Posts
Please Note: I received an advance audio copy of this book from Penguin Random House Audio in exchange for an honest review. This did not influence the opinions in my review in any way.
Synopsis (from Goodreads):
When Astrid Strick witnesses a school bus accident in the center of town, it jostles loose a repressed memory from her young parenting days decades earlier. Suddenly, Astrid realizes she was not quite the parent she thought she’d been to her three, now-grown children. But to what consequence?
Astrid’s youngest son is drifting and unfocused, making parenting mistakes of his own. Her daughter is intentionally pregnant yet struggling to give up her own adolescence. And her eldest seems to measure his adult life according to standards no one else shares. But who gets to decide, so many years later, which long-ago lapses were the ones that mattered? Who decides which apologies really count? It might be that only Astrid’s thirteen-year-old granddaughter and her new friend really understand the courage it takes to tell the truth to the people you love the most.
In All Adults Here, Emma Straub’s unique alchemy of wisdom, humor, and insight come together in a deeply satisfying story about adult siblings, aging parents, high school boyfriends, middle school mean girls, the lifelong effects of birth order, and all the other things that follow us into adulthood, whether we like them to or not.
Review:
I listened to this book for my book club, and have read another of the author's books, The Vacationers. This was a very enjoyable novel. With it's small town setting, and a wonderfully diverse set of characters, I became totally enchanted with this story.
What I Liked:
Narrator:
Emily Rankin does a wonderful job of narrating this book. I really liked how she subtly alters her voice to show the various ages of the characters. She also has a certain way about her speech that just seems so very New England!
Small Town Setting:
I love a book set in a small town! And this book shows all the pros and cons of such a life. On the pro side, people in a small town look out for each other, and help their neighbors. But the big drawback to small town life is that everyone knows your business! Both of these are illustrated in this book. Plus, from the descriptions, this just seems like a charming little town!
Diversity:
While there isn't much racial diversity in this small New England town, the book is filled with quite a variety of genders, sexualities, ages, and families. I particularly loved Astrid's coming out as bisexual to her adult children, and all the various family configurations. Even small towns have families in all shapes and sizes.
Characters:
Astrid, the matriarch of the Strick family, has an epiphany when she witnesses an acquaintance's fatal accident. Her journey involves looking back on her parenting style, and atoning for her mistakes. She also wants to live more openly in her same-sex relationship with Birdy, her long-time (secret) lover. I loved her story arc because so often older characters in books are so set in their lives. But, in real-life, everyone grows and changes over their entire lives.
As for Astrid's three children, Elliot, Porter, and Nicky, it took a long time, for me to like them. These are very flawed people who's decisions, at times, are really maddening! But as I stuck with it, I did eventually grow to love these characters. Each of these people are oh so human...
Rating: 
Release Date: May 4th, 2020
Author: Emma Straub
Genre: Contemporary Fiction
Audio Publisher: Penguin Random House Audio
Audio Length: 11 hours, 6 minutes
Narrator: Emily Rankin
Print Publisher: Riverhead Books
Page Length: 356 Pages
Source: Penguin Random House Audio
Format: Audio Book
Recommendation: A book that shows all the ways we make a family. Filled with small towns and wonderfully flawed characters. I loved it!
0 comments :
Post a Comment