Three Days in June

Three Days in June by Anne Tyler
2/11/25; 209 pages
Knopf Doubleday 

Three Days in June by Anne Tyler is an exceptional, very highly recommended character study which follows a socially awkward mother of the bride during the three days before and after her daughter's wedding. As with everything single book Tyler has ever written it is superb. Anne Tyler is a go-to author who has books on my best-books-ever-written-life-list.

Gail Baines day starts out challenging enough when she quits her job after being told she will be passed over to replace the retiring headmistress. Tonight is the rehearsal for her daughter's wedding tomorrow. If that wasn't enough stress, her ex-husband Max shows up at her door to stay at her house because he has brought a rescue cat he is fostering with him and can't stay at their daughter Debbie's house due to her husband-to-be Kenneth’s allergies. Debbie is at a spa day planned by the groom's mother, when she is told a secret about Kenneth. She talks to her parents about it before talking to Kenneth, and it briefly puts the wedding in question but also brings up events from Gail and Max's past. 

As expected, the writing is absolutely exceptional and captures all the emotions, over-thinking, observations, and memories that can happen during the wedding of a child, as well as suddenly having your ex stay with you before the wedding. Gail is the narrator, following the actions and reactions of everyone. Tyler is always a wonderfully empathetic writer with her ordinary characters who are trying to live their lives, learn along the way, and ultimately find/receive forgiveness.

Gail and Max are both well-written, fully developed characters with obvious strengths and weaknesses. They are also complete opposites, which is perfectly captured here. Gail is said to be socially awkward, but personally I think she is just an introvert who could be blunt and honest when she spoke but she also knew when to keep quiet, a skill many people should learn. Max is easy-going and laid back, a nice compliment to Gail's demeanor. 

There were several quotes from Gail in the book that I related to on a very personal level and I found her a very sympathetic character. There was one quote about setting boundaries I would frame. I perfectly understood that Gail's daughter was called "Debbie" rather than Deborah. For younger readers: it's a family habit that many adult children experience when family members are called a childhood nickname. 

Three Days in June by Anne Tyler is an excellent choice for anyone who enjoys character-driven novels and fans of Tyler's writing. 

Personal note: I had to put off reading Three Days in June by Anne Tyler until I had time open in my reading/reviewing schedule. Admittedly, I was also very bitter when I was turned down for a review copy and then receive an email a couple weeks later that all reviewers have a day which they can download it to read. I can't help but deduce some intern got overly ambitious with the turn-down button without any look at the stats of who was requesting it.