Winter Garden

Meredith Whitson Cooper is the 40-year-old daughter of Evan and Anya Whitson and one of the main protagonists. She is tall and broad-shouldered and has big feet, an oval face, a large mouth, brown eyes, and thick hair. Meredith marries Jeff, her childhood sweetheart, and they have two daughters, Jillian and Maddy, who are 19 and 18, respectively. Meredith and Jeff live a quarter mile uphill from Belye Nochi in an old farmhouse. Meredith helps her father run the orchard, something she doesn’t want to do but does out of obligation and respect for her father. Meredith’s greatest passion is the gift shop she opened in conjunction with the orchard. Once Meredith finally heals from the grief of her father’s death and returns from the Alaskan cruise with her mother and sister, she opens more gift shops and finds lasting happiness in running them.

Throughout the novel, Meredith experiences extensive conflict. First, Meredith questions her purpose and identity because her daughters are both at college. She devoted herself to being a good mother to make up for Anya’s lack of nurturing, yet feels lost now that her girls are gone. Her marriage with Jeff struggles throughout the novel because Meredith doesn’t know how to communicate her feelings effectively and doesn’t know what she wants from life.