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What Now?
Based on her lauded commencement address at Sarah Lawrence College, this stirring essay by bestselling author Ann Patchett offers hope and inspiration for anyone at a crossroads, whether graduating, changing careers, or transitioning from one life stage to another. With wit and candor, Patchett tells her own story of attending college, graduating, and struggling with the inevitable question, What now?
From student to line cook to teacher to waitress and eventually to award-winning author, Patchett's own life has taken many twists and turns that make her exploration genuine and resonant. As Patchett writes, "'What now?' represents our excitement and our future, the very vitality of life." She highlights the possibilities the unknown offers and reminds us that there is as much joy in the journey as there is in reaching the destination.
From student to line cook to teacher to waitress and eventually to award-winning author, Patchett's own life has taken many twists and turns that make her exploration genuine and resonant. As Patchett writes, "'What now?' represents our excitement and our future, the very vitality of life." She highlights the possibilities the unknown offers and reminds us that there is as much joy in the journey as there is in reaching the destination.
102 pages, Hardcover
First published April 7, 2008
277 people are currently reading
5964 people want to read
About the author
Ann Patchett
80 books28k followersPatchett was born in Los Angeles, California. Her mother is the novelist Jeanne Ray.
She moved to Nashville, Tennessee when she was six, where she continues to live. Patchett said she loves her home in Nashville with her doctor husband and dog. If asked if she could go any place, that place would always be home. "Home is ...the stable window that opens out into the imagination."
Patchett attended high school at St. Bernard Academy, a private, non-parochial Catholic school for girls run by the Sisters of Mercy. Following graduation, she attended Sarah Lawrence College and took fiction writing classes with Allan Gurganus, Russell Banks, and Grace Paley. She later attended the Iowa Writers' Workshop at the University of Iowa and the Fine Arts Work Center in Provincetown, Massachusetts, where she met longtime friend Elizabeth McCracken. It was also there that she wrote her first novel, The Patron Saint of Liars.
In 2010, when she found that her hometown of Nashville no longer had a good book store, she co-founded Parnassus Books with Karen Hayes; the store opened in November 2011. In 2012, Patchett was on the Time 100 list of most influential people in the world by TIME magazine.
She moved to Nashville, Tennessee when she was six, where she continues to live. Patchett said she loves her home in Nashville with her doctor husband and dog. If asked if she could go any place, that place would always be home. "Home is ...the stable window that opens out into the imagination."
Patchett attended high school at St. Bernard Academy, a private, non-parochial Catholic school for girls run by the Sisters of Mercy. Following graduation, she attended Sarah Lawrence College and took fiction writing classes with Allan Gurganus, Russell Banks, and Grace Paley. She later attended the Iowa Writers' Workshop at the University of Iowa and the Fine Arts Work Center in Provincetown, Massachusetts, where she met longtime friend Elizabeth McCracken. It was also there that she wrote her first novel, The Patron Saint of Liars.
In 2010, when she found that her hometown of Nashville no longer had a good book store, she co-founded Parnassus Books with Karen Hayes; the store opened in November 2011. In 2012, Patchett was on the Time 100 list of most influential people in the world by TIME magazine.
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November 21, 2024
I've been thinking a lot lately about what it means to be a good person. In part because I recently rewatched every episode of "The Good Place" and want to study more virtue ethics, but also because one of the most selfish, vindictive, and morally bankrupt human beings in the modern world has narrowly won the election to be the next president of the United States (again).
While most of us are trying to be better today than we were yesterday, the man leading the MAGA movement has no interest in becoming a better person, or even in trying to simply be kind to others.
But you know who is kind? Who always shows grace and compassion toward others? Who always makes me want to be a better person? Ann Patchett. Every time I read one of her essays or books I am reminded of how much I wish I was more like her. Not only am I envious of her brilliant writing — “Bel Canto” was the first novel of hers that I fell in love with — but I had the good fortune to attend one of her book talks when she was on tour, and witnessed firsthand how waves of goodness and kindness just emanate off her.
There is a scene in "What Now?" that illustrates my point. When Ann was a freshman in college, she was lonely and decided to bake cookies for another student who had been nice to her. So she bought all the ingredients and even bought the pans and utensils needed, but then discovered that the oven in her dormitory's kitchen didn't work. So she took her pans of raw cookie dough outside to see if she could find an oven in another building. She saw a house across the street that looked occupied, and bravely went up and knocked on the door, ready to ask a complete stranger if she could use her oven. The woman who answered the door turned out to be the new president of the college, and Ann soon became friends with the whole family and regularly babysat and even helped out at their dinner parties.
How charming can one person be?!? I wish I had Ann's good instincts: When lonely, bake someone cookies. When needing something, be brave enough to march next door and ask for help. My point is I could learn a lot from Ann's stories.
I decided to reread "What Now?" when I was tidying my bookshelves, and discovered I still had this slip of a book. It's an extended essay version of a commencement speech Ann gave at Sarah Lawrence College, and if you are a fan of Ann's work, I highly recommend it. It has interesting details about what inspired a few of her stories, and also some encouraging words on not being afraid of the future. It ended up being the perfect thing I could have reread this weekend, and once again I am so grateful for Ann and her writing.
(Also, her bookshop in Nashville is excellent. Highly recommend a visit there if you're ever in the area.)
Meaningful Quotes
"None of us ever outgrows the need for a teacher."
"[P]eople need to talk, and often a willingness to sit and listen is the greatest kindness one person can offer to another."
"Sometimes the best we can hope for is to be graceful and brave in the face of all the changes that will surely come. It also helps to have a sense of humor about your own fate, to not think that you alone are blessed when good fortune comes your way, or cursed when it passes you by."
"Just because things hadn't gone the way I had planned didn't necessarily mean they had gone wrong."
"For the most part wisdom comes in chips rather than blocks. You have to be willing to gather them constantly, and from sources you never imagined to be probable. No one chip gives you the answer for everything."
"Sometimes not having any idea where we're going works out better than we could possibly have imagined."
While most of us are trying to be better today than we were yesterday, the man leading the MAGA movement has no interest in becoming a better person, or even in trying to simply be kind to others.
But you know who is kind? Who always shows grace and compassion toward others? Who always makes me want to be a better person? Ann Patchett. Every time I read one of her essays or books I am reminded of how much I wish I was more like her. Not only am I envious of her brilliant writing — “Bel Canto” was the first novel of hers that I fell in love with — but I had the good fortune to attend one of her book talks when she was on tour, and witnessed firsthand how waves of goodness and kindness just emanate off her.
There is a scene in "What Now?" that illustrates my point. When Ann was a freshman in college, she was lonely and decided to bake cookies for another student who had been nice to her. So she bought all the ingredients and even bought the pans and utensils needed, but then discovered that the oven in her dormitory's kitchen didn't work. So she took her pans of raw cookie dough outside to see if she could find an oven in another building. She saw a house across the street that looked occupied, and bravely went up and knocked on the door, ready to ask a complete stranger if she could use her oven. The woman who answered the door turned out to be the new president of the college, and Ann soon became friends with the whole family and regularly babysat and even helped out at their dinner parties.
How charming can one person be?!? I wish I had Ann's good instincts: When lonely, bake someone cookies. When needing something, be brave enough to march next door and ask for help. My point is I could learn a lot from Ann's stories.
I decided to reread "What Now?" when I was tidying my bookshelves, and discovered I still had this slip of a book. It's an extended essay version of a commencement speech Ann gave at Sarah Lawrence College, and if you are a fan of Ann's work, I highly recommend it. It has interesting details about what inspired a few of her stories, and also some encouraging words on not being afraid of the future. It ended up being the perfect thing I could have reread this weekend, and once again I am so grateful for Ann and her writing.
(Also, her bookshop in Nashville is excellent. Highly recommend a visit there if you're ever in the area.)
Meaningful Quotes
"None of us ever outgrows the need for a teacher."
"[P]eople need to talk, and often a willingness to sit and listen is the greatest kindness one person can offer to another."
"Sometimes the best we can hope for is to be graceful and brave in the face of all the changes that will surely come. It also helps to have a sense of humor about your own fate, to not think that you alone are blessed when good fortune comes your way, or cursed when it passes you by."
"Just because things hadn't gone the way I had planned didn't necessarily mean they had gone wrong."
"For the most part wisdom comes in chips rather than blocks. You have to be willing to gather them constantly, and from sources you never imagined to be probable. No one chip gives you the answer for everything."
"Sometimes not having any idea where we're going works out better than we could possibly have imagined."
December 8, 2018
Ann Patchett’s What Now? was inspired by the commencement speech she gave at Sarah Lawrence College, her alma mater. It’s a short read, in which she explores the inevitable question of “What now?” that we are all often asked at pivotal turning points throughout life: post graduation, post championship, post career change, and at many other milestones. There are numerous TBD moments in life - Patchett reminds us to embrace them.
”It was for me the start of a lesson that I never stop having to learn: to pay attention to the things I’ll probably never need to know, to listen carefully to the people who look as if they have nothing to teach me, to see school as something that goes on everywhere, all the time, not just in libraries but in parking lots, in airports, in trees.”
I have enjoyed most of Patchett’s fiction books I’ve read, and also really enjoyed The Getaway Car, a short memoir about her life and about writing. What Now? was a quick, enjoyable read though I didn’t like it as much as The Getaway Car. There is still something to be gained for everyone here. This book would likely have the biggest impact on young adults, unsure of what they want their next step(s) to be.
”Hours and hours of my day are spent with my eyes glazed over, thinking, waiting, trying to figure things out. The muse is a sweet idea, like the tooth fairy. The muse supposedly comes down like lighting and fills your fingers with the necessary voltage to type up something brilliant. But nobody ever made a living depending on a muse. The rest of us have to go out and find our inspiration, write and rewrite, stare and stare and stare until we know which way to turn.”
”It was for me the start of a lesson that I never stop having to learn: to pay attention to the things I’ll probably never need to know, to listen carefully to the people who look as if they have nothing to teach me, to see school as something that goes on everywhere, all the time, not just in libraries but in parking lots, in airports, in trees.”
I have enjoyed most of Patchett’s fiction books I’ve read, and also really enjoyed The Getaway Car, a short memoir about her life and about writing. What Now? was a quick, enjoyable read though I didn’t like it as much as The Getaway Car. There is still something to be gained for everyone here. This book would likely have the biggest impact on young adults, unsure of what they want their next step(s) to be.
”Hours and hours of my day are spent with my eyes glazed over, thinking, waiting, trying to figure things out. The muse is a sweet idea, like the tooth fairy. The muse supposedly comes down like lighting and fills your fingers with the necessary voltage to type up something brilliant. But nobody ever made a living depending on a muse. The rest of us have to go out and find our inspiration, write and rewrite, stare and stare and stare until we know which way to turn.”
December 19, 2022
An audio 53 minute gem —
January 26, 2013
A very quick and inspiring read. Originally a commencement speech at her alma mater, Sarah Lawrence, Patchett describes how life continuously presents new "What Nows." F. Scott Fitzgerald had a similar way of dealing with life in "This Side of Paradise" by having his character "Do the next thing." Both sentiments are applicable to the new graduate and anyone on the planet... because when faced with obstacles or doldroms we all wonder "What Now?"
Favorite excerpts:
"Sometimes the circumstances at hand force us to be braver than we actually are, and so we knock on doors and ask for assistance. Sometimes not having any idea where we're going works out better than we could possibly have imagined."
"...people need to talk, and often a willingness to sit and listen is the greatest kindness one person can offer to another."
"If you're lucky, putting together your life is a process that will last through every single day you're alive."
"Being successful, and certainly being happy, comes from honing your skills in working with other people."
"Just because things hadn't gone the way I had planned didn't necessarily mean they had gone wrong."
"The secret is finding the balance between going out to get what you want and being open to the thing that actually winds up coming your way."
"There's a time in our lives when we all crave the answers. It seems terrifying not to know what's coming next. But there is another time, a better time, when we see our lives as a series of choices... "
Favorite excerpts:
"Sometimes the circumstances at hand force us to be braver than we actually are, and so we knock on doors and ask for assistance. Sometimes not having any idea where we're going works out better than we could possibly have imagined."
"...people need to talk, and often a willingness to sit and listen is the greatest kindness one person can offer to another."
"If you're lucky, putting together your life is a process that will last through every single day you're alive."
"Being successful, and certainly being happy, comes from honing your skills in working with other people."
"Just because things hadn't gone the way I had planned didn't necessarily mean they had gone wrong."
"The secret is finding the balance between going out to get what you want and being open to the thing that actually winds up coming your way."
"There's a time in our lives when we all crave the answers. It seems terrifying not to know what's coming next. But there is another time, a better time, when we see our lives as a series of choices... "
December 26, 2020
An extension of her commencement speech @ Sarah Lawrence College, Patchett tackles the meaning of life and how to attain satisfaction, specifically after graduation, but also much further down the line.
Short and sweet as far as books go, great for the coffee table or the obvious graduation gift.
Valuable for some quotes if nothing else.
Audio version would be stirring.
Nothing in it blew me away, but certainly offered insights of value.
Ann Patchett has some excellent published works in both the fiction and nonfiction genres, this inspiration or self-help addition seems only expected.
Short and sweet as far as books go, great for the coffee table or the obvious graduation gift.
Valuable for some quotes if nothing else.
Audio version would be stirring.
Nothing in it blew me away, but certainly offered insights of value.
Ann Patchett has some excellent published works in both the fiction and nonfiction genres, this inspiration or self-help addition seems only expected.
May 6, 2024
Sometimes, when asked why I live on the west Gulf coast of Florida, I say it is because Kennedy was elected president. Say what? My Dad helped run his presidential campaign and we moved from NH to DC. We picked up the son of one of his associates at the airport and the son arrived carrying a fine Nikon camera. When I asked about it he explained the numbers and I was hooked. He later constructed a darkroom and along with Dad's staff photographer's help I began my love of photography leading to many courses and seminars over the years. I was living in Orlando and picked up an enlargement and the store owner complimented me on the shot and suggested I enter it in Selby. "What's a Selby?", asks I and he explains it is a botanical garden on the west coast that hosts an annual competition and gave me an entry form. I won the landscape division and went over for the ceremony and discovered a patch of Florida I never knew existed and we relocated there within the year.
I mention this as a tie-in to Patchett's book as it begins with her arriving at college and wanting to make her advisor some cookies. Whips them up only to find that the dorm oven doesn't work so off she goes in search of a working oven. The first place she comes to is a home where the new college president answers the door amidst moving in boxes. She takes pity on the the Freshman and leads Ann to the kitchen and gives her free reign. Ann left a nice thank you note on a paper towel when she left. She later went back as baby sitter, server at dinner parties and sometime cook. Naturally, meaningful connections and ideas resulted.
Maybe it is my fondness for Ann as a writer that I enjoyed her life advice and descriptions in this slender tome. Probably the most telling quote - “Just because things hadn't gone the way I had planned didn't necessarily mean they had gone wrong.” So true! Probably led to my enjoying the slogan -"We can't control the wind, but we can adjust the sails!"
Anyway, I found the slender tome enjoyable and worthy. For those critical of the brevity of the book and the padding with pix illustrating the "What now?" theme, bear in mind that it is a recap of a commencement speech she gave at Sarah Lawrence college, so lighten up. A quick, worthy distraction and probably an ideal gift for your relatives graduating shortly!
I mention this as a tie-in to Patchett's book as it begins with her arriving at college and wanting to make her advisor some cookies. Whips them up only to find that the dorm oven doesn't work so off she goes in search of a working oven. The first place she comes to is a home where the new college president answers the door amidst moving in boxes. She takes pity on the the Freshman and leads Ann to the kitchen and gives her free reign. Ann left a nice thank you note on a paper towel when she left. She later went back as baby sitter, server at dinner parties and sometime cook. Naturally, meaningful connections and ideas resulted.
Maybe it is my fondness for Ann as a writer that I enjoyed her life advice and descriptions in this slender tome. Probably the most telling quote - “Just because things hadn't gone the way I had planned didn't necessarily mean they had gone wrong.” So true! Probably led to my enjoying the slogan -"We can't control the wind, but we can adjust the sails!"
Anyway, I found the slender tome enjoyable and worthy. For those critical of the brevity of the book and the padding with pix illustrating the "What now?" theme, bear in mind that it is a recap of a commencement speech she gave at Sarah Lawrence college, so lighten up. A quick, worthy distraction and probably an ideal gift for your relatives graduating shortly!
July 12, 2008
I really enjoyed this speech-turned-essay. So many wonderful morsels of wisdom to "chew on". She shares a few personal anecdotes, but does not make the speech about herself. It is inspiring and contemplative, encouraging her audience to look inward for happiness; and then sharing it with the world.
Because it was a commencement speech that she have at her alma mater, it is almost guaranteed that it will remind you of your college/university days. Unfortunately, I don't remember anything about the commencement speech at my college graduation, so I will keep this one in mind.
I see it becoming a bestseller gift around high school and college graduations in May and June of each year, alongside Dr. Seuss's "Oh, The Places You Will Go!"
Because it was a commencement speech that she have at her alma mater, it is almost guaranteed that it will remind you of your college/university days. Unfortunately, I don't remember anything about the commencement speech at my college graduation, so I will keep this one in mind.
I see it becoming a bestseller gift around high school and college graduations in May and June of each year, alongside Dr. Seuss's "Oh, The Places You Will Go!"
October 21, 2024
It’s a fitting time to read a commencement speech by my favorite author. There was nothing revolutionary in here, but lots of good reminders about how living with uncertainty and not having everything planned makes for a more rewarding life. The audiobook read by Ann Patchett was nice.
“Sometimes not having any idea where we’re going works out better than we possibly could have imagined.”
“Often a willingness to sit and listen is the greatest kindness one person can offer another.”
“Sometimes not having any idea where we’re going works out better than we possibly could have imagined.”
“Often a willingness to sit and listen is the greatest kindness one person can offer another.”
July 19, 2016
“Just because things hadn't gone the way I had planned didn't necessarily mean they had gone wrong.”
This was a very powerful and moving essay that I feel like came in my life during the perfect time, considering I just graduated high school and that question seems to be suffocating me. It really offered me a new perspective and made me feel a lot more comforted. I needed this in my life, and I think that I will be re-reading it any time that nagging question pops in my head again. I'd recommend this book to anyone of any age because I think we each face this question in different ways at different stages of our life.
This was a very powerful and moving essay that I feel like came in my life during the perfect time, considering I just graduated high school and that question seems to be suffocating me. It really offered me a new perspective and made me feel a lot more comforted. I needed this in my life, and I think that I will be re-reading it any time that nagging question pops in my head again. I'd recommend this book to anyone of any age because I think we each face this question in different ways at different stages of our life.
February 15, 2020
Second reading. It was a huge disappointment after other Patchett books. I took the audio out from the library. A ten dollar price tag for a short book is shameful.
August 20, 2024
Short & sweet, and perfectly Patchett. Wish I would have read this right after graduation. Wish she would have been my commencement speaker…
“Sometimes the circumstances at hand force us to be braver than we actually are, and so we knock on doors and ask for assistance. Sometimes not having any idea where we’re going works out better than we could possibly have imagined.”
“Sometimes the circumstances at hand force us to be braver than we actually are, and so we knock on doors and ask for assistance. Sometimes not having any idea where we’re going works out better than we could possibly have imagined.”
December 15, 2022
Fiction writing is like duck hunting. You go to the right place at the right time with the right dog. You get into the water before dawn, wearing a little protective gear, then you stand behind some reeds and wait for the story to present itself. This is not to say you are passive. You choose the place and the day. You pick the gun and the dog. You have the desire to blow the duck apart for reasons that are entirely your own. But you have to be willing to accept not what you wanted to have happen, but what happens. You have to write the story you find in the circumstances you've created, because more often than not the ducks don't show up. The hunters in the next blind begin to argue, and you realize they're in love. You see a snake swimming in your direction. Your dog begins to shiver and whine, and you start to think about this gun that belonged to your father. By the time you get out of the marsh, you will have written a novel so devoid of ducks it will shock you.
-Ann Patchett
Ann Patchett. I like you!
More advice from Ann—an essay in response to a commencement address she gave at Sarah Lawrence College:
If you’re trying to find out what’s coming next, turn off everything you own that has an off switch. Make up some plans and change them. Identify your hearts truest desire and don’t change that for anything. Be proud of yourself for the work you’ve done. Be grateful to all the people who helped you do it.
-Ann Patchett
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
June 8, 2025
????????
I found Ann Patchett's short essay "What Now?" in the library and wanted to give it a read. Patchett is the author of the successful novel "Bel Canto" and several other books. "What Now?" is an expanded version of the commencement address Patchett gave in 2006 at her alma mater, Sarah Lawrence University. Far from graduating and setting out to work, I have just retired from a lengthy career of over 30 years. Thus, although not part of the specific audience for Patchett's essay, I am again at something of a crossroads of the type Patchett describes. I face the question "What Now?" many times as people ask me what I plan to do in retirement. And I respond, as Patchett did when she heard the question herself with something of frustration. The question marks in the title of this review are meant to be appropriate. They show better than anything else, with the possible exception of the many photos accompanying the text, the nature of the book and the open-ended character of the question. Patchett uses the question marks repeatedly in separating out the various sections of her essay.
Drawing well on her own experiences, Patchett shows how people face the question, "What Now?" at various apparent turning points of their lives: where will you go to college? what will you do after graduation? when should I change my job? and of course "what will I do when I retire"? The essay gives a good sense of how this question can be frightening, invasive, and befuddling. She also shows how the question can be parried or redirected. Sometimes a person needs to wait and reflect and take life in the moment. An individual changes, life moves on, and direction is taken unobtrusively, not only in seemingly critical moments of choice.
Learning is continuous and comes in unexpected places. Patchett describes an encounter with an adherent of Hare Krishna years ago at a Chicago airport. While Patchett was leery of the man and his sect, his goal was not to convert or to seduce. Rather, the Hare Krishna adherent wanted only to talk and to help Patchett with the mundane task of moving her heavy baggage from one section of the large airport to another, distant part of the terminal. Patchett learned from the young man's eagerness to talk and from his devotion to God, as he understood God, in the life he had chosen at least for that moment. The Hare Krishna adherent had answered the question "What Now" by his life. In other episodes, Patchett shows how she unexpectedly spent time after her graduation from Sarah Lawrence in simply wandering, and in working as a waitress at a chain fast-food restaurant. She seemed far from her goal of becoming a writer but learned things in unexpected ways from people she would not have thought had anything to teach her. She came to her dream in a circuitous way. Other people develop their dream as they go along.
I do not feel especially stressed at retirement or at thinking about what to do. But I did feel stressed much of the time as a younger man as I faced the "What Now?" choices Patchett describes -- college, Law School, career, advancement, and the possibility of uncertainty and disappointment. There undoubtedly was much to learn as I faced these "What Nows?". Patchett's essay is simple and wise. There is something to be said for both change and patience. And people find what they need in unexpected places.
Robin Friedman
I found Ann Patchett's short essay "What Now?" in the library and wanted to give it a read. Patchett is the author of the successful novel "Bel Canto" and several other books. "What Now?" is an expanded version of the commencement address Patchett gave in 2006 at her alma mater, Sarah Lawrence University. Far from graduating and setting out to work, I have just retired from a lengthy career of over 30 years. Thus, although not part of the specific audience for Patchett's essay, I am again at something of a crossroads of the type Patchett describes. I face the question "What Now?" many times as people ask me what I plan to do in retirement. And I respond, as Patchett did when she heard the question herself with something of frustration. The question marks in the title of this review are meant to be appropriate. They show better than anything else, with the possible exception of the many photos accompanying the text, the nature of the book and the open-ended character of the question. Patchett uses the question marks repeatedly in separating out the various sections of her essay.
Drawing well on her own experiences, Patchett shows how people face the question, "What Now?" at various apparent turning points of their lives: where will you go to college? what will you do after graduation? when should I change my job? and of course "what will I do when I retire"? The essay gives a good sense of how this question can be frightening, invasive, and befuddling. She also shows how the question can be parried or redirected. Sometimes a person needs to wait and reflect and take life in the moment. An individual changes, life moves on, and direction is taken unobtrusively, not only in seemingly critical moments of choice.
Learning is continuous and comes in unexpected places. Patchett describes an encounter with an adherent of Hare Krishna years ago at a Chicago airport. While Patchett was leery of the man and his sect, his goal was not to convert or to seduce. Rather, the Hare Krishna adherent wanted only to talk and to help Patchett with the mundane task of moving her heavy baggage from one section of the large airport to another, distant part of the terminal. Patchett learned from the young man's eagerness to talk and from his devotion to God, as he understood God, in the life he had chosen at least for that moment. The Hare Krishna adherent had answered the question "What Now" by his life. In other episodes, Patchett shows how she unexpectedly spent time after her graduation from Sarah Lawrence in simply wandering, and in working as a waitress at a chain fast-food restaurant. She seemed far from her goal of becoming a writer but learned things in unexpected ways from people she would not have thought had anything to teach her. She came to her dream in a circuitous way. Other people develop their dream as they go along.
I do not feel especially stressed at retirement or at thinking about what to do. But I did feel stressed much of the time as a younger man as I faced the "What Now?" choices Patchett describes -- college, Law School, career, advancement, and the possibility of uncertainty and disappointment. There undoubtedly was much to learn as I faced these "What Nows?". Patchett's essay is simple and wise. There is something to be said for both change and patience. And people find what they need in unexpected places.
Robin Friedman
October 6, 2016
I listened to the audiobook What now? written and read by Ann Patchett, a favourite author of mine. This book is based on a commencement address she made at Sarah Lawrence College.
I love listening to her voice! She offers inspiration and hope and stresses the importance of listening and staring.
With humour and honesty she tells about the twists and turns in the path she followed to reach her goal of becoming a novelist - college, graduating, cooking, teaching and waitressing, demonstrated how she answered
the question What now? at the many crossroads of her life.
I enjoyed learning more about Ann Patchett's past and could identify with asking the question What now? at various times in my life.
3.5 stars
I love listening to her voice! She offers inspiration and hope and stresses the importance of listening and staring.
With humour and honesty she tells about the twists and turns in the path she followed to reach her goal of becoming a novelist - college, graduating, cooking, teaching and waitressing, demonstrated how she answered
the question What now? at the many crossroads of her life.
I enjoyed learning more about Ann Patchett's past and could identify with asking the question What now? at various times in my life.
3.5 stars
May 21, 2017
This makes for a long commencement speech, but a short audiobook. I can see how many people would find it inspiring and reassuring, despite its cliche flavor.
I like that it's not necessarily geared specifically at new college graduates; Patchett emphasizes that we reach many different intimidating crossroads throughout our lives. And that these unsure times should be cherished rather than rushed. But, damn, as always, it's a whole lot easier to say that once you're older and already know that your life has worked out okay. Also when you're privileged enough to always have had a secure financial future.... but thanks for the inspiration, I guess....
I like that it's not necessarily geared specifically at new college graduates; Patchett emphasizes that we reach many different intimidating crossroads throughout our lives. And that these unsure times should be cherished rather than rushed. But, damn, as always, it's a whole lot easier to say that once you're older and already know that your life has worked out okay. Also when you're privileged enough to always have had a secure financial future.... but thanks for the inspiration, I guess....
January 1, 2024
So glad I was able to squeeze in one more Ann Patchett before the end of the year. Looking forward to reading more on her backlist.
July 3, 2024
This is an extended version of the commencement address Ann Patchett gave at Sarah Lawrence. Very quick read (or listen to her read it as I did). Recommend to all the recent grads, but highly recommend to my fellow SLC alumni.
December 30, 2024
Ann can do no wrong
April 9, 2021
What Now? is Ann Patchett's commencement speech to a graduating class at Sarah Lawrence, her alma mater. The essay is actually a very personal, introspective look into Ann's life and the cross roads she faced when she was working towards her goal of becoming a novelist. It probably goes without saying that this book would make a nice graduation gift. But it also offers encouragement to anyone who is about to try something new or is facing an unknown future - which means this book is for everyone.
I'll just add one minor negative comment. In my opinion, it wasn't necessary to include so many photographs of people peering over the garden hedges with an imaginary question mark over their heads. I got it - people are trying to decide which way to go. Footprints forming a circle in the sand - got it.
One final thought - this little treasure is probably the kind of book that you could read once a year, maybe on New Year's Eve or on your birthday, when you are thinking about where you are going and where you have been.
I'll just add one minor negative comment. In my opinion, it wasn't necessary to include so many photographs of people peering over the garden hedges with an imaginary question mark over their heads. I got it - people are trying to decide which way to go. Footprints forming a circle in the sand - got it.
One final thought - this little treasure is probably the kind of book that you could read once a year, maybe on New Year's Eve or on your birthday, when you are thinking about where you are going and where you have been.
June 2, 2023
I could not visit the charming and inviting Parnassus Books in Nashville without coming home with some Ann Patchett and I didn't own this extended essay so I grabbed a signed copy. What a pleasure to sit on my sunny deck immersed in her inspiration.
This essay is based on a Commencement Address she delivered in 2008 so it's dated, but not really. I'm no 22 year old woman on the cusp of young life and yet ... What Now ... remains a question and concept at every stage of life.
Two of my sons graduated college and high school last month ... What Now?
I am transitioning to a new professional role next month ... What Now?
The beloved matriarch of our family passed away last summer ... What Now?
In very few pages, Ann Patchett reassured me it's OK to keep asking the question. She made me smile and gladdened my heart with the lessons we keep learning every single day. She reminded me to quiet myself and to treasure new discoveries. She challenged me to consider the strength in following instead of leading. And, importantly, she invited me to consider the true meaning of success.
I know I will come back to this time and again in my never-ending life of What Now.
This essay is based on a Commencement Address she delivered in 2008 so it's dated, but not really. I'm no 22 year old woman on the cusp of young life and yet ... What Now ... remains a question and concept at every stage of life.
Two of my sons graduated college and high school last month ... What Now?
I am transitioning to a new professional role next month ... What Now?
The beloved matriarch of our family passed away last summer ... What Now?
In very few pages, Ann Patchett reassured me it's OK to keep asking the question. She made me smile and gladdened my heart with the lessons we keep learning every single day. She reminded me to quiet myself and to treasure new discoveries. She challenged me to consider the strength in following instead of leading. And, importantly, she invited me to consider the true meaning of success.
I know I will come back to this time and again in my never-ending life of What Now.
December 29, 2020
My father gave me this book as a gift when I graduated high school, eager to start undergrad at none other than Sarah Lawrence. I have reread this book more times than I can count. I carried it in my purse until it started to fall apart. I have come back to this book over and over for guidance and comfort in all those times in life when I have found myself asking that title question once again.
December 31, 2017
I ended my 2016 year of reading with Rilke's "Letters to a Young Poet." Wanting something short and inspirational to end 2017 I remembered this tiny book I picked up at a book sale. Patchett's wisdom is potent and I will carry it with me in the new year.
May 22, 2025
“What now is not just a panic-stricken question tossed out into a dark unknown. What now can also be our joy. It is a declaration of possibility, of promise, of chance. It acknowledges that our future is open, that we may well do more than anyone expected of us, that at every point in our development we are striving to grow.”
Grad gift from my mom <3 such a good speech, very applicable to this phase of life!
Grad gift from my mom <3 such a good speech, very applicable to this phase of life!
August 6, 2025
“It wasn’t just that I couldn’t find the key to the door, I couldn’t find the door.”
September 14, 2025
lovely. made me feel better about some post-grad feelings
October 7, 2024
Childhood bedroom find. This little book is so sweet and wise. Patchett reminds us that while the question of “What Now?” is the relentless drumbeat of our lives, it is also an opportunity to seize. What a gift to be ever-evolving and learning! Perfect read to kick off a new week.
October 5, 2025
even in such a brief space, ann patchett is brilliant
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August 18, 2020Fantastic--and even better read as the audiobook with Patchett as narrator.
January 20, 2020
Ninety-seven pages, Ann Patchett's Sarah Lawrence commencement address takes about a half hour to read. Actually, I have no idea how long it took me to read, but when I looked up after finishing it, the sun had risen outside my window, and I felt clarity as to the answer to the question: What Now?
Thank you, Ann.
Thank you, Ann.
January 2, 2012
A great way to start 2012.
I had forgotten how much I enjoyed Ann Patchett's writing in Bel Canto, and I am excited to rediscover her and plan to read several of her novels this year.
"What Now?" is a short Commencement Address that she gave at her alma mater - Sarah Lawrence.
It is full of good advice for anyone.
My favorite passages:
"And sometimes, we don't realize what we've learned until we've already known it for a very long time."
"I never stop having to learn: to pay attention to the things I'll probably never need to know, to listen carefully to the people who look as if they have nothing to teach me, to see school as something that goes on everywhere, all the time, not just in libraries but in parking lots, in airports, in trees."
"I should have known all along: people need to talk, and often a willingness to sit and listen is the greatest kindness one person can offer to another."
"For the most part wisdom comes in chips rather than blocks. You have to be willing to gather them constantly, and from sources you never imagined to be probable. No one chip gives you the answer for everything. No one chip stays in the same place throughout your entire life. The secret is to keep adding voices, adding ideas, and moving things around as you put your life together. If you're lucky, putting together your life is a process that will last through every single day you're alive."
"There are too many forces, as deep and invisible as tides, that keep us bouncing into places where we never thought we'd wind up. Sometimes the best we can hope for is to be graceful and brave in the face of all of the changes that will surely come."
"It also helps to have a sense of humor about your own fate, to not think that you alone are blessed when good fortune comes your way, or cursed when it passes you by. It helps if you can realize that this part of life when you don't know what's coming next is often the part that people look back on with the greatest affection."
"What now is always going to be a work in progress. What now was never what you think it's going to be, and that's what every writer has to learn."
I had forgotten how much I enjoyed Ann Patchett's writing in Bel Canto, and I am excited to rediscover her and plan to read several of her novels this year.
"What Now?" is a short Commencement Address that she gave at her alma mater - Sarah Lawrence.
It is full of good advice for anyone.
My favorite passages:
"And sometimes, we don't realize what we've learned until we've already known it for a very long time."
"I never stop having to learn: to pay attention to the things I'll probably never need to know, to listen carefully to the people who look as if they have nothing to teach me, to see school as something that goes on everywhere, all the time, not just in libraries but in parking lots, in airports, in trees."
"I should have known all along: people need to talk, and often a willingness to sit and listen is the greatest kindness one person can offer to another."
"For the most part wisdom comes in chips rather than blocks. You have to be willing to gather them constantly, and from sources you never imagined to be probable. No one chip gives you the answer for everything. No one chip stays in the same place throughout your entire life. The secret is to keep adding voices, adding ideas, and moving things around as you put your life together. If you're lucky, putting together your life is a process that will last through every single day you're alive."
"There are too many forces, as deep and invisible as tides, that keep us bouncing into places where we never thought we'd wind up. Sometimes the best we can hope for is to be graceful and brave in the face of all of the changes that will surely come."
"It also helps to have a sense of humor about your own fate, to not think that you alone are blessed when good fortune comes your way, or cursed when it passes you by. It helps if you can realize that this part of life when you don't know what's coming next is often the part that people look back on with the greatest affection."
"What now is always going to be a work in progress. What now was never what you think it's going to be, and that's what every writer has to learn."
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