I was surprised to spot a novella-length book by Anne Tyler on NetGalley. It seemed like a new departure for her or perhaps I’ve missed a previous piece of her short fiction. Three Days in June follows Gail whose daughter is about to be married, beginning with the wedding rehearsal day.
Boundaries; that was his problem. He lacked boundaries.
I myself was all about boundaries.
Gail hasn’t been much involved in the wedding preparations. Debby’s prospective mother-in-law is much better set up to arrange a day spent in the beauty parlour than Gail who’s been cutting her own hair for decades and is resurrecting an old outfit for the big day. Her three days have already started badly, summoned to her bosses’ office for news which sees her walking out of her job. It’s true, Gail’s ‘people skills’ are not her best feature, but she knows she’s good at what she does. Then her ex-husband turns up unexpectedly, complete with a foster cat, needing a place to stay. The cat settles in happily, but things are more awkward between Gail and Max. When Debby drops a bombshell, Gail immediately switches into fretting mode while Max takes a more considered stance. Over the next few days, a revelation is made that throws a very different light on their marriage and its breakup. Gail comes to understand that compromise and forgiveness are more important than being in the right, and that her daughter is perhaps more mature than she is.
Anger feels so much better than better than sadness. Cleaner, somehow, and more definite. But then when the anger fades, the sadness comes right back again the same as ever.
Tyler unfolds this short novel about marriage, love and relationships through Gail’s voice with characteristic insight, empathy and a pleasing humour. Obdurate, irascible and emotionally buttoned-up, Gail reminded me very much of Elizabeth Strout’s Olive Kitteridge, my favourite Strout character. Thrust into unexpected domestic intimacy with Max, she finds herself reassessing her part in the breakup of their marriage, gaining a better understanding of herself in the process, while he emerges as far from the inept character who walked through Gail’s door with a cat-carrier. It’s a simple, straightforward narrative handled with Tyler’s consummate skill, honed over many decades. The novella length suits her well. I enjoyed this one more than some of her previous novels, and the ending left me quite tearful.
Chatto & Windus London 9781784745752 192 pages Hardback (read via NetGalley)
