The Tin Can Tree (1965), American author Anne Tyler’s second novel, is set in rural Larksville, North Carolina—not the Baltimore, Maryland suburb of Roland Park which would serve as the backdrop for her later, more iconic works such as 1982’s Dinner at the Homesick Restaurant and The Accidental Tourist from 1988. While Tyler’s signature setting was not yet cemented in 1965, The Tin Can Tree nonetheless provides readers with an early representation of the thematic and plot elements that would become her stock-in-trade: family response to estrangement and death; feelings of isolation even while in close proximity to others; the tug of war faced by young adults torn between …
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Citation: Donohue, Cecilia. "The Tin Can Tree". The Literary Encyclopedia. First published 29 July 2018 [https://staging.litencyc.com/php/sworks.php?rec=true&UID=7940, accessed 23 November 2024.]
