Like most of Tyler's novels the story is set in Baltimore and focuses on two very different families who go to collect their new adopted Korean children from the airport on the same day.
Bitsy and Brad Donaldson are an all-American family and Sami and Ziba Yazdan are Iranian by origin but have settled in the U.S.
Narrated by the Iranian-born grandmother Maryam, the story spans seven years from 1997 to 2004 and describes how these two families compete with one another but ultimately become life-long friends because of their adoptive children.
At its root, this novel depicts how members of society come to terms with their identity in multicultural America. Tyler touches on the 9/11 attacks and subtly shows the suspicion that the Yazdans experience following the event.
To some Tyler's blend of mundane every day life and poignant cultural concerns is attractive, but sadly for me the light and fluffiness of family life overshadowed any deeper issues.
* *
Digging to America(Vintage Books, £7.99) is out now
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Digging to America by Anne Tyler
By Kate Wharton - Monday 4 June 2007
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