When Cynthia, a writer of historical fiction, receives a request from her sister, Frances, to come and join her and her family for Thanksgiving, she is resistant.
Although they consider themselves 'close', being together always stirs memories of their shared childhood. A childhood marred by the illness and death of their mother. They hold differing perspectives on events and their reunion is the first following the death of their older sister three years earlier. Into these dynamics Frances brings their elderly father, who has suffered a stroke and is recently divorced from their much younger stepmother.
Cynthia entertains the varied guests assembled, with anecdotes about well known figures who feature in her writing.
I noticed one reviewer likened this story to Anne Tyler's style. I think this is a good comparison. I found this a good, enjoyable read, that again looks at siblings differing responses to their childhood years. One person's recollections do not necessarily match those of somebody who shared them. In whose version lies the truth? ( )

@ 2 sisters memories w/ their father

Strikingly different since childhood and leading very dissimilar lives now, sisters Frances and Cynthia have nevertheless managed to remain "devoted”so long as they stay on opposite coasts. But with the reappearance of their elderly, long-estranged father they find themselves reunited for a cold, snowy Thanksgiving weekend — a reunion that awakens sleeping tensions and old sorrows.

A woman returns to her childhood town at the request of her sister for Thanksgiving. There she finds her elderly father who is waiting for a spot at a nursing home, her nieces who have issues of their own, her brother in law who is growing tired of his wifes latest antics. ( )

Cynthia Fiske loathes going home, though in actuality home means her sister's house in Concord and not the house in Hartford where she grew up. So when her sister Frances invites her back east to enjoy Thanksgiving with the family, Cynthia has misgivings; misgivings that only grow when she learns that their estranged father will be there as well. It becomes clear right away that not all is exactly what it seems, but Frances is determined to keep up appearances and Cynthia tries to be accomodating. But as they say, the road to hell is paved with good intentions.

This book is more than it appears. I thought when I started this book, that it was going to be easy-going women's fiction about family ties. And most of the way through the book, I continued to believe this. However as the conclusion approached, this novel became something more and all the subtle hints that I hadn't originally noticed as being important began to build upon each other to create a psychological drama about the nature of memory and truth. I am really impressed at how Berne pulled it altogether, making the reader question just who was deceiving themself and in which story the truth was really found. It has kept me thinking long since I turned the last page. Those who think this is just another simple example of women's fiction that can be ignored would be wrong, for it exhibits much of the best qualities found in that genre. ( )

In just a very few days together, Berne presents a family's background and potential future---where is the truth in each person's view of the past, particularly between the two sisters, but also their father. What really happened to their mother and how much has it influenced their entire lives? ( )