If Morning Ever Comes (1964) is American author Anne Tyler's first novel, published when she was only 22.Set in Sandhill, North Carolina, it focuses on Ben Joe Hawkes, a self-proclaimed worrier who finds himself responsible for taking care of his mother and six sisters after his father deserts the family for his mistress and subsequently dies of a heart attack.At its start, Ben Joe has left Sandhill to pursue a law degree at Columbia University; however, he soon learns that his eldest sister, Joanne, has left her husband and returned home with her baby girl.