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Tom Lake

A Novel

by Ann Patchett

Narrator Meryl Streep

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Length 11 hours 22 minutes

Language English

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Bookseller recommendation

“Ann Patchett weaves a story like no one else. This audiobook is read by Meryl Streep takes you on a journey of past and present intertwined with memories and hopes of a family. Highly recommended. ”
— Cathy • Sorensen Books

Bookseller recommendation

“Remember the scene in Mama Mia where Meryl Streep is brushing Amanda Seyfried's hair as they get her ready for her wedding day? Nostalgic music plays in the background as they look through old photos and reminisce together. Watching it you feel cozy and warm and loved. Well that is EXACTLY how reading Tom Lake made me feel. Ann Patchett did a beautiful job of creating a story where you are entranced by the events of the past and engaged with the relationships of the present. In a world and time of stories filled with regrets and missed opportunities it was refreshing to read a novel where the heroine recognizes her life isn't what she thought it would be, but is so grateful it turned out the way it did. Perfect for mothers, daughters, and everyone else. ”
— Michelle • Quail Ridge Books

Bookseller recommendation

“I was blown away by this audiobook, which had so many elements of a great story. Spectacular work by both Patchett and Streep and so rewarding to listen to during late summer. ”
— Jen • Bards Alley

Bookseller recommendation

“Storytelling at its very best!! Set during the pandemic summer of 2020 when they are toiling at harvesting the cherries on their Michigan farm during the lock-down, a mother regales her three 20-something daughters the story of her youth when she dated an actor who would later become famous. The performance of Meryl Streep, who reads this audio book, is just phenomenal! ”
— Anne • Newtonville Books

Bookseller recommendation

“Patchett’s new one soars. A cherry farmer’s daughters pester her about a time in her youth when she acted on screen in Hollywood and on stage at the dreamy Tom Lake resort. Mom holds her secrets close, but gradually reveals the mysterious details of her relationship with the famous, super star actor, Peter Duke. Vivid flashbacks, intriguing reveals and scrumptious settings make it an extra good read! ”
— Patience • Underground Books

Bookseller recommendation

“I finished listening to Tom Lake. I can see why it’s at the top of the best seller list. Ann Patchett has a way of weaving so much into a straightforward story. Set during the pandemic, Lara’s three adult daughters have returned to the family’s cherry orchard in Michigan to quarantine and harvest the fruit. Lara entertains them by sharing the story of her acting career and brief relationship with a man who went on to be a movie star. I still prefer her essays and Bel Canto, but this story is quite enjoyable. ”
— Amy • A Great Good Place for Books

Bookseller recommendation

“This story takes place in Michigan, which is always a bonus for me as a reader. The setting is during the pandemic but revolves around Lara's early life as an actress and her relationship with a man who later becomes a famous actor. Lara is retelling that experience in small doses to her three daughters. It is a story about relationships, disappointments, and the blessings of a good marriage. I listened to this story as an audiobook and what could be better than a story by Ann Patchett read by Meryl Streep?”
— Paula • Schuler Books

Bookseller recommendation

“The power of Ann and Meryl is undeniable. Wow, wow, wow. The audio of this book was literally a movie in my head. Obviously Meryl Streep is a phenom in her own right, but her voice to this story crafted by Ann Patchett blew me away. Having been raised in northern Michigan myself, with a father from Detroit and a mother from Grosse Pointe I felt like this story was crafted for me. I have yet to read a better love letter to the magic that is northern Michigan in the summertime. Lara's story is beautiful and I think a wonderful show of all that is to grow into yourself as a young woman. It relishes the good, the bad, the ugly, and spits you out the other side feeling that connection to womanhood and the experience of raising yourself through adulthood. I cannot recommend this audio enough! The perfect read for all lovers of summer, and especially northern Michigan. ”
— Katie • McLean & Eakin Booksellers

Bookseller recommendation

“Once again, Patchett does her thing. Expertly read. ”
— Kristine • Buttonwood Books and Toys

Bookseller recommendation

“Tom Lake by Ann Patchett is a thoughtful exploration of family, memory, and love. The novel offers a quiet reflection on how our choices shape our lives. It is an engaging novel that invites contemplation and a deeper appreciation for life's small moments.”
— Keith • Republic of Letters

Bookseller recommendation

“I'm pretty sure we could listen to Meryl Streep read the phone book. Lucky for us, she is reading the latest novel by the incomparable Ann Patchett. Tom Lake is both a snapshot of time suspended during the pandemic, and a coming of age tale. I couldn't bear to speed up any of it, because the listening experience was so enjoyable. ”
— Kelli • The Novel Neighbor

Bookseller recommendation

“I just finished listening to Tom Lake by Ann Patchett and I cannot say enough good things about this book! How I have not discovered Ann Patchett before, I will never know, but this book had me in so many feelings over the past 10 days. Set during the pandemic on a Michigan cherry farm, the family is working hard picking cherries and keeping the farm going during unprecedented times. As they work, the 3 adult daughters ask their mom to tell them the story of the famous movie star that she shared the stage and a relationship with back in her youth. Meryl Streep brings the characters to life and I felt like I was picking cherries right there with them, a part of the family. I felt nostalgia for a life that I never lived, for the life my own mother lived before me, and for my life before my daughter and how her understanding of me will change as she grows. I felt like I was the daughter, coming to the realization of the humanity of my parents in a way kids don't really understand themselves until they are older. If felt like I was the mother who lived, loved, lost, learned, and grew before my own daughter was born. I wanted to call up my mom and propose we go pick cherries so she can tell me about her young adult life and I could understand her soul the way I understood Lara's.”
— Jean • Books on Main

Summary
About the author
About the narrator

#17 in Bestselling Audiobooks #7 in Bestselling Fiction - Literary Audiobooks

#1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • A REESE’S BOOK CLUB PICK • READ BY MERYL STREEP

In this beautiful and moving novel about family, love, and growing up, Ann Patchett once again proves herself one of America’s finest writers.

“Patchett leads us to a truth that feels like life rather than literature.” —The Guardian

In the spring of 2020, Lara’s three daughters return to the family's orchard in Northern Michigan. While picking cherries, they beg their mother to tell them the story of Peter Duke, a famous actor with whom she shared both a stage and a romance years before at a theater company called Tom Lake. As Lara recalls the past, her daughters examine their own lives and relationship with their mother, and are forced to reconsider the world and everything they thought they knew.

Tom Lake is a meditation on youthful love, married love, and the lives parents have led before their children were born. Both hopeful and elegiac, it explores what it means to be happy even when the world is falling apart. As in all of her novels, Ann Patchett combines compelling narrative artistry with piercing insights into family dynamics. The result is a rich and luminous story, told with profound intelligence and emotional subtlety, that demonstrates once again why she is one of the most revered and acclaimed literary talents working today.

Fiction Fiction - Literary

Ann Patchett is the author of novels, most recently the #1 New York Times bestselling Tom Lake, works of nonfiction, and children's books. She has been the recipient of numerous awards, including the PEN/Faulkner, the Women's Prize for Fiction in the UK, and the Book Sense Book of the Year. Her novel The Dutch House was a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize. Her work has been translated into more than thirty languages, and Time magazine named her one of the 100 Most Influential People in the World. President Biden awarded her the National Humanities Medal in recognition of her contributions to American culture. She lives in Nashville, Tennessee, where she is the owner of Parnassus Books.

Meryl Streep has been nominated for an Academy Award^® thirteen times, winning twice. Her numerous film credits include The Deer Hunter, Kramer vs. Kramer, Sophie's Choice, Out of Africa, The Bridges of Madison County, Adaptation, and The Hours.