Claire LombardoThe Most Fun We Ever Had

This isn't a book you read for entertainment. This is the type of book you read to remind yourself what it is to be human. To connect on another level to humanity itself. To recognize little pieces of yourself in the stories of others: the bright pieces, and the dark ones too. It teaches you things you don't even realize you're learning. It's not a surface level book - it reaches deep parts of you that are often forgotten or neglected. It's a revelation.The tangled web of emotional turmoil within the Sorenson family is taut with tension. The steadfast love between Marilyn and David produced four beautiful daughters who are grown now and living their own lives. Wendy, the girl who was always too much as a child grew into a woman all too acquainted with grief. Violet, the good girl, has a picture-perfect life complete with two point five kids and a loving husband. Liza, the third child often forgotten in the chaos of her two older sisters, is still struggling to find purpose. And Grace, the baby, is being crushed by great expectations pressured by the weight of the family who all came before her. But when a fifteen-year-old secret walks back into their lives, the effects ripple through them all, bringing many old hurts and hidden feelings to a much-needed reckoning.Lives are shaped by the butterfly effect. One little moment leads to the next, leads to the next. On and on we go. An overheard and misunderstood conversation can plant the seed that sets roots of anxiety and doubt deep in the psyche of a young girl. An avoided occasion can set long-burning embers of animosity to light that sizzle and pop for decades. Actions have consequences, and they won't always be the ones you expect to confront.The narrative is presented in a constant flow of the now and the before, exploring family experiences from multiple sides, because when things happen in a family, it isn't only about one person. Everything affects everyone, to different degrees. Not only did I find it engaging all the way through, by the time we arrived at certain landmarks in the family history, I found myself simultaneously surprised and satisfied. We're given so much context to understand the complex feelings between the family members. It feels real. It feels like the Sorenson's are out there somewhere, having lived these lives we get to read about.I don't even know how you write a book this bold and beautiful. The complexity that is the Sorenson family is at once romantic and heartbreaking and tender and sometimes so cliche in a way that is simply human nature. Children are born with personalities, and they will cause tension and conflict and love and joy too. This family isn't broken, but it isn't perfect either. They are bound by love, in both the best and worst ways, and Lombardo highlights them both with skilled artistry.I loved this book in the most surprising way, and I will cherish this experience of reading it for the first time as long as I can, because I know it won't be the last.

Wonderfully complex characters that you grow to love. The book had me join a family of people who seemed lovely even with their problems. Good long read, my favorite.

This book is the longest one this year that I have read it was very good . It was well written and a very detailed story about a family with four daughters and the parents at the heart of it. It tells flashbacks and in real time the flashbacks sometimes get a little bit long in the realm of the book. However, they boring and they were well done. I will read more of the author ‘s books. Kudos to Reese for picking a decent one this month…..I have heard it’s being made into a series .

This was a good premise that immediately drew me in with the characters that were obviously flawed but held together by familial ties. There were some very poignant observations of relationships and self awareness as a result that I really enjoyed, but I quickly found it hard to really connect and root for these people. For a family with a lot of siblings, they were all incredibly self-centered and motivated in odd ways. I think it was an attempt at complexity but it came off as whiny, out of touch, privilege. There just wasn’t enough redeeming qualities to balance them and give them depth so you wanted to see their growth and adaptations. The only character that was written in a way that actually seemed to apply the world and its realizations was Jonah, the baby placed for adoption that re-entered the picture (albeit in a very mean and hurtful way through no fault of his) at 15.The parents were well meaning but wholly confusing in the constant mentions of their sexual connection. I’m all for a healthy relationship but this element seemed forced and oddly placed. Sometimes it only seemed included to make the characters uncomfortable, which didn’t do much for a plot already filled with mistakes, hurtful actions, and selfishness. The doctor character that was brought into the story that gave everyone such pause really didn’t warrant the level of affect or reaction from all who gave it. Her contribution to the story really could’ve been pared down because she was only significant in for a time or fleshed out and make her a true element that caused the issues they alluded to her causing in a more concrete way.The house as a setting did seem to be an understated character in the story, as it offered a level of family history and continuity to underscore everything. The length of the novel seemed to be aiming for the same goal but didn’t quite get there. It was long and aimless at times, seeming to lose its purpose and point several times along the way. It almost became a study in repetition, showing us how unlikeable the characters were or how forgotten one felt when that point had already been well established. Then it just simply drifted to the end without much of a solid feeling of change, growth, or a true release and fresh start.It’s clear the author has a way of illustrating thoughts and ideas that can resonate in written form. However, I don’t think these characters or this story will resonate much after putting the book down.

Es un libro de fácil lectura, aunque el tiempo no es lineal, es fácil de entender. Es la hisotria de una familia con 4 hijas, las personalidades e historias de cada una..

A fantastic book that reveals lots of emotions and the reality of life. The feelings of all, mother, father, siblings, grandparents, boyfriends, relationships. An eye opener, or more like the skill of great writing, revealing the feelings of relationships, life, tragedies and reality.Beautifully written and so relatable, if you, like the characters, allow yourself to feel your feelings and express them.

Ein Roman, in den man total eintauchen kann. Die Figuren sind glaubwürdig, die Dialoge lebendig und alles sehr lebensnah. Der Roman steht in der Tradition der großen amerikanischen Roman wie The Corrections oder Werke von Roth oder Russo. Für mich von der ersten bis zur letzen Seite fesselnd.

Grand daughter is really happy with this book she loves it

Superbe saga familiale. L'écriture est très agréable, les personnages tous et immédiatement attachants dans leur variété et leur complexité. Drôle, émouvant, rythmé. Formidable.