Noah' s Compass, by Anne Tyler

"In the sixty-first year of his life, Liam Pennywell lost his job." is the first sentence of Noah's Compass. Anne Tyler has always had a knack for capturing me from the start, but I found this hook extraordinarily effective.

Pennywell experiences a second disaster almost right away, and with these events, Tyler introduces us to another of her very human--quirky, selfish, out-of-it--characters, and his family, which is also singular; yet, isn't there some platitude about all families being crazy when viewed up close?

Another terrific read from one of my very favorite authors.

A Spool of Blue Thread, by Anne Tyler

Haven't read anything by Anne Tyler in years. I'm looking forward to this.

And it was not a disappointment. The story of the Whitshank family, with special focus on Abby Whitshank and her son Daniel--though we feel very well acquainted with all other family members by the book's end, both the current and past members--is, in a way, nothing special, and at the same time it is devastatingly extraordinary, particular, and fascinating.

New York Times review.