Whistler by Ann Patchett

 ‘The past is soul-crushing,’Jonathan tells Daphne, his wife, as he and his sister go through their mother’s house. Is it always, though? This luminous book speaks to our relationships with the past, how it determines our future, and whether it is possible to reconcile the two. It also deals with dark family secrets, misconceptions, and the deep ties that ultimately bind us together, or tear us apart.

When Jonathan sees an older grey-haired man following he and Daphne at the Metropolitan Museum, she is intrigued. He turns out to be Eddie, her mother’s second husband, and the stepfather she loved the most. She and Eddie, who is an editor, share a love of books, and writing. But after a car accident involving Daphne and Eddie, her mother divorces him, and Daphne feels that she is to blame, even 44 years later. But is she?

As Daphne and Eddie form a strong friendship again, many truths are revealed. Daphne has to deal with many different aspects of her past, and come to terms with them. Along the way, she thinks about her relationship with her father, her last stepfather, and most importantly, her problematic mother. All the while, Whistler, the horse that Eddie tells her a story about when she’s nine, watches over her.

The only other Ann Patchett novel that I’ve read is Bel Canto, which was wonderful, but very depressing. (Seeing the film on a plane was even more depressing)! I will start reading her other novels now.

I received this free ebook from NetGalley in return for an honest review.