Jane Smiley: Golden Age

Walter Langdon (1895)

Wilmer Langdon — Walter’s father

Elizabeth Chick — Walter’s mother

Ruth Cheek and Lester Chick — Walter’s maternal grandparents

Etta Cheek — mother of Ruth Cheek

Lester and Howard — Walter’s brothers

Rosanna Vogel Langdon (1900)—Walter’s wife

Otto Vogel — Rosanna’s father

Mary Augsberger — Rosanna’s mother

Charlotta Kleinfelder — Otto’s mother

Herman and Augustina Augsberger (“Opa” and “Oma”) — Rosanna’s maternal grandparents

Rolf, Eloise, John, Gus, and Kurt — Rosanna’s siblings

Julius Silber — Eloise’s husband

Rosa — Eloise and Julius’s daughter

Elton Jackman — Rosa’s first husband, Lacey’s father

Lacey — Rosa and Elton’s daughter

Ross — Eloise’s second husband

Shelia — John’s wife

Gary, Buddy, Jimmy — John and Sheila’s sons

Angela — Gus’s wife

Francis “Frank” Langdon—first child of Walter and Rosanna

Hildegarde Andrea Bergstrom “Andy”—Frank’s wife

Janet — Frank and Andy’s eldest daughter

Jared Nelson — Janet’s husband

Emily and Jared — Janet and Jared’s children

Richard “Richie” & Michael — Frank and Andy’s twin sons

Ivy — Richie’s wife

Leonard “Leo”—Richie and Ivy’s son

Britt — Leo’s wife

Mona — Leo and Britt’s daughter

Jack — Britt’s son

Loretta Perroni — Michael’s wife

Chance, Tia, Beatrice “Binky”—Michael and Loretta’s children

Delilah Rankin — Chance’s wife

Raymond Chandler — Chance and Delilah’s son

Emile — Tia’s husband

Chris — Binky’s husband

Joseph “Joe” Langdon—second child of Walter and Rosanna

Lois Frederick — Joe’s wife

Roland and Lorena Frederick — Lois’s parents

Minnie — Lois’s sister

Ann “Annie” and Joseph “Jesse”—Joe and Lois’s children

Jennifer Guthrie — Jesse’s wife

Joseph “Guthrie,” Franklin Perkins “Perky,” and Felicity — Jesse and Jennifer’s children

Ezra Newmark — Felicity’s husband

Mary Elizabeth Langdon—third child of Walter and Rosanna

Lillian Elizabeth Langdon—fourth child of Walter and Rosanna

Arthur Brinks Manning — Lillian’s husband

Sarah Cole DeRocher and Colonel Brinks Manning — Arthur’s parents

Timothy “Tim,” Deborah “Debbie,” Dean Henry, and Christina Eloise “Tina”—Lillian and Arthur’s children

Charlie Wickett — Tim’s son

Fiona McCorkle — Charlie’s mother

Riley Calhoun — Charlie’s wife

Alexis — Tim and Riley’s daughter

Hugh — Debbie’s husband

Carlie and Kevin “Kevvie”—Debbie and Hugh’s children

Linda — Dean’s wife

Eric — Dean and Linda’s son

Cheryl — Linda’s daughter

Henry—fifth child of Walter and Rosanna

Claire—sixth child of Walter and Rosanna

Paul Darnell — Claire’s first husband

Grayson and Bradley — Claire and Paul’s sons

Lisa — Grayson’s wife

Dustin — Grayson and Lisa’s son

Samantha — Bradley’s wife

Laure and Ned — Bradley and Samantha’s children

Carl — Claire’s second husband

Angie — Carl’s daughter

Doug Schmidt — Angie’s husband

Peter, Rhea, and Dash — Angie and Doug’s children

IT WAS FRIDAY. Everyone was somewhere else, doing last-minute chores. The tall young man got out of his little green station wagon, stretched, looked around, took off his sunglasses, and started up the walk. Minnie Frederick, who saw him through her bedroom window, dropped the stack of sheets she was carrying and ran down the stairs. But he was not at the door, and when she went out onto the porch, he was nowhere to be seen. Back in the house, through the kitchen, out onto the stoop. Still nothing, apart from Jesse, her nephew, a noisy dot, cultivating the bean field east of the Osage-orange hedge. She walked around the house to the front porch. The car was still there. She crossed to it and looked in the window. A pair of fancy boots in the foot well of the passenger’s seat, two wadded-up pieces of waxed paper, a soda can. She stood beside the green car for a long moment, then touched the hood. It was warm. It was real. She was not imagining things, sixty-seven years old, she who came from a long line of crazy people on all sides, who was both happy and relieved to have chosen long ago not to reproduce. What, she thought, was the not-crazy thing to do? It was to make a glass of iced tea and see if her sister, Lois, had left any shortbread in the cookie jar.

When did Lois first mention him — Charlie Wickett — sometime in January? But Minnie hadn’t paid attention, because she was planning her summer trip to Rome. He was Tim’s son, Lillian and Arthur’s grandson, produced by means of one of those irresponsible high-school romances that every principal was only too familiar with. The baby had ended up in St. Louis. Tim had ended up in Vietnam, killed by a grenade fragment. Charlie now lived in Aspen, said he would be happy to meet everyone, to drive to Denby, and within a week, a reunion had exploded around his coming. They were all heading to the farm — Frank and Andy, Michael and Richie with their wives and kids, Janet, alone (Minnie remembered that Janet had always had a thing about Tim), Arthur and Debbie and her kids (Hugh, her husband, couldn’t come because of exams, though). There hadn’t been a family gathering of this size since Claire’s wedding—1962, that was. Minnie hoped everyone would mind their manners. She knew plenty of farm families who did not get along, but they kept their conflicts to themselves and behaved, at least in public. Families that had scattered, like the Langdons, could end up looking and acting like alien species of a single genus. Frank had nothing in common with Joe (never had), except that, thanks to Frank, the farm was paid off. Frank let Jesse and Joe work the land however they wished. Lillian, whom everyone had loved, had passed three and a half years before, and there was plenty of family gossip about what a mess Arthur and Debbie were. Dean kept to himself, and Tina, the youngest, had taken off to the mountains of Idaho. She wasn’t coming (but she had driven down to Aspen, met Charlie, liked him, and issued a bulletin in the form of a drawing that depicted a handsome, laughing kid. How she had gotten the twinkle into his eye, Minnie didn’t understand). For once, Henry was coming from Chicago (Minnie suspected that no one in Chicago knew that Henry was a farm kid). Only Claire, who was driving up from Des Moines, was a regular visitor. A big party. Lois was in charge of the cooking, Jen in charge of shopping, Joe in charge of the generous welcome. Minnie had done a lot of cleaning.

Now Charlie appeared on the other side of the screen door, loose-limbed and fit. He saw her, he smiled, and Minnie said, “I thought you were a phantom.”