THREE DAYS IN JUNE highlights how Anne Tyler can adeptly craft a flawed character that we can't help but resonate with and cheer for.

Gail Baines unwittingly finds herself at a crossroads. Did she just resign out of spite the weekend her daughter is getting married? Her ex-husband, in town for the wedding, ends up crashing at her place, with a foster cat in tow.

The scene allows for a natural opportunity to reflect on key moments of her past. With her daughter's marriage about to begin, Gail considers how naively confident it is to go into such a decision blissfully. What broke up Gail's marriage? What is required in order to be happy? What is it to share a life? The pace is meandering but pleasant and I was drawn to the pondering and introspection.

(Thank you to Knopf, Pantheon, Vintage, and Anchor for providing this book for review consideration via NetGalley. All opinions are my own.)

Pub Day for Three Days in June by Anne Tyler! I’ve only read one other Anne Tyler book—Vinegar Girl, which I really enjoyed!—and I was excited to dig into this one. This is a short, quiet, slice-of-life type book. This book follows Gail over, yes, three days in June: the day before her daughter Debbie’s wedding, the day of the wedding, and the day after the wedding. Gail’s ex-husband ends up having to stay with her during these three days, and the reader gets a poignant look back at their marriage, while also charting their current relationship. I really liked Gail as a character; she may lack people skills, as her boss tells her at the start of the book, but her internal narrative was sharp and witty. Pick this book up if you’re looking for something that perfectly blends the melancholy with the hopeful.

Although on the short side, Anne Tyler's latest novel gives the reader a lot to think about as her characters reflect on their own lives over the course of three days surrounding the daughter's wedding. A lot of readers will find something relatable about the characters and their situations. The cat in search of a forever home added some nice touches of humor. Thanks to NetGalley, Knopf and the author for an advance copy to read and review.

Anne Tyler's newest work "Three Days in June" left me with a lot to think about. Following Gail Baines the day before, of, and after her daughter's wedding, while Gail turns interspective about herself and her former marriage. Tyler keeps the book short and funny with very real characters (including their quirks) and very real situations.

Thank you Knopf, Pantheon, Vintage, and Anchor and NetGalley for a copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

At only 156 pages, this was a quick read for me. This is a bittersweet, very engaging book that put me right where the characters were. My fave book by this author is still A Spool of Blue Thread but this is a close second. Thanks to NetGalley for this early copy in exchange for my honest review.

Anne is a new to me author and I enjoyed her story. It was full of humor, self discovery and a bit of family drama. I actually felt really bad for Gail throughout most of the book. She didn’t stand up for herself, was in a bit of a depression and just really needed a friend/hug/someone to see her. I was really mad at her daughter and ex husband…don’t want to give anything away but they were both jerks. lol There were some funny moments, many serious ones and thought provoking…what would you do or how would you act in this situation? A quick and entertaining read. Thank NetGalley for the complimentary copy.

A nice little slice-of-life novella, set over three days in June when Gail Baines' daughter is getting married.

The book kicks off with Gail being effectively fired, before her ex-husband shows up hoping to stay with her... along with the cat he's fostering.

This would make a good book club pick.

I did feel a separation between the reader and Gail that I wished weren't there - but also seemed to be intentional (part of her personality with everyone).

My first Anne Tyler; not my last.

Short heartwarming family tale written beautifully. Divorced parents reunite for the weekend of their daughters wedding. Quirky characters with real life emotions that surround major life changes like marriage, job loss, and infidelity. Thanks to NetGalley and Knopf for an advanced copy in exchange for an unbiased review.

THREE DAYS IN JUNE is an insightful and emotional new novel by Anne Tyler. It tells the story of Gail Baines, a woman navigating the three days before, during and after her daughter, Debbie’s wedding. Gail has been long divorced from her husband and Debbie’s father, Max. She and Debbie are not really close, making her role as mother of the bride especially awkward. On the day before the wedding, Gail is faced with the crushing loss of her job. To make matters worse, Max arrives on her doorstep with his foster cat and no place to stay and she is forced to take him in. The last straw is that Debbie reveals a devastating secret about her fiancé that throws their upcoming marriage into question. As Gail and Max try to help their daughter through this crisis, they are forced to face how their own marriage fell apart. This is a beautiful story of love and family that is told with compassion, sensitivity and humor. It portrays the ups and downs of the lives of ordinary people in a compelling and relatable way. I really enjoyed this heartfelt story and highly recommend it. Thank you to the author, publisher and NetGalley for the chance to read and review an early copy.

I’ve loved Ann Tyler since I read the Accidental Tourist years ago. But for some reason I’ve skipped some of her more recent novels so I grabbed this one as soon as I could. I thoroughly enjoyed this portrayal of love and marriage through the eyes of a divorced woman whose daughter is preparing to marry. I didn’t realize this was really just a short (156 pages) novella. While I enjoyed the characters and their quirky behavior and dialogue, I really wanted more than a novella can deliver. Still recommend this for a quick enjoyable read.

This is the kind of book you read in one sitting. Heavy on character and vibes, light on plot, and absolutely perfect for curling up in any cozy spot. A favorite of Anne Tyler.'s.

Just so Ann Tyler!

A beautifully crafted novel centered around a divorced woman, her ex, and their daughter who’s to be married.
Gail is an assistant principal. Prior to this she’d been a math teacher. She’s just been told the new principal won’t need her. (Gail is not a people person!) This is all very unexpected to Gail because last time she’d heard, she was supposed to be the next incumbent.
Her daughter’s marriage is happening and there’s no time to do anything.
Her ex husband Max was originally staying with their daughter. Unfortunately Max had had to bring an unnamed cat he’s minding for an animal shelter. Apparently the Groom is super allergic to cat dander so that’s how Max and the cat are suddenly shifted to be at Gail’s. There’s some hilarity over the naming of the cat. Pearl, umm…Ruby…Carol?
We are then treated to a look back at Gail’s life, her mistakes, her fears, her hopes, all done in a slightly manic, quirky, self deprecating manner with a strong sense of how did I get ‘here’, wherever ‘here’ might be.
Delightfully rendered with a burst of sunshine heralding a new day!

A Knopf ARC via NetGalley.
Many thanks to the author and publisher.
(Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.)

Anne Tyler's latest, THREE DAYS IN JUNE, is richly textured, full of raw emotions, humor, and complex family dynamics. The story unfolds over three days, each day playing a significant role in the narrative, particularly around a wedding.

About...

Gail Baines is in a bit of a pickle. She's lost her job, her daughter, Debbie, is getting married, and she's not invited to the spa day arranged by the groom's mothers. And when she thought things couldn't get any worse, her ex-husband Max shows up unannounced with a cat. With nowhere else to stay since Max is allergic and has no suit.

Then, when Gail thinks she has a handle on things, her daughter drops a bombshell about the groom. Is the wedding still on, or is it off?

My thoughts...

THREE DAYS IN JUNE is charming, funny, and full of hope. It beautifully captures the complexities of family, the challenges of marriage, the joys and struggles of parenthood, and the messy, unpredictable nature of life.

Anne is a pro at delving into the lives of her characters, making them authentic and alive. Readers will resonate with Gail, a funny heroine who speaks her mind and gets lots of laughs from an ex-husband and her daughter's struggles. With lots of wisdom and insights from a natural-born storyteller.

Told from a socially awkward mother of the bride navigating the days before and after her daughter's wedding.

Recs...

THREE DAYS IN JUNE is for fans of the author and those who enjoy stories by Liane Moriarty, Elizabeth Strout, Fredrik Backman, and Elizabeth Berg.

Thanks to Knopf and NetGalley for a digital advanced review copy in exchange for my honest thoughts.

blog review posted @
JudithDCollins.com
@JudithDCollins | #JDCMustReadBooks
My Rating: 4 Stars
Pub Date: Feb 11, 2025
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Gail Baines quit her job today. She didn't clear her desk or collect her personal belongings. She simply said goodbye to her boss after a brief discussion, walked out the front door, and drove straight home.

It wasn't the ideal way to begin the weekend of her daughter Debbie's wedding. The big day is tomorrow, and the mother of the bride is already foggy about the details.

Gail is surprised when she sees her ex-husband, Max, approaching her front door unannounced. He has no accommodations or proper attire as the father of the bride, but he does have a cat.

When the bride tearfully shares a secret with her parents concerning the groom, it could impact the impending nuptials and begins to put Gail into a bit of a spin...

"Three Days in June" is divided into three 'longish' chapters: Part One: Day of Beauty, Part Two: D-day, Part Three: The Day After. It is narrated in the first-person voice of Gail, allowing readers to learn what makes this main character tick. I found her honesty and frankness refreshing, albeit not for everyone. With Gail, what you see is what you get, and I like that. Not so true with most of the other characters, I'm afraid, but isn't that what makes Family Fiction so gosh darn interesting?

Anne Tyler's first novel "If Morning Ever Comes" wasn't a book for me. I am glad I took a second look at her work with her new novella "Three Days in June". I found the characters to be realistic, diverse, and interesting. Topics that center around family, love, and marriage, with the addition of subtle humor, show a true understanding of family life through the author's writing. What I like most about this story is that it feels like real life.

4.25⭐

Thank you to Knopf and Anne Tyler for the DRC through NetGalley. This is my honest and voluntary review.

Short novel set over three days about family, motherhood, and love. Gail is socially awkward and unprepared when her ex-husband arrives to stay with her for their daughter's wedding. It's a delightful read, fraught with misunderstandings but funny and touching at the same time.

"Gail Baines is having a bad day. To start, she loses her job—or quits, depending on whom you ask. Tomorrow her daughter, Debbie, is getting married, and she hasn’t even been invited to the spa day organized by the mother of the groom. Then, Gail’s ex-husband, Max, arrives unannounced on her doorstep, carrying a cat, without a place to stay, and without even a suit.

But the true crisis lands when Debbie shares with her parents a secret she has just learned about her husband to be. It will not only throw the wedding into question but also stir up Gail and Max’s past."

Thanks to NetGalley and Knopf Pantheon Vintage and Anchor for the free ARC in exchange for my honest review. All opinions expressed herein are my own.

This novel is a quiet reflection of a woman during the three days surrounding her daughter's wedding. Tyler cleverly uses the wedding as a backdrop/framing device for Gail as she navigates her ex husband, Max, staying with her and potentially alarming news that Debbie shares about her husband to be. Gail is very human, being a stubborn, funny, concerned, and thoughtful narrator. Her relationship with Max is refreshing in that the two don't have the typical vitriolic ex spouses with lingering sexual tension that appears in most stories. My only complaint is that the book was over too quickly.
Thank-you to Netgalley and Alfred A. Knopf for an advanced reader copy of this book.

A story that takes place during a wedding weekend sure had a lot going on and it was all good. A quick read with great, quirky characters, and engaging dialogue. I enjoyed this very simple but wonderful story about ordinary and relatable people.

Thank you to Knopf and NetGalley for the review copy.

Gail Barnes’ only child, Debbie, is getting married. The morning of the rehearsal dinner, Marilee, the headmistress at the private girl’s school where Gail has worked as Marilee’s assistant for eleven years, informs Gail that she has chosen someone else as her successor, explaining, “social interactions have never been your strong point.” Infuriated, Gail storms out and drives home to find her affable ex-husband, Max, waiting at her door along with a cat that he is fostering. Max had intended to stay with Debbie for the wedding festivities, but Debbie’s fiancé, Kenneth, is allergic to cats and Max thinks that Gail should adopt this one: “But you love cats!” Max says. “And this one’s accustomed to older women.”

The novel traces the three days surrounding Debbie’s wedding: the day prior to the event when Gail, bruised from being sacked, is also hurt that she had not been consulted about the bride’s Day of Beauty (although Gail concedes that she hadn’t known such thing existed); the wedding where Gail questions whether Debbie should proceed with the nuptials after an indiscretion is disclosed; and the day after the wedding when secrets are revealed that help to explain why Gail is so prickly and, as her mother remarked, lacks “a romantic bone in her body.”

Tyler is a master at depicting ordinary people. The reader immediately understands who Gail is when Tyler describes her home outfitted with TV set so old that it stuck out a good foot and a half in the back and a crocheted afghan to hid the spot on the couch where the upholstery had been worn bare or her refusal to buy a new dress for Debbie’s wedding, because she “didn’t see the point in paying a lot of money for something I’d wear only once.” The novel really shines when it focuses on Gail and Max’s conversations who, long divorced, have an amiable repartee punctuated by the exasperation that befuddles long relationships.

This may not be the best Tyler novel — it is her 25th and several are considered classics — but it is a joy to read about her ordinary people and marriage, divorce, and family in all its modern complexity. Thank you Knopf and Net Galley for an advanced copy of this deeply entertaining depiction and sensitive of family.

Thank you Netgalley for an early copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

This is a very short read (only about 150 pages), so I was able to finish very quickly. It is told in three parts (Day Before Daughter's Wedding, Day of Wedding, Day After Wedding) and it flows well. If it wasn't so short, I probably would've set it down and not come back for it. It wasn't really boring but I didn't feel anything really while reading. The person telling the story had a very monotone thought process that didn't make me fall in love with her or any character for that matter. I have never read a book by Anne Tyler so I didn't know what to expect. This was not bad but it wasn't amazing either. Just ok....

One thing is constant, Anne Tyler has mastered the craft of character building. As long as she writes, I will read.

Now in her 60s, Gail spends the days leading up to and after the wedding of her daughter in deep reflection. She explores past relationships as well as what her future will hold.

Sometimes I need quick, and simple reads with a dash of comfort. Three Days In June was exactly what I was looking for.

Thank you to NetGalley and Knopf for allowing me to read Three Days In June by Anne Tyler.
Publishing: February 11, 2025.