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Loading... A Patchwork Planet (1998)by Anne Tyler
   None No current Talk conversations about this book.  Chrissylou62 | Apr 11, 2024 |   With all his getting into trouble, I thought I wouldn't like him but he surprised me. He had a marriage that didn't last and a little girl he didn't understand. Then he meets Sophia who profoundly changes his life. He worked for Rent A Back, a service to help primarily older people. The older customers and his main co-worker, Martine who sparkle in this quirky story. (  ) Carolee888 | Jan 20, 2024 |  ) JRobinW | Jan 20, 2023 | ) talon2claw | Dec 30, 2022 | ) kslade | Dec 8, 2022 |
 Anne Tyler, die 1988 für den Roman "Atemübungen" den Pulitzer-Preis erhielt, beschreibt auch in "Engel gesucht" die kleinen ironischen Wechselfälle des Lebens mit unaufdringlicher Präzision. Den schnoddrigen Ton des jungen Barnaby trifft sie ebenso wie das umständliche oder zögerliche Reden seiner "Nachrichtenkorrespondenten aus dem Land des Alters". Manchmal erscheint die Erzählweise fast zu zurückhaltend, zu still. Doch - vielleicht - macht gerade das den Reiz des Buches aus. Belongs to Publisher SeriesOtavan kirjasto (132) AwardsDistinctionsNotable Lists
In this, her fourteenth novel--and one of her most endearing--Anne Tyler tells the story of a lovable loser who's trying to get his life in order. Barnaby Gaitlin has been in trouble ever since adolescence. He had this habit of breaking into other people's houses. It wasn't the big loot he was after, like his teenage cohorts. It was just that he liked to read other people's mail, pore over their family photo albums, and appropriate a few of their precious mementos. But for eleven years now, he's been working steadily for Rent-a-Back, renting his back to old folks and shut-ins who can't move their own porch furniture or bring the Christmas tree down from the attic. At last, his life seems to be on an even keel. Still, the Gaitlins (of "old" Baltimore) cannot forget the price they paid for buying off Barnaby's former victims. And his ex-wife would just as soon he didn't show up ever to visit their little girl, Opal. Even the nice, steady woman (his guardian angel?) who seems to have designs on him doesn't fully trust him, it develops, when the chips are down, and it looks as though his world may fall apart again. There is no one like Anne Tyler, with her sharp, funny, tender perceptions about how human beings navigate on a puzzling planet, and she keeps us enthralled from start to finish in this delicious new novel. No library descriptions found. |
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 Google Books — Loading...GenresMelvil Decimal System (DDC)813.54Literature English (North America) American fiction 20th Century 1945-1999LC ClassificationRatingAverage: (3.73)
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Wikipedia in English (1)
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I have read many of Anne Tyler's books. There was only one I didn't care for, and I plan to reread it. I truly believe it just the right book at that time.
This book was the right book at the right time...I just finished "The Making of the Atomic Bomb" which was dense and verbose and also gave me nightmares.
I picked up this book for a "palate cleanse". As I read it, I saw that the light, nonformal prose held deep messages that I couldn't stop thinking about and stayed with me....
Some questions that relate to this book...how long must we try to atone for past misdeeds? What is meaningful work? Who should we look to for inspiration? Are possessions more important than relationships?
Barnaby, a privileged wild -child, tries to atone for past misdeeds, seeking his "angel" who will inspire and direct him. (