A Spool of Blue Thread

by Anne Tyler,
The Philadelphia Inquirer, February 15, 2015

As with most families in Anne Tyler's novels, there is nothing all that remarkable about the Whitshanks. None of them is famous or exceptionally smart or good-looking. The Whitshanks pride themselves, Tyler tells us, on their patience, but behind it is envy, disappointment, and "a talent for pretending that everything is fine."