saskiahill's review against another edition
emotional
funny
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
4.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Grief, Death of parent, Death, Infidelity, Car accident, Bullying, and Pregnancy
Moderate: Infertility, Adult/minor relationship, Abortion, Sexual harassment, Lesbophobia, and Miscarriage
Minor: Deadnaming, Outing, Transphobia, and Blood
menomica's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
“And it’s not up to me, Elliot. Your life? Your choices? They don’t belong to me. Neither does this town—not any more than it belongs to any of you.”
Sometimes a lie was more like a wish, or a prayer.
I really appreciated this book because of how it talks about family dysfunction even in seemingly healthy families. The Stricks aren’t perfect, but they do very much love each other. I love how Astrid went on a journey of self-reflection and decided to be better as a person.
All of the Strick kids were unlikable in their own ways, so… good for them, I guess. The thing is though, they weren’t unlikable in a way that made it hard to read the book, but more so in the way of these characters are incredibly deeply flawed and we’re going to take the time to dissect how we got to this point. Porter’s a pick-me looser, Elliot’s a looser with an inferiority complex, and Nicky’s a semi-neglectful pothead dad. And it’s really interesting to see why they’re like that.
Now, the things I didn’t like were: Emma Straub is old and is trying to understand how middle schoolers of the 21st century act and it is very… cringey. Like hen pls don’t do that.
Also some of the takes about feminism and womanhood came off slightly terfy. To Straub’s credit, I don’t think it was intencional, per say, but some of the lines made me go… oof.
Spoiler
We never found out how Russel died, I don’t think. Which I honestly don’t mind too much, the but was still enjoyable on and of itself, but like… I was waiting to know the whole book.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Infidelity and Adult/minor relationship
Minor: Transphobia, Death, Death of parent, and Grief
klavanger's review
emotional
funny
lighthearted
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
This book had a very interesting approach to family dynamics that I really enjoyed, especially as the only girl with two brothers. I thought it lacked a really strong ending, however I loved the final chapter and the epilogue!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Biphobia, Car accident, Death, Death of parent, Grief, Lesbophobia, Transphobia, and Pregnancy
Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Bullying, Dysphoria, Homophobia, and Abortion
Minor: Deadnaming, Drug use, Infertility, and Miscarriage
linesiunderline's review against another edition
emotional
funny
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
This is book that will spring to mind when someone asks me for a recommendation for a family drama. This is all about family, and there is all the drama you could want. Secrets galore, past hurts, layers of love and loss, complicated feelings - all of this mixed up with a reflective and humorous tone that Emma Straub does so well. You feel like you’re getting insight into a certain realm of life experiences, and everyone is imperfect, which is of course Reality, but also very entertaining.
Emma Straub manages a lot in a relatively short novel, and the writing is a pleasure.
Highly recommended on audio. It was breezy and more-ish to listen to.
Emma Straub manages a lot in a relatively short novel, and the writing is a pleasure.
Highly recommended on audio. It was breezy and more-ish to listen to.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Car accident, Death, Infidelity, and Pregnancy
Moderate: Abortion, Adult/minor relationship, Bullying, Dementia, Grief, Homophobia, Infertility, Transphobia, and Sexual content
leahlovesloslibros's review
challenging
emotional
funny
lighthearted
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
This is a story about family, friendship, and life. Astrid Strick is the matriarch of a growing family. When she witnesses a school bus accident in the middle of town, it causes her to reflect on the choices she has made with her own children over the years, and to question life in a new way.
I will admit, I was not immediately drawn into this story. I usually don't mind multiple POV, but for the first chunk of this book, I was having a hard time following the story lines. I'm glad I pushed through. Straub had a creative way of weaving characters' lives into each other, not just within the family, but also in the relationships that we see among characters living in a small town. I can relate to this, having grown up in a Midwestern suburb where not many people leave, and often you have the 'everyone knows everyone and their business' feeling.
Another enjoyable aspect of this book was that the author didn't shy away from hard topics. This story delves into many such topics, including but not limited to: homophobia, transphobia, death, death of a parent, grief, infidelity, addiction, infertility, miscarriage, abortion. Some of these topics are mentioned briefly, but many are woven into characters' storylines, which shows their flaws and makes the story more relatable.
If you grew up in a small town, I definitely recommend this read. If you didn't, I still recommend this read. I believe everyone will find someone or something relatable in this book.
I will admit, I was not immediately drawn into this story. I usually don't mind multiple POV, but for the first chunk of this book, I was having a hard time following the story lines. I'm glad I pushed through. Straub had a creative way of weaving characters' lives into each other, not just within the family, but also in the relationships that we see among characters living in a small town. I can relate to this, having grown up in a Midwestern suburb where not many people leave, and often you have the 'everyone knows everyone and their business' feeling.
Another enjoyable aspect of this book was that the author didn't shy away from hard topics. This story delves into many such topics, including but not limited to: homophobia, transphobia, death, death of a parent, grief, infidelity, addiction, infertility, miscarriage, abortion. Some of these topics are mentioned briefly, but many are woven into characters' storylines, which shows their flaws and makes the story more relatable.
If you grew up in a small town, I definitely recommend this read. If you didn't, I still recommend this read. I believe everyone will find someone or something relatable in this book.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Car accident, Death, Death of parent, and Grief
Moderate: Abortion, Cursing, Deadnaming, Homophobia, Infertility, Infidelity, Pedophilia, and Sexual content
Minor: Drug use and Miscarriage
There is a brief Harry Potter reference.scarlettreadsbooks's review against another edition
emotional
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
reflective
slow-paced
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
The story seemed to be about your average (though very dysfunctional) family, and was very character driven. Each person in the book had their own fully-fleshed out backstory and it touched on a lot of different topics, from single parenting, pregnancy, sexuality, marriage, being LGBTQ+, and much much more. My favourite characters were definitely Cecelia and August/Robin, loving each of their chapters and their friendship was so wholesome and touching.
I absolutely adored Straub’s writing and I’ll definitely be picking up more of her books!
I absolutely adored Straub’s writing and I’ll definitely be picking up more of her books!
Content Warnings
Moderate: Bullying, Death, Dementia, Grief, and Infidelity
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