Author: Catherine Newman
Year published: 2024
Category: Adult fiction
Pages: 240 pages
Rating: 4 out of 5
Location: (my 2024 Google Reading map): USA (MA)
Summary: For the past two decades, Rocky has looked forward to her family’s yearly escape to Cape Cod. Their humble beach-town rental has been the site of sweet memories, sunny days, great meals, and messes of all kinds: emotional, marital, and—thanks to the cottage’s ancient plumbing—septic too.
This year’s vacation, with Rocky sandwiched between her half-grown kids and fully aging parents, promises to be just as delightful as summers past—except, perhaps, for Rocky’s hormonal bouts of rage and melancholy. (Hello, menopause!) Her body is changing—her life is, too. And then a chain of events sends Rocky into the past, reliving both the tenderness and sorrow of a handful of long-ago summers.
It's one precious week: everything is in balance; everything is in flux. And when Rocky comes face to face with her family’s history and future, she is forced to accept that she can no longer hide her secrets from the people she loves.
Review: I really liked Newman's previous novel We All Want Impossible Things (link to my review) and didn't realize this was the same author when I started seeing the positive reviews of this novel. I am at the same life stage as the main character: sandwiched in between parents in their 80s and a kid in her 20s so could relate to this book easily even though m personality is vastly different from the main character's.
This is definitely a nostalgia book. Every activity this family does, they have done many times before over the years, which allows Rocky to relive her time with her family, her kids in particular. I love my daughter, but I do not reminisce whenever something triggers a memory. I like that she is growing up and becoming her own person while Rocky seems to want to keep things the way they are forever.
The beginning of this book had me laughing out loud numerous times; there were lines that hit me just right. By the end, the witter banter seemed a bit much, but I still think there are nuggets of family, love, life, growing older, and being yourself in here that are so good.
Challenges for which this counts: none
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