This incident does not become part of her repertoire of clannish stories.ĭenny, who is ten at the time, would probably now be diagnosed with some form of Asperger’s he becomes a relentless saboteur of the happy family idyll. ‘She dipped and sashayed and dum-da-dummed around Denny as if he were a Maypole’. She wanted her loved ones to be happy!’ To this end, in a supermarket aisle, she starts to dance to her favourite song, ‘Good Vibrations’. He is the moody sort and she drives him nuts. For weeks the house is filled with recordings of this piece. Denny takes up the French horn Abby sings along to the orchestral parts of a Mozart concerto. She must be involved and necessary at all times. Her role is to maintain and nourish this structure, infinitely loving and supportive. Most of the time she believes that they are almost unique: they ‘radiate clannishness and togetherness and just … specialness’. Abby is obsessed with family perfection: they are all to be seen and admired by the neighbourhood as they sit in decorative arrangement on their vast and fabulous porch. They have four children, mainly grown up and with children of their own. Abby is the wife of Red, who takes over the house and business after Junior’s sudden death. Although members of each generation receive respectful attention and space, two characters dominate: Abby and Denny. The novel moves back and forth through time, ranging from the 1950s to the present day, from the original construction of the house through its long occupation to its final abandonment as the family disperses.

The titular spool serves as a metaphor for the passing down of these things, a powerful reassurance. The house passes down through the generations, along with Junior’s construction company and the inherited twists of character and talent that reappear in different permutations, nature and nurture at odds, surprising and unquenchable. It is the story of three generations of the Whitshank family, starting with Junior, his wife and two children, and, most importantly, the house he built, the repository of his life’s significance.

Anne Tyler’s 20th novel will bring joy to her legions of admirers.

A spool of blue thread synopsis