My book club and I were pretty much in unison on this one: so much ado about ... what? The author seems to be working her way through a checklist of "contemporary fiction to-dos" ... eccentric family, prodigal son, dark family secret = check! Gender fluid characters, interracial romance, environmental activism, free range parenting = check! "Ripped from the headlines" subplot (a religious group poised to transform an established old town - will the community welcome them or close ranks?) = check! Whimsical ancestral home, precocious kid, and a bit with an animal = check! ... without bothering to connect these disparate narrative elements into any kind of cohesive whole.

The result is a story that has a lot going on but not much happening ... which can be okay if the author creates characters that you're vested in, but that doesn't happen here either because Cohen seems to believe that endowing characters with imaginative idiosyncrasies - a husband who loves baking, a wife who grooves on being fertile, a daughter who's into avant garde theater, a little kid who fancies himself a military scout - is enough to make them fully realized and endearing, but of course it's not. And maybe it's just me, but authors who employ third person limited narration shouldn't endow their characters with anachronistic perspectives and vocab just so the author can show off their wit and wokeness. Totally undermines any authenticity the author is attempting to establish.

I hung in there until the end because I kept thinking that something must be coming - some revelation or narrative twist that would tie all these meandering subplots together - but that never happens and now I kind of regret the time I spent on this, time I could have spent on something with more authenticity, depth, and genuine empathy. ( )

Family books are usually my go to but this one was just all over the place and even though it got together somehow (after skimming through it) I couldn't get into it.

There's something about her writing style that I couldn't get into. I had to read sentences again and again to get the idea of what the author was saying. I was getting nowhere and I couldn't get much further than page 100. ( )

I listened to the audio version and got tired of all the lists and digressions. If I'd been reading instead, I could have skipped over all that stuff. There was a principal story line that was the main plot driver, but ultimately seemed to be irrelevant to the point the author was trying to make. I feel like the book presented as a plot-driven story, but was really a "days in the life of these characters" book, and I'm not a big fan of "days in the life" books; I got really tired of it all by the end. I loved the early part of the book, though, some of the character development (Aunt Glad, I'm thinking of you) was really stunning. It just went on too long for me. ( )

I was unable to finish this within the window of my library loan, so I had to wait 2 months to get it back, made for some interrupted reading, so I certainly finished the book in a different relationship than say in the middle, beyond the usual. The action takes place at house over several days, with some side journeys to the past (and the future) and vignettes that happen elsewhere in town. The story moves from character to character and I initially found this trick impressive, to have the narrative tone change so notably from person to person and convey a distinct personality and view of the world. I'm not sure that aspect of the book remained compelling by the end.

I see some reviews both deriding and celebrating the evocative descriptive language; I'm on the side of celebrating myself

It seems like there was a larger truth about life, family, chaos, home, change, etc. being hinted at but I think as often happens with books - and movies too - it's never made that clear and the ending falls off a bit of cliff. If you like the journey, this book is for you; if you want a destination, you might not find it here (although maybe you'll see something different than I did). ( )

A sprawling novel of family and friends gathered for a wedding, full of unique descriptions, philosophical musings, cultural dilemmas, and poignant relationships. ( )