Commonwealth by Ann Patchett

Fix Keatng thinks it is strange that Bert Cousins shows up for his daughter Franny's christening party.  Stranger still that Bert kisses Franny's mother Beverly - a kiss that leads to a divorce and throws the four adults and their six children into a mash of events for the next five decades.  As they children travel back and forth across the country, they form alliances in the parenting vacuum created by the adults trying to sort out their new lives.  Franny becomes the primary narrator although the chapters often focus on different family members.  Two significant events drive the story.  One happens when the children are young and binds them forever in a secret regret.  The other is the result of a relationship between the adult Franny and a famous but struggling author.  He overcomes his writer's block by turning Franny's confidences into a new book.  With so many events and relationships made public, it is time for the families to confront their tangled history.  Stories about families and the key events that affect them are not unusual.  Patchett's ability to create characters we care about make this a worthy read.