A Patchwork Planet, by Anne Tyler (1998)
This novel is narrated by Barnaby Gaitlin, the black sheep of his wealthy family. As a teenager, Barnaby and his friends got their kicks breaking onto other people’s homes. Instead of going for the money and valuable objects, however, Barnaby liked to read people’s diaries and look at photos. His antics eventually got him in trouble, and he was sent to a reform school. His teenage past is told slowly through his memories as he moves forward in his life.
Barnaby works at manual labor at a company called Rent-a-Back. His job mainly involves doing small chores for elderly clients. Although he could work for his family Foundation, he prefers living a quiet life, albeit one with little money or future prospects.
He had a short-lived marriage, and now has a young daughter, who lives with her mother and stepfather. Barnaby visits her once a month. Because she lives in a different town, he must take a train to see her. On one of his train trips, Barnaby meets Sofia Maynard, who is on the train on one of her regular visits to see her disagreeable mother.
When Sofia learns of Barnaby’s job, she arranges for him to do some small tasks for her Aunt Grace. All goes well until Grace accuses Barnaby of stealing her lifesaving, which, because she doesn’t trust banks, she kept hidden in her flour bin. Barnaby claimed he never touched it, but the accusation causes him to reevaluate his life.
I would call this a very quiet novel, but one in which the characters are interesting, and the reader wants to know how they navigate their lives.
Read: October 2, 2021. I first read this book on May 17, 1999.
4 Stars
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