Bookshelf Treasures

Featured book: Tom Lake by Ann Patchett

Tom Lake — Ann Patchett
Memory, reflection, and meaning in a life lived

In Tom Lake, Ann Patchett offers a tender and deeply human story about family, memory, love, and the many selves we become throughout a lifetime. Set during the quiet uncertainty of 2020, three daughters return home to their family orchard and begin asking their mother about a chapter of her younger life — a season filled with theater, possibility, and a meaningful romance.

As the story unfolds, the daughters begin to see their mother not only as “Mom,” but as a woman who carried dreams, desires, choices, and experiences long before they were born. In turn, they are invited to reflect on their own lives, relationships, and assumptions about love, happiness, and what truly matters.

This novel gently explores the beauty and complexity of ordinary life — youthful love, enduring partnership, family bonds, and the stories we carry within us. It reminds us that even in uncertain times, moments of connection, reflection, and shared memory can bring meaning and grace.

For our circle, Tom Lake offers an opportunity to contemplate the layers of identity we hold across a lifetime and the quiet wisdom that emerges when we look back with honesty, compassion, and perspective.

Tuesday, Oct 20, 2026

Time:  6:00PM - 7:30PM (Mountain Time)

Facilitated by Kaye Chatterton, Director of the CAW Wisdom Institute

Capacity: 15

We’ll be exploring a new book each month, with each session dedicated to a different title.

Next class: Tuesday, Nov 17, 2026

Title:  Anxious People by Fredrik Backman

Published: July 2021 Pages: 352

Email us with suggestions, croneawakeningwisdom.@gmail.com

Recommend purchase of used books from Ebay.com/ or your public library.