Tom Lake

by Ann Patchett · 2023

In the gentle spring of 2020, Lara’s three adult daughters return to the family orchard in northern Michigan, where cherry‑picking becomes a catalyst for a long‑awaited confession. They press their mother to recount the hidden chapter of her youth—a passionate romance with Peter Duke, a celebrated film star, and the theatrical troupe called Tom Lake that once bound them together. As Lara’s memories unfurl, the sisters confront their own lives, sibling rivalries, and the intricate ties that bind mother and daughters. Patchett weaves a tender meditation on youthful love, the endurance of marriage, and the quiet histories parents carry before their children arrive, offering a hopeful yet elegiac portrait of happiness amid a world in flux.