The Safety of Children

The children of Ann Patchett's Taft are perpetually lost. At one point in the novel, John Nickel refers to Fay and Carl as lost siblings in a fairy tale. He is haunted by the image of his son Franklin on a beach in Miami, falling on broken glass and gashing his face. Mr. and Mrs. Woodmoore are constantly concerned about Marion, off in Florida and out of their protective control.

The novel is a story of parallel fathers: John Nickel and Levon Taft. These fathers love their children, but they are constantly separated from them. John's son is taken away by his mother, and Levon must work two jobs in order to make ends meet. Still, their children love and respect them. Children in the novel are more inclined to obey their fathers than their mothers. John and Taft are confident that no harm can...