Families and Other Nonreturnable Gifts (Audible Audio Edition) Claire LaZebnik Tessa Auberjonois Hachette Audio Books
Download As PDF : Families and Other Nonreturnable Gifts (Audible Audio Edition) Claire LaZebnik Tessa Auberjonois Hachette Audio Books
Despite her name, Keats Sedlak is the sanest person in her large, nutty family of brilliant eccentrics. Her parents, both brainy academics, are barely capable of looking after themselves, let alone anyone else, and her two uber-intelligent siblings live on their own planets.
At least she can count on one person in her life, her devoted boyfriend Tom. Down-to-earth and loving, he's the one thing that's kept Keats grounded for the last decade. But when Keats's mother makes a surprise announcement, the entire family is sent into a tailspin. For the first time, Keats can't pick up the pieces by herself. Now she must reevaluate everything she's ever assumed about herself and her family - and make the biggest decision of her life.
Families and Other Nonreturnable Gifts (Audible Audio Edition) Claire LaZebnik Tessa Auberjonois Hachette Audio Books
Keats Sedlak isn't exactly living the dream. But her life is comfortable, undemanding. She has a nice apartment she shares with her boyfriend of ten years and a decent but unexciting job. She believes she has exactly what she wants and no more than she deserves. Family drama abounds and her comfortable unexciting life insulates her from some of it. The rest of it.. well.. nobody's life is perfect.To say her family is eccentric is a kind understatement. Two siblings,an over-achieving selfish doctor/ older sister and a brilliant but severely agoraphobic and extremely selfish younger brother. Her father is a learned professor at Harvard, and her mother is a lazy complaining snob in the process of divorcing her husband of thirty odd years. Oh and she has thrown herself headlong into the dating game while simultaneously trying to sell the family home which looks like a tribe of hoarders have lived there for a half century.
Families and how one lives with and without them is the theme here.All families come with drama,quirks and foibles.For good or bad, we are shaped and at least partially defined by our family.We can run but we can't hide.The author did a great job making the Sedlak family relatable to the reader.Funny,thoughtful and poignant,the story kept the reader turning those pages. I liked it.
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Families and Other Nonreturnable Gifts (Audible Audio Edition) Claire LaZebnik Tessa Auberjonois Hachette Audio Books Reviews
Keats Sedlak is living a content, comfortable life. She is living in an apartment with her boyfriend of ten years and has a not so challenging job as an office manager. However, she is the oddball in her family, the normal one to say the least. Her brother, Milton, hasn't left their mother's house for two years. Her sister, Hopkins, is a genius, and she is currently saving lives as a neurologist. Her father, also a genius, is a published author and a professor at Harvard. Lastly, her mother drives her insane for many reasons, one of those is for always implying that Keats's boyfriend, Tom, isn't good enough or smart enough for her. In fact, her whole family seems to think that about Tom. They also don't like her job; none of them understand why she is working there and not getting a higher education.
While her family definitely drives her nuts, she is there for them when she is needed, like for going through items in the house she grew up in because her mother wants to sell it. In spending more time with her family, she is also spending more time with her dad's personal assistant, Jacob. Keats starts to question certain aspects in her life and witnesses all the changes taking place around her. She starts to see that change isn't always a bad thing.
My thoughts
This was a very good read, but it made me a little depressed at the same time. Let me try to explain why without giving too much away. Keats's parents, who have been separated for years, are finally going through a divorce, a family member suffers a medical emergency, and I think the fact that Keats has to constantly defend her boyfriend and her happiness made it a little sad for me.
Keats is a great protagonist though. Although her family is constantly on her case and questioning her happiness, Keats stands up against it and defends herself. She also clearly loves them and lends them a hand, or even a stubborn threat, to help them out. I definitely felt for Keats when she was dealing with her family, but it wasn't always depressing. When she did interact with them there was usually some humor to be found in the struggle too. Here is Keats describing time with her dad
"When he finally moves on from the topic of Keats's Wasted Life, it's to give me a lecture about the heart, both as muscle and as a literary trope. It's clearly something he's put a lot of thought into, but none of his observations seem all that original to me, and after a while, I can't restrain a yawn, which sends him into a long rant about the deterioration of the American attention span--which makes me so bored I could scream, which I guess proves his point." (p. 137)
While I wouldn't say that this is the best book I've ever read, it was an enjoyable read with a melancholy sort of feel.
Been Loving this author for years and this book does not disappoint. Made me laugh and cry. LUV it. Highly recommend!
This was an excellent book. It was funny. The author has a great way of describing people. I would tell everyone to read this book.
I have noted that Claire's other novels echo, in a way, Jane Austin. With this novel she moves on to Anthony Trollope, at least to my inner eye. There is a lot of interior dialogue within Keats as she tried to sort out her life. We become privy to her inner thoughts as well as her actions and this what reminds me so much of Trollope.
As with Trollope, Austen and other greats, it is not the plot that matters. The story is compelling, but what really works on the reader is the subtle psychological insights, the wit, and the social compact within the book. How we see our siblings and how we can finally change our approach to them.
While I knew most of the plot points and where they would lead, I still read this compulsively and with great pleasure. Reminds me of the Victorian novel written in modern day prose, though much shorter, but just as comforting. I eagerly await the next work from Claire.
Keats Sedlak isn't exactly living the dream. But her life is comfortable, undemanding. She has a nice apartment she shares with her boyfriend of ten years and a decent but unexciting job. She believes she has exactly what she wants and no more than she deserves. Family drama abounds and her comfortable unexciting life insulates her from some of it. The rest of it.. well.. nobody's life is perfect.
To say her family is eccentric is a kind understatement. Two siblings,an over-achieving selfish doctor/ older sister and a brilliant but severely agoraphobic and extremely selfish younger brother. Her father is a learned professor at Harvard, and her mother is a lazy complaining snob in the process of divorcing her husband of thirty odd years. Oh and she has thrown herself headlong into the dating game while simultaneously trying to sell the family home which looks like a tribe of hoarders have lived there for a half century.
Families and how one lives with and without them is the theme here.All families come with drama,quirks and foibles.For good or bad, we are shaped and at least partially defined by our family.We can run but we can't hide.The author did a great job making the Sedlak family relatable to the reader.Funny,thoughtful and poignant,the story kept the reader turning those pages. I liked it.
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