It’s time for another adventure in Kate’s 6 Degrees of Separation Meme from her blog, Books Are My Favourite and Best. We are given a book to start with, and from there we free associate six books.
This month we start with Tom Lake by Ann Patchett. Last month (February) we were directed to start with the book our chain had ended with the previous month (January), which for me was . . . Tom Lake by Ann Patchett. So this time around, I’m accepting the challenge of taking the same starting point and going in a different direction.
first degree
Lara, the protagonist of Tom Lake, got her start as an actor playing Emily in Our Town by Thornton Wilder. Wilder’s play presents several characters who encapsulate life in a rural American town.
second degree
Spoon River Anthology by Edgar Lee Masters is a collection of poems that also feature several characters and their lives in small-town U.S.A.
third degree
Probably the best known depiction of life in a typical American small town is Winesburg, Ohio by Sherwood Anderson.
fourth degree
Although more modern than the previous three, Ohio, a novel by Stephen Markley, is also set in that state.
fifth degree
Idaho by Emily Ruskovich is another contemporary novel with a U.S. state name as its title.
sixth degree
Finally, we venture back to the past with a novel set in the state just east of Idaho, Montana 1948 by Larry Watson.
This month, Tom Lake, set in Michigan, has initiated an imaginary road trip around the midwest and western United States. Where did your 6 Degrees of Separation take you this month?
© 2024 by Mary Daniels Brown
I could easily follow your line of thinking as you progress away from Tom Lake.
Thanks, Anne!
Nice! This shows that no matter what book is our starter, there are many ways we can take it!
I agree, Davida. It was an interesting challenge to see how that worked out. And it was surprisingly easy to do.
This is a very nice chain. I especially like that it stays in the US. My husband bought an old copy of Spoon River Anthology a few years ago at a book sale. I hope to read some of it someday. And your next two books are set in Ohio, his home state.
I want to read Montana 1948. I have read many good things about it. And 1948 is the year I was born.
Thanks for visiting my Six Degrees post.
TracyK at Bitter Tea and Mystery
I, too, was born in 1948. It’s go to meet another member of the Three-Quarters of a Century Club!