"It’s admittedly early in 2017, but I suspect that this may well wind up as one of the best novels of the year. Highly recommended." - Blogcritics.org
IndieNext Pick * Amazon.com Best Book of the Month * Oprah Top 20 Book * Flavorwire Book of the Month
“In Our Short History, Lauren Grodstein breaks your heart, then miraculously pieces it back together so it’s bigger—and stronger—than before. This novel will leave you appreciating both the messiness of life and the immense depths of love.”
—Celeste Ng, author of Everything I Never Told You
“One of the best books of 2017….Grodstein has not just written another beautiful book, but one with deep purpose and meaning.”
—Roar
“Grodstein’s heartbreaking, character-driven story is told in the remarkable, believable voice of a courageous, sympathetic character.”
—Library Journal, starred review
“A tender tale…Grodstein has a fine touch, alternately sarcastic, perceptive and wistful.”
—Minneapolis Star Tribune
“Lauren Grodstein has subtly written a cathartic and unexpectedly profound book…It’s also impossible to put down.”
—St. Louis Post Dispatch
“Lauren Grodstein has written a book with such a complicated range of emotion that I can't quite understand how she does it. In highlighting the fragility and depth of the relationship between a parent and a child, Grodstein miraculously makes you love the complexity of this world even as it tears you apart. Our Short History is a novel that will reverberate in your heart long after you finish it.”
—Kevin Wilson, author of The Family Fang
“The novel America needs right now…. It is a story about finding humanity on the ‘other’ side, whichever side that may be…. A loving, sincere, often grueling account that refuses sentimentality.”
—PhillyVoice
"Fans of Wit and Life and Other Near-Death Experiences will love Karen’s unflinchingly honest journey."
—Booklist, starred review
“Riveting….Like A Friend of the Family and The Explanation for Everything, two earlier Grodstein novels, Our Short History honors the power of family ties… It carries an important lesson about letting go.”
—The Washington Post
"Funny and fast-paced and extraordinarily insightful on every page. . . . Anyone lucky enough to get roughed-up by Grodstein's devastating, fearlessly honest, often hilarious, gorgeously written novel will exit it changed.”
—Karen Russell, author of Vampires in the Lemon Grove
“Karen is a character many will love—determined, flawed, loving, witty. . . . a poignant and realistic portrait."
—Kirkus Reviews
“A meditation on love and grief . . . Lauded novelist Lauren Grodstein plunges into both beautiful and ugly emotions without hesitation."
—Bookpage
“(A) deeply affecting novel…This is a tearjerker of a story, but not a mushy one — and it provides a charming, occasionally funny portrait of a mother trying to come to terms with both her death and her legacy.”
—The National Book Review
“A quick, sad and heartwarming read.”
—Seattle Times
“Funny as well as poignant, sad but not maudlin.”
—Shelf Awareness
“This gave me all the feels. I didn’t want it to end.”
—Jaime Herndon, Book Riot
“Grodstein deftly explores family relationships.”
—Publishers Weekly
“A tender, heartrending book.”
—Flavorwire
“Poignant.”
—Harper’s Bazaar
“Heart-wrenching…compelling.”
—Burlington County Times