Anne Tyler, Noah's Compass

Cecilia Donohue (Independent Scholar - North America)

The Literary Encyclopedia. Volume 3.2.4: American (US) Writing and Culture: Postwar and Contemporary, 1945-present.
Vol. editors: Sofia Ahlberg (Uppsala University), Patrick Chura (University of Akron), Emory Elliott (University of California, Riverside), Dale Enggass (University of Utah), Christopher Hugh Gair (University of Glasgow), Matthew Hofer (University of New Mexico), Stephen E. Meats (Pittsburg State University), Kerry Myler (Birmingham Newman University), Justin Parks (UiT - The Arctic University of Norway), Nick Selby (University of East Anglia)

Dates

First circulation or publication 2009

Places

United States (Country of Origin; Publication/ performance)

Genres and Modes

Novel

Resources

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As Anne Tyler’s career as one of the United States of America’s most prolific and accomplished novelists enters its sixth decade, one cannot help but note that with the passage of time, her protagonists have matured. Consider the plots and major players of her three most recent novels. In 2001’s

Back When We Were Grownups,

Tyler focused on Rebecca Davitch’s midlife challenges and opportunities.

The Amateur Marriage,

published three years later, provided readers with a detailed portrait of the 30-year marriage of Michael and Pauline Anton, and analyzed both characters’ post-divorce lives. And while

Digging to America

(2006) devoted much space to two young couples’ adoptions of Asian children, considerable time and narrative perspective was afforded Maryam Yazdan, middle-aged…

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720 words

Citation: Donohue, Cecilia. "Noah's Compass". The Literary Encyclopedia. First published 26 July 2010 [https://www.litencyc.com/php/sworks.php?rec=true&UID=30682, accessed 20 April 2024.]

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