The Beginners Goodbye, Anne Tyler
The Beginners Goodbye, Anne Tyler
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The Beginner's Goodbye

Author: Anne Tyler

Narrator: Kirby Heyborne

Unabridged: 6 hr 22 min

Format: Digital Audiobook Download

Published: 04/03/2012


Synopsis

Anne Tyler gives us a wise, haunting, and deeply moving new novel in which she explores how a middle-aged man, ripped apart by the death of his wife, is gradually restored by her frequent appearances—in their house, on the roadway, in the market.
 
Crippled in his right arm and leg, Aaron spent his childhood fending off a sister who wants to manage him. So when he meets Dorothy, a plain, outspoken, self-dependent young woman, she is like a breath of fresh air. Unhesitatingly he marries her, and they have a relatively happy, unremarkable marriage. But when a tree crashes into their house and Dorothy is killed, Aaron feels as though he has been erased forever. Only Dorothy’s unexpected appearances from the dead help him to live in the moment and to find some peace.
 
Gradually he discovers, as he works in the family’s vanity-publishing business, turning out titles that presume to guide beginners through the trials of life, that maybe for this beginner there is a way of saying goodbye.
 
A beautiful, subtle exploration of loss and recovery, pierced throughout with Anne Tyler’s humor, wisdom, and always penetrating look at human foibles.

About Anne Tyler

Anne Tyler, an American novelist, is also an author of short stories and is a literary critic. She has had 22 novels published, being cited in literary publications as creating fully developed characters and commended for her accurate attention to detail. Some of her more well-known novels are: Dinner at the Homesick Restaurant, The Accidental Tourist, Breathing Lessons, and A Spool of Blue Thread. She has been compared to John Updike, Jane Austin, and Eudora Welty.

Tyler was born in Minneapolis Minnesota, as the oldest of four children to a chemist Dad and a social worker Mother. They were Quakers who lived in a series of Quaker communes, one being formed by conscientious objectors, as Anne was age 7 through 11. Her practical, hands on education was supplemented by correspondence school. Her first short stories, she told to herself under the covers at 3 years of age, to try to get sleepy. Her favorite book was The Little House by Virginia Lee Burton, and had a profound influence on her ability to show "how the years flowed by, people altered, and nothing could ever stay the same". Her early perception of changes over time appear and reappear in Tyler's novels, just as her favorite book, The Little House, appears in her first novel.

Tyler considered herself to be an outsider in public schools, but also attributed that same feeling as having been a valuable asset in her writing success. Her other credit is given to a former high school English teacher, Phillis Peacock. Seven years after high school, Tyler dedicated her first published novel to "Mrs. Peacock, for everything you've done".

Tyler has won many literary awards including a Pulitzer. She remains closely associated with the city of Baltimore, Maryland, her home since 1967, and is the location used in many of her books. Her husband died in 1997, and their two daughters have gone on to careers in the arts.


Reviews

AudiobooksNow review by Catherine on 2012-05-14 18:19:19

As usual the characters are quirky and endearing. I love this book like I love most of hers. I dont much care what the plot is in Anne Tylers stories I just want to be there with them ~ so calm, peaceful, loving and striving always to become better at this thing we call living. If you follow this author you will not be disappointed.

AudiobooksNow review by Mary on 2013-03-29 10:42:41

Didnt know what to expect from this book, having never read any book by Anne Tyler. I was really happy I picked up this book. A very interesting story, I got very caught up in the people in the story. I am now on a quest to read Ms Tylers previous books. Really like her style!

Goodreads review by Gerald on April 11, 2012

Some fans complain this book is too short. So read it twice. Actually, that's not a facetious comment. The second time through, slow down. You needn't be at all concerned about what happens next. Marvel at Anne Tyler's spare style. And ask yourself why it's not the same as other authors who limit th......more

Goodreads review by Susan's Reviews on January 19, 2023

Out of the blue, a tree crashes down on Aaron and Dorothy's home - and kills Dorothy outright. Life as Aaron knew it was completely destroyed, along with most of his living room. Aaron and Dorothy had always been an "odd" couple according to Aaron's bossy sister, Nandina. (Anne Tyler's forte is inje......more

Goodreads review by Glenn on September 27, 2015

DON'T JUDGE THIS BOOK BY ITS COVERS (review is below): What's up with the covers for Anne Tyler's The Beginner's Goodbye? On the front of my edition, there's a gently lit photo of a slim young woman wearing a soft white blouse reading a book on a bed. It has ABSOLUTELY NOTHING TO DO WITH THIS NOVEL.......more

Goodreads review by Jaline on November 08, 2018

In a novel that is as inspiring and uplifting as it is sad and deeply touching, Anne Tyler approaches loss and grief from the perspective of Aaron Woolcott. When he was a toddler, Aaron experienced a flu that left him physically handicapped on the right side of his body. He was so young that he adap......more

Goodreads review by Lynne on March 16, 2018

After reading some of the reviews, I felt a bit off-kilter, as if I'm seeing something that wasn't intended by the author. Nevertheless, here's my impression: this story is about a man who, because of his physical limitations, resists closeness with other people, to the point that he marries a woman......more


Quotes

“An absolute charmer of a novel about grief, healing, and the transcendent power of love . . . With sparkling prose and undeniable charm, Tyler gets at the beating heart of what it means to lose someone, to say goodbye, and to realize how we are all, perhaps, always ultimate beginners in the complex business of life . . . A dazzling meditation on marriage, community, and redemption.” Boston Globe

“A pleasure to read . . . Classic Tyler . . . The wonder of Anne Tyler is how consistently clear-eyed and truthful she remains about the nature of families and especially marriage.” Los Angeles Times

“Like a modern Jane Austen, Tyler creates small worlds where she depicts in minutest detail the intimate bonds of friendship and family.” USA Today

“Anne Tyler is one of our national treasures, and The Beginner’s Goodbye puts all of her skills on display: her warmth and wit, her generous embrace of her flawed characters, her clear-eyed observations about the inner workings of a marriage and the enduring bonds between brothers and sisters, husbands and wives.” —Jennifer Weiner
 
The Beginner’s Goodbye is the purest distillation of an Anne Tyler novel imaginable.” San Francisco Chronicle

“Anne Tyler has no peer. Her books just keep getting better and better. In The Beginner’s Goodbye, I was surprised, intrigued, and delighted at every turn.”  —Anita Shreve

“Anne Tyler never disappoints . . . Her insights about life, love, aging, marriage, siblings, grief, and unexpected happiness grow richer and deeper with each passing year and book.” Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

“Over five decades of exuberant shape-shifting across the fictional landscape, Anne Tyler has cut the steady swath of a literary stalwart, writing novel after novel whose most memorable characters inhabit a cosmos all their own . . . What makes each story distinctive is the particular way its characters rebel against hereditary confines, cope with fateful crises, or forge relationships with new acquaintances who rock their world . . . Once again, Tyler exhibits her genius for the incisive, savory portrayal of marriage.” —Julia Glass, New York Times Book Review

“This is what Tyler does better than almost any contemporary writer. She peers at the forgotten areas of the everyday, the bits that are hard to pinpoint, yet make up the bulk of our lives and relationships. And this, ultimately, is why she is such a satisfying writer: she looks at people—at life—from the inside out. This is a book not just about grief, but about hope . . . The Beginner’s Goodbye is diverting, certainly, but also deeply rewarding. There is, in short, no guilt in the pleasure of a new Tyler. We can only hope for many, many more.” Sunday Times (UK)

“Beautifully intricate. By the exquisitely romantic emotional climax, Aaron’s ordinary life has bloomed into an opera.” Entertainment Weekly

“Its insights will keep you up nights.  . . . Ranks high in the hierarchy of Tyler’s works. And what a lineup that is.” Chicago Tribune

“Warm, smart, deliciously written.” More magazine
 
“As always, Pulitzer Prize winner Tyler brilliantly explores a stunning range of human emotion, poignantly considering the challenges of death while creating lovable characters whose foibles capture our hearts. Essential reading.” Library Journal
 
“One of the things that makes Tyler’s work so radiant is that she seems to believe that people are inherently good and that, thanks to that goodness, ordinary lives can contain moments of great beauty, dignity, and hope. The Beginner’s Goodbye has all three . . . [Told] with characteristic warmth, sympathy and wisdom.” Daily Telegraph (UK)

“A scintillating gem of a novel . . . Exceptionally lithe and sparkling . . . A funny, sweet, and wise tale of lost and found love.” Booklist (starred)
 
“Elegant . . . An uplifting tale of love and forgiveness. By the end of this wonderful book, you’ve lived the lives and loves of these characters in the best possible way.” Publishers Weekly (starred, Pick of the Week)