in a big old house: a theme AT had explored before and would explore again. . . .
Jan 15, 2012
Bonnie
rated it:
I've really liked a number of Anne Tyler's books (especially "Digging to America" and "Saint Maybe". This book was a real disappointment. I kept waiting for whatever it is that has made the aforementioned books special, but it never appeared. If you want to read one of her books there are quite a few others more worthy of your time.
Dec 28, 2009
Karen
rated it:
I loved this book. I actually started it about a year ago, had to return it to the library before I finished it, and have thought about it ever since. I finally got it again, and read it straight through. It is well written, very interesting, quirky characters that are 3 dimensional. A very good read.
Sep 29, 2011
Debby
rated it:
I thought I'd try one of her earlier books to see if I'd like it better than later books of hers that I've read but just didn't quite "get into". I must be missing some gene for liking Anne Tyler books is all i can say. The writing style, the characters, the plots...don't capture my attention. Oh well...on to something that will. :)
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Jul 04, 2009
Abi
rated it:
Not my favourite Anne Tyler, though I did like the central character and there are some fantastic, classic Anne Tyler scenes - particularly the one with the turkey. I felt it rambled on a bit.
May 27, 2009
Kelly
rated it:
I was disappointed by this book. It didn't ever give me anything to look forward to, and when the book was almost over it switched to the perspective of someone who wasn't in any of the rest of the book, and whom I couldn't have cared less about. It was really hard for me to trod through, and as much as I've liked Anne Tyler in the past, it may be awhile before I read anything by her again.
May 24, 2011
Amygrace
rated it:
A good quick read. Made me write a thank you note to my mom. I wonder how many spouses feel like band
aids to their wives and the family's they marry into.
aids to their wives and the family's they marry into.
Sep 02, 2011
Hilary
rated it:
A satisfying early novel, not quite up there with Breathing Lesson, Saint Maybe, or A Patchwork Planet, but enjoyable nevertheless. Good characterisation, believable dialogue and acute observation of everyday events. Well plotted and structured.
Aug 10, 2011
Debbie
rated it:
No one does quirky family as well as Tyler and this is no exception. My only problem with Tyler is that I have read all her books and have to wait for more.
Aug 06, 2010
Not my favorite by this author but still very enjoyable. She has such a gift for describing the quirky, touching, infuriating details of family life.
Dec 19, 2011
Diane
rated it:
Anne Tyler is one of my favorite authors. I liked this book but not as much as some of her others. The plot jumped around a bit and was hard to follow. I didn't relate to the characters at all probably because the book was written in 1972.
Aug 24, 2010
Stephanie
rated it:
An Anne Tyler book that I hadn't read. Needed something to read quickly between last week and this while I was waiting for Morningjay!
Oct 31, 2010
Toni
rated it:
Not my favorite Anne Tyler but still good. Her writing is magical and her characters come alive.
Sep 10, 2009
Mary Jane
rated it:
Bought this book in a second hand bookstore as I have always enjoyed the author. Anne Tyler did not disappoint me. This 1972 book had the central theme of family and connections within. Some of these characters were eccentric, but many were charming in their oddities.
