Today's Read & Giveaway: Like Family by Paolo Giordano
How fully could you welcome a housekeeper/nanny into your home? For the unnamed narrator of this novel, his wife, and their son, Mrs. A soon becomes indispensable, not just in practical matters but also in smoothing out the family dynamics.
On my thirty-fifth birthday, Mrs. A. abruptly gave up the determination that in my eyes characterized her more than any other quality and, already laid out in a bed that by then seemed too big for her body, finally abandoned the world we all know.—Like Family by Paolo Giordano (Pamela Dorman Books, 2015, p. 1) [And, yes, I shared this same quote last week.]
Quick Facts
- Setting: modern times; Italy
- Circumstances: When a young woman's first pregnancy becomes difficult, the family hires Mrs. A to help out. After the baby is born, the older woman stays on, becoming an integral part of domestic life. How much she is "like family" becomes especially clear when she's diagnosed with cancer.
- Characters: the unnamed male narrator; Nora, his wife; Emanuele, their son; Mrs. A
- Genre: literary fiction; in translation
- Themes: family, marriage, parenting, friendship, love, mortality
- Thoughts: A beautifully written slip of a book with an emotional depth that will capture your attention from beginning to end. This snapshot of an ordinary family and marriage reveals its secrets layer by layer in a perfect tempo. Like Family is a don't-miss read and a contender for my best of 2015 list.
"What do you miss most about her?" I asked [Nora].The Giveaway
"I miss the way she encouraged us. People are so stingy with their encouragement. They just want to be sure you're more needy than they are. . . . Not her, she was always rooting for us." (p. 16)
Thanks to Penguin Random House, in celebration of today's release of Paolo Giordano's Like Family, I'm happy to be able to offer one of my readers with a U.S. mailing address a copy of this short novel. All you have to do to be entered for a chance to win is to fill out the following form. I'll pick a winner, via a random number generator, on December 10. Once the winner has been confirmed and I've passed the name and address along to the publisher, I'll erase all personal information from my computer. Good luck!
19 comments:
Very good intro, I want to read more for sure.
Sounds like a lovely book!
Wow - high praise...I'd obviously have to keep reading based on that!
I added this one to my Christmas wish list after you shared it last week. Sounds like one I'd love. Thanks for sharing, and hosting a giveaway.
This sounds like a great book!!
This sounds like a lovely book. I particularly liked your second quote. Not sure if this post is in Tuesday Teasers but here's my link anyway and thanks for stopping by my blog.
http://indie-bookworm.blogspot.co.uk/2015/12/teaser-tuesday-2.html
Sounds like a good read, great quotes!
I can't wait to read this!
This sounds like quite a book. Mrs. A sounds like she was a very special person.
That is an amazing opening paragraph. It definitely makes me want to know what's going on. I want to read more.
I love books that reveal the secrets of a family, "layer by layer." You drew me in. Thanks for sharing...and for visiting my blog.
I've never heard of this book before that I can remember. It sounds very touching. Thanks for the chance to win!
I enjoy reading stories about family dynamics, and this sounds like a good one. I also like the way the book opens. The character's musing about Mrs. A tells us a lot about her.
Thank you for visiting my blog and leaving a comment.
Sandy @ TEXAS TWANG
I like the sound of this book.
Sounds good. I definitely want to read more.
How did I miss this one? It's just the type of book I love to read and the setting is just another bonus.
I've been especially interested in books set in Italy lately! Thanks for the giveaway!
Oh, it seems like a sad opening. It catches my attention.
I love the setting for this story and your teaser really brings it all to life!
Post a Comment