What a perfect short novel! Anne Tyler has a way of writing about ordinary people in an extraordinary way. I loved this story about a divorced mother of the bride in the 3 days surrounding her daughter’s wedding. Highly recommend! Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC.

Anne Tyler is able to make the ordinary extraordinary. This happens again in Three Days in June, which focuses on three days in Gail Baines’ life.

Gail is told she lacks people skills and encouraged to move on from her job. What’s next for her?

Gail’s ex-husband, Max, has to stay at her house ahead of their daughter Debbie’s wedding. He comes with a cat. Will Gail keep it?

Debbie learns a secret about her fiancé and needs to make a tough decision. Does the wedding happen?

These are just a few of the plot points. Along the way, you begin to identify with the characters and their idiosyncrasies. Don’t miss Tyler’s latest, character-driven book. Many thanks to NetGalley and Penguin Random House for the eARC.

A Slow & Thoughtful Story
As soon as I started reading this book, I felt like I had reconnected with an old friend who I was comfortable with. In this case, Anne Tyler is the old friend. There's such a feeling in her books & it was very much here in Three Days In June. Each person in this short novel have their quirks, their history, their short comings. I felt that even though several of these people could be viewed as difficult or odd, there was no judgement & over the course of the story we find out more of their back stories. I loved that there seemed to be empathy, even though at times it was slow to show itself. This was a true Anne Tyler story & I thoroughly enjoyed it!

This was a very short book compared to others I've read in the genre. As such, I felt we lost some character depth and often had to take the narrator's word for things we would've learned more organically in a longer text.

That said, I thought this was a sweet story. It's billed as literary or women's fiction but has a little bit of a second-chance romance vibe to it. My favorite scenes were between the main character, Gail, and her ex-husband, Max. Max is kind of hapless, but ultimately a good guy with a big heart. I feel we get to know Gail through her interactions with and memories of Max more than anything. He also adds a thread of humor that buoys the whole story.

The wedding of Max and Gail's only child provides context for their reunion, such as it is. Max shows up on the doorstep (with a rescued cat!) and an exasperated Gail accommodates him to keep the peace on her daughter's wedding weekend.

I struggled with the wedding. Gail, mother of the bride, is almost completely uninvolved. There's no clear rift between mom and daughter, they just don't seem close. But even so, I found it weird Gail would seem so excluded. It's possible her daughter is just way to taken with her husband-to-be's family of snooty jerks. It happens. However, the wedding -- and the secrets and crises revealed in its leadup -- ended up feeling too much like a device to reveal things about Gail and serve her story. The wedding of one's only child feels a little heavy to be used this way. Weddings are so full of social norms and expectations, it was harder to take the author/narrator at her word than it would've been for another uniting event.

That said, I always appreciate an offbeat, socially awkward female main character, which Gail is. She so often just doesn't get it. In some ways Max is the more emotionally perceptive of the two of them. I related to her feelings of being an outsider even among her own family and not knowing quite how to show up the way she wants to. I just wanted to see more to back up the relationship we see between her and her daughter on the all-important wedding weekend. It's possible the shorter format wasn't the right fit for me as a reader. I like to get to know characters through their interactions, and being told the family dynamics around this wedding weekend left me wondering, "But why?" a touch too often. However, for someone who didn't want to get bogged down it all that, this story may be just the thing.

I received a free ARC ebook of <i>Three Days in June</i> from NetGalley in exchange for an unbiased review.

Anne Tyler's novella concerns a 60ish female school administrator and the weekend of her only child's wedding. Gail has spent her life without much personal contemplation. Her marriage, her divorce, her professional life have all just happened. She views her life from a distance; her daughter's wedding and the loss of her job force some introspection.

It's tough for anyone to realize that their life has just kind of passed without much joy

What a delighful little novel. This was my first (I know, right???) by Tyler, so I can't compare to her others, but this was such a little gem of a book. Very character driven (and what characters they were!), moving, and extremely well written. Tyler has a new fan, and I've got a HUGE backlist to explore.

THREE DAYS IN JUNE focuses upon a weekend wedding and the mild inconveniences and myriad worries that surround it. Our protagonist, the bride’s mother, Gail, is an introverted woman whose awareness of other people’s feelings is minimal. She’s a little ‘on the spectrum’ and her social skills and abilities to navigate interpersonal interactions are minimal. We are aware of all of Gail’s internal fears, judgements and modest hopes. This is a short book with an unlikeable protagonist that may not be the easiest of author Tyler’s works to enjoy. The slice of life is accurate, though, and the characters are memorable. I received my copy from the publisher through NetGalley.

The many complications of a wedding, divorced parents of the bride, pushy mother of the groom, delayed delivery of flowers, and so many other “character-building challenges,” as a friend calls those days. My sympathies are all with Gail, accused of “lacking people skills” at work and feeling left out of the “Day of Beauty” wedding plans, then having to allow her ex to stay at her house, with his cat, because the groom is allergic to cats (at which point I also sympathized with him; I know how miserable that can be). I’m not sure I could handle all that with such grace and consideration.
It’s a sweet book, seemingly simple, but with layers of complexities, much like real life, and people I’m glad to know and for whom I wish all the best.

I normally devour Anne Tyler's books when I'm in the mood for a good character driven novel. This new book by her was quite slow and I think if I had warmed up to Gail more then I would've been rooting for her during these big life changes. Book fell flat for me. I appreciate the advanced read as this author is one I normally keep an eye on.

*Three Days in June* is one of those quiet, character-driven stories that really pulls you in, even though not much "happens." It’s all about Gail, a woman facing a lot of life changes in just three days—her daughter’s wedding, a sudden job loss, and the return of her ex—and Tyler does a fantastic job making you feel all the little emotional shifts. It’s slow and reflective, but if you like stories that focus more on relationships and personal growth than big plot twists, this one’s a solid, heartfelt read.

I really liked this book. You could feel all of the emotions and how it impacted her life. I thought the mention of the groundhog day movie was also perfect because it kind of felt like that was going in that same direction. I am also extremely happy she kept the cat!!

First I want to thank NetGalley and Knopf publishing for the opportunity to read this novel. I had never read anything by Anne Tyler prior to this. The characters are fleshed out,and likable. It reads like a story of every day life, no one is too over the top, its is full of humor and love. I was rooting for the ending to be what it was. I thoroughly enjoyed this and will be reading more Anne Tyler in the future.

This book follows Gail for three days surrounding her daughter's wedding. I'm not sure if there is a plot -- it is simply Anne Tyler sharing the ordinariness of one person's life. It was a quick, easy, and enjoyable read.

Thank you, Knopf, Pantheon Vintage, Anchor and Net Galley for the advanced reader copy of this book.

This is about three days in Gail's ordinary life told in three acts (alright, three chapters.) Through Gail's first person stream-of-consciousness narration we learn her thoughts and concerns, her expectations of her daughter and her ex (or her lack of expectations), and her self-doubts. I found it very easy to relate to Gail's quirks and insecurities. A fast and enjoyable read.

I would like to thank Net Galley for the opportunity to read this as an ARC. I love Anne Tyler's work and this is no exception. It is a short book, almost a novella in length, and I wish it had been longer, as I would have liked the characters to have more development and interactions. Maybe thats just me:) As it is, the story is that Gail Baines, in her early 60's, is an assistant administrator at a private school. She is long since divorced from Max. Their daughter is being married tomorrow. The day starts off badly. Gail's administrator is planning to retire and Gail is not going to get the promotion. Gail quits( or is fired, depends on the viewpoint). Then her ex husband Max shows up, with a cat he has rescued, and asks to stay with her for the wedding. Although, after talking to their daughter, whp has just gotten some distressing information, there may not be a wedding. The book does indeed take place over 3 days as Gail looks at her life, her family and her options going forward. It is a well written character study and I completely enjoyed it.

‘Three Days in June’ follows Gail as she navigates the three days surrounding her daughters wedding, faces a crisis in her working life, deals with her ex-husband showing up on her doorstep and there’s also a revelation about her daughter Debbie that is shared the day before her wedding.

Gail has a lot to deal with over these three days in June and Tyler is great about showing ordinary life. I really liked the character of Gail and the growth that we could see as she starts to understand that not everything is as it seems, especially Gail's expectations of the family and the family's expectations of each other.

This is a short book (under 200 pages) and because of this I would have liked to see more character building. While we got to know Gail, there were so many other characters that could have been fleshed out if given time. I would be interested to know what happens after the story ends.

All in all if you are looking for a light, quick read this would definitely be a recommendation!

Gail Baines is experiencing a major shift in her life upon discovering that her workplace plans to squeeze her out on the eve of her daughter’s wedding.

She feels the abrupt loss of two important roles that have defined her for so long. Knocked out of her groove, Gail takes a deep breath to reflect and redirect. With much of her identity stripped away, her future is left wide open and rich with potential. If you are entering a new phase of life, this story offers much in the way of solidarity,

There’s not a lot of action in this contemplative narrative, however, it does give a few soft punches to the gut with its authentic sentimentality. I highly recommend this author to fans of Elizabeth Strout as their writing styles are quite similar.

I thank NetGalley and the publisher for an advanced copy of Three Days in June for my unbiased evaluation.  3.5 stars

2.5 Stars (outliner)
One Liner: Enjoyed the writing but disappointed by the ending

Life hasn’t been easy for Gail Baines. Losing her job, not being invited to participate in her daughter’s wedding activities, and the sudden arrival of her ex-husband (with a cat) cause more than enough stress.
However, Debbie, her daughter, shares a secret with her parents, and it takes drama to the next level. How can Gail and her family navigate the situation? Will they address the past to find a way for the future?
The story comes in Gail’s first-person POV.

My Thoughts:
This novella is a family drama divided into three parts – day one, day two, and day three.
Since we get the story from Gail’s POV, we only see what she presumes and assumes. This makes for an interesting choice since she is quite judgmental and quick to jump to conclusions.
The pacing is steady even as the narration moves between the present, the MC’s thoughts, and tiny snippets of the past. I’m not a fan of long chapters but this format made it easy to separate the days and their events.
Despite having a heavy vibe, there are little bits of unexpected (dry) humor that lighten the scene and provide a little insight into the character(s).
Of course, it is easy enough to guess the reveal that comes midway through but this is not a mystery book, so no extra points for the reader.
Max brings his share of charm and humor while getting on the MC’s nerves for no reason. I empathized more with him as the story progressed. Though he is not the kind of person I like (have some ambition!), Gail made me root for him instead of her. TBH, he deserved better.
Gail, our narrator, and main lead. What do I say? I don’t mind unlikeable characters. I understand her lack of social skills or discomfort in interacting with others. I can even see why she holds herself aloof and distanced. But, she is so darn judgmental and selfish! Though I felt for her initially, by the end, I couldn’t support her. Despite that, I liked how the author created her and Max’s characters to contrast and complement each other.
A few things have been felt open, which is fine since this is a slice-of-life kind of novella. However, the ending was disappointing. I did not want THAT to happen. There has to be an adult-to-adult conversation, acknowledgment, apology, and acceptance. Some things cannot be brushed under the carpet or ignored when they have such a lasting impact on their lives. Also, the message it sends is very unappealing.

To summarize, Three Days in June is an interesting read as a study of characters but was a letdown in terms of plot development and conclusion. I did enjoy the cat’s role and how it was woven into the plot.
Thank you, NetGalley and Knopf, Pantheon, Vintage, and Anchor, for eARC. This review is voluntary and contains my honest opinion about the book.

There's just something so soothing about Anne Tyler's writing. She creates characters so realistic, you'd swear you'd known them in the past. Her novels don't generally have a lot of action, but her understanding of her characters' inner lives, and her ability to convey that to her readers, is absolute magic. In this novel, a divorced couple have come together to celebrate -- albeit with much ambivalence on the part of her mother -- the marriage of their only daughter, and the story takes place over the day before, the day of, and the day after the wedding. Readers get to learn how and why they separated, how their separate lives have progressed since that time, and how their own personalities and histories impact their perceptions of their daughter's choices. A touching portrait of an aging pair whose lives didn't always turn out as planned.

Thank you to the publisher and to #NetGalley for providing this free eARC in exchange for an objective review. I'm confident readers of Tyler's earlier books will love this latest one.

I have read other Anne Tyler books and enjoyed them, somehow this one just did not appeal to me. I think from the description, I expected it to be lighter, it just seemed very sad. From the episode with her boss, to her daughter's wedding, to shopping for a suit for her ex-husband, and on and on, it just seemed like one sad episode after another. I guess the ending could be viewed as happy, but I kind of wanted her to turn her life around herself, she had made the first step by adopting the cat, but then when Max came back Gail took him back (or at least that is what the reader was led to believe), so I don't know if she really did change. I'm sure there are readers who will really enjoy this book, I am just not one of them.