Tag: dysfunctional family
Review: Shuggie Bain by Douglas Stuart
You’ll have heard of this book because of the awards it won in 2020, including the Booker Prize. This story of a young boy growing up with an alcoholic mother in 1980s Glasgow is worth the read. It’s dark, but once I finished it,… Continue Reading “Review: Shuggie Bain by Douglas Stuart”
Review: Too Much Lip by Melissa Lucashenko
I love reading about Australia, ever since I traveled there in 2013. I was struck by the similarities in the history of Australia and the United States, though I felt Australia was much more open about its troubling treatment of Aboriginal populations. Too Much… Continue Reading “Review: Too Much Lip by Melissa Lucashenko”
Review: The Most Fun We Ever Had by Claire Lombardo
I enjoyed and appreciated this character-driven family drama by Claire Lombardo. I read it for my book club, which didn’t end up happening last month, and that was actually good because I never would have finished in time. It’s a long one — but… Continue Reading “Review: The Most Fun We Ever Had by Claire Lombardo”
Review: Maybe You Should Talk to Someone by Lori Gottlieb
It seems fitting to discuss a book about therapy the day after Thanksgiving, a holiday that raises so many complicated family issues — though hopefully yours was lovely! This book has plenty of buzz already without my review, but I loved it. It’s unlike… Continue Reading “Review: Maybe You Should Talk to Someone by Lori Gottlieb”
Review: All the Lives We Never Lived by Anuradha Roy
I liked this book though it didn’t resonate emotionally as much as I expected it to. It’s a story of man in India who is recalling when his mother abandoned him as a child. Gayatri was a free-spirited artist who clearly felt constrained by… Continue Reading “Review: All the Lives We Never Lived by Anuradha Roy”
Commonwealth by Ann Patchett
This was my first introduction to Ann Patchett; I think I started Bel Canto some years ago and didn’t get very far, which is probably not the fault of the author. Commonwealth was widely regarded as one of the best novels of 2016, and… Continue Reading “Commonwealth by Ann Patchett”
The Nest by Cynthia D’Aprix Sweeney
The Nest is a story of four adult siblings in a dysfunctional family. They will come into a large inheritance (“the Nest”) when the youngest turns 40, which is in a few months. The problem is the oldest sibling, Leo, got into a car accident… Continue Reading “The Nest by Cynthia D’Aprix Sweeney”
Instructions for a Heatwave by Maggie O’Farrell
Maggie O’Farrell is one of my favorite writers, and this book may be one of her best. It’s about a very dysfunctional family suffering through a heatwave in 1976 London. Robert, the father, goes out one morning for a paper and doesn’t come back. … Continue Reading “Instructions for a Heatwave by Maggie O’Farrell”
