★★★★★ 5
exceptional, very highly recommended character-driven literary family drama
Format: Kindle
Whistler by Ann Patchett is an exceptional, very highly recommended character-driven literary family drama which will definitely be one of the best books I've read this year. In Whistler Patchett has given us a beautifully written, eloquent, insightful and sensitive story encompassing the complexity of families, connections, and relationships over time. I love everything about this book.
As they were visiting the Metropolitan Museum of Art, Daphne Fuller's retired husband Jonathan notices an older man following them and they discover he is Eddie Triplett, Daphne's former stepfather. She hasn't seen him for 44 years but immediately remembers her love for him and the bond they had for a couple years. The two also shared a traumatic experience when she was nine and they were in a car accident. Immediately after this Daphne's mother divorced Eddie and he disappeared from her life. After this chance meeting and reconnection, Daphne immediately and understandably needs to see and tell her younger sister, Leda, about it.
The sisters had a complicated childhood that Daphne never felt was very happy. Daphne and Leda's biological father, Buddy Zabriskie, was a deep-sea fisherman and left the family early, although the girls had a relationship with him. Then their mother married Eddie and both girls loved him for the brief time he was in their lives. Their third and final stepfather, Lucas Ekker, still lives with her mother in Massachusetts and they had two sons. The two sisters were done with stepfathers at this point.
As the narrative unfolds, Daphne and Eddie continue to meet and restore their relationship as father and daughter, but now as adults. While following the present day events, Interstitial chapters jump back in time when Eddie was her stepfather and cover the events from when they were in the car accident. It is during these interludes back in time that were learn the story of Whistler and also see the deep connection between Eddie and Daphne. Events in both the past and present show how complicated interpersonal relationships are, how little we truly understand of our past, and, ultimately, how fragile life can be.
Because this is a character-driven story, all the characters are portrayed as realistic, fully realized individuals with strengths and weaknesses. The narrative examines relationships, choices made in both the past and present and how many seemingly small and inconsequential moments can follow us our whole lives. It also gently shows how being recognized and understood by another person, even for a short period of time, can change your life and theirs.
Whistler by Ann Patchett is a wonderful choice for everyone who enjoys thoughtful, sensitive, character-driven literary novels. Thanks to HarperCollins for providing me with an advance reader's copy via Edelweiss. My review is voluntary and expresses my honest opinion.
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Reviewed in the United States on June 2, 2026
