the accidental tourist anne tyler summary

Macon lives with Rose for a while after he breaks his leg. She is similar to Macon in her eccentricity and love of domestic ritual, as seen in her placing the groceries in alphabetical order and meticulously cooking for her adult siblings. Throughout the book, Sarah represents the known: she is easy for Macon to love and co-exist with, yet at the same time, their partnership seems to lock both characters into a sort of comfort that blocks them from true growth. It is not until she finds out that Macon has entered into a serious relationship with another woman that she comes back to Macon and asks to reconcile. This is what ultimately leads her to ask for a divorce. However, after the death of their son, Sarah loses patience with Macon, desiring a partner who can provide her with the warmth and emotional comfort she desperately seeks. In many ways, Sarah is the perfect match for Macon, harboring a similar sense of upper-class values and a tolerance for his eccentricities. They are each others' first loves, having come together when they were teenagers. Sarah is Macon's wife and best friend of over 20 years. We see as the story develops, though, that Macon's inability to express himself derives less from a lack of care and more from a habitual fear of opening up emotionally to others.

Yet when face-to-face with another, Macon is often at a loss for words, having a hard time communicating from behind the mask of indifference he has adopted. On one hand, he is deeply sensitive and observant of the people around him, noticing many poignant details about the strangers he encounters, whether on plane rides or city streets.

Macon frequently struggles with social interaction. It is not until he strikes up an unlikely relationship with a younger woman that Macon seems to start coming out of his self-imposed isolation and take a more active role in his life once again. No longer does Macon feel in control of his life, which is why he descents into a slew of peculiar habits and rituals that only further alienate him from the outside world. Due to a tumultuous childhood, Macon is a lover of order, and thus the tragic loss of his loved ones shakes him up quite drastically. Macon is a writer of travel guides-ironic, considering he despises traveling and anything that brings him away from his highly regimented routine. Throughout the story, Macon grapples with grief, love, and purpose after the death of his son Ethan and the falling apart of his 20-year marriage. Macon Leary is the middle-aged protagonist of the novel.

The accidental tourist anne tyler summary