French Braid(79)

12. Is Mercy a merciful person, including being merciful with herself? What do her paintings reveal about the aspects of home, and homemaking, that intrigue her? What was it like to watch her in Manhattan, accompanied by Kendall?

13. When David and Greta describe the crimped “ripples” that keep us from ever being free of our families (this page), what are they saying about the fundamental differences in their upbringing? Is the interwoven nature of family a source of comfort or confinement to you?

14. In the novel’s closing scene, what truths are distilled as we observe David’s fierce love for Benny?

15. How does French Braid enhance the sketches of humanity that emerged in previous books by Anne Tyler that you have read? What new insight does French Braid offer in the wake of the pandemic?

Other Recommended Reading

Margaret Atwood, Cat’s Eye

Rachel Cusk, Arlington Park

Diane Johnson, Lorna Mott Comes Home

Jhumpa Lahiri, Whereabouts

Alice McDermott, At Weddings and Wakes

Maggie Shipstead, Great Circle

Gary Shteyngart, Our Country Friends

Dana Spiotta, Wayward

Elizabeth Strout, Oh William!

Joan Anderson, A Year by the Sea: Thoughts of an Unfinished Woman

Ann Patchett, This Is the Story of a Happy Marriage

Jo Ann Beard, The Boys of My Youth