emilyfrombookmarq's review
3.0
I bought this book in anticipation of Emma Straub's new release, and I'm disappointed in myself for not reading it sooner. Modern Lovers does an amazing job of showcasing families in the 21st century and how there is no blueprint for what a nuclear family should look like. Even the most societally acceptable families have their secrets and challenges. I found it both entertaining and comforting to watch the relationships between three very different couples work through their issues. On the surface, they appear drastically different, but dig a bit deeper, and they are all connected through their means of communication, empathy, and deep love for one another. We get a look at a young love, gay love, interracial love, intersectional love, all forms of modern love. Some characters are much more likeable than others, yet you still find yourself rooting for their happy ending.
susannaopal's review
2.0
This wasn't my favorite but I did read it through to the end. I don't think I had a character I could identify with and it seemed often like a world that most people don't exist in but I stuck with it to see and found I wanted to finish it and so I did. Maybe I just missed something.
kittys_reads's review
4.0
I really enjoyed following the friendships between the adults from college to their 40s. I didn't care too much for Andrew, I feel like I don't care for men having a midlife crisis. I read this when I felt like I was growing out of YA novels so the children's storyline felt like a nice way to bridge the gap from YA to adult fiction.
melissakuzma's review
3.0
I love Emma Straub's book so much, I want to live in them. Except I probably wouldn't be friends with any of her characters, because they're all kind of assholes.
ariocookie's review
emotional
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
britgetslit's review against another edition
lighthearted
reflective
fast-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
3.0
ebazilereads's review
5.0
Modern Lovers is a beautifully nuanced story about friendship, love, and meaning that follows the curves of adolescence, young adulthood, and middle age. Elizabeth, Andrew, and Zoe are former college roommates who have lived next door to one another throughout their adult lives. They have watched each other marry, shuffle through careers, and try on selves over many years. As their children, Ruby and Harry, move into the twilight of adolescence and towards the adulthood that waits beyond it, Elizabeth, Andrew, and Zoe begin to confront the choices they made in their early 20s and the ways in which those choices continue to shape the courses of their lives.
A beautifully written novel. I think Emma Straub is quickly becoming one of my favorite novelists.
A beautifully written novel. I think Emma Straub is quickly becoming one of my favorite novelists.