A Family Matter: A Read with Jenna Pick: A Novel
A READ WITH JENNA BOOK CLUB PICK AS FEATURED ON TODAY • WINNER OF THE NERO GOLD PRIZE • “Burns like a sparkler, quick and mesmerizing.” —The New York Times • Longlisted for the Aspen Words Literary Prize
A young wife following her heart. A husband with the law on his side. Their daughter, caught in the middle. Forty years later, a family secret changes everything in this “quietly heart-scorching” (Barbara Kingsolver) debut novel.
1982. Dawn is a young mother, still adjusting to life with her husband, when Hazel lights up her world like a torch in the dark. Theirs is the kind of connection that’s impossible to resist, and suddenly life is more complicated, and more joyful, than Dawn ever expected. But she has responsibilities and commitments. She has a daughter.
2022. Heron has just received news from his doctor that turns everything upside down. He’s an older man, stuck in the habits of a quiet existence. Telling Maggie, his only child—the person around whom his life has revolved—seems impossible. Heron can’t tell her about his diagnosis, just as he can’t reveal all the other secrets he’s been keeping from her for so many years.
A Family Matter is an “intricately layered and infinitely nuanced” (Oprah Daily) exploration of love and loss, intimacy and injustice, custody and care, and whether it is possible to heal from the wounds of the past in the changed world of today.
A young wife following her heart. A husband with the law on his side. Their daughter, caught in the middle. Forty years later, a family secret changes everything in this “quietly heart-scorching” (Barbara Kingsolver) debut novel.
1982. Dawn is a young mother, still adjusting to life with her husband, when Hazel lights up her world like a torch in the dark. Theirs is the kind of connection that’s impossible to resist, and suddenly life is more complicated, and more joyful, than Dawn ever expected. But she has responsibilities and commitments. She has a daughter.
2022. Heron has just received news from his doctor that turns everything upside down. He’s an older man, stuck in the habits of a quiet existence. Telling Maggie, his only child—the person around whom his life has revolved—seems impossible. Heron can’t tell her about his diagnosis, just as he can’t reveal all the other secrets he’s been keeping from her for so many years.
A Family Matter is an “intricately layered and infinitely nuanced” (Oprah Daily) exploration of love and loss, intimacy and injustice, custody and care, and whether it is possible to heal from the wounds of the past in the changed world of today.
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Community Reviews
A Family Matter by Claire Lynch is an emotional debut novel set in England, written in dual timelines. In 1982, Dawn is a young mother in her twenties who has an affair with Hazel. This complicates things for her because she is married to Heron and they have a daughter named Maggie. When they divorce, Heron is awarded full custody because of Dawn’s romantic relationship with another woman. In 2022, Maggie slowly learns that her father is gravely ill. She also learns more about her family history. She has never been told what happened to her mother.
The novel is a quick read at 240 pages. The pace is slow initially, but I didn’t mind that. The characters are not likable, except for Maggie. I felt sympathy for them, as they all seemed miserable. I’m not sure the novel went deep enough for me to form any lasting type of engagement with them in my mind. Maggie and her father are very close; this is communicated well throughout the book. Maggie eventually finds out the whole history about her mother. It’s a sad book for many reasons. When I reached the last page, I was not expecting it to end so abruptly. We never found out what happened with the father, even though the book focused almost solely on his health issue when speaking of him. This is odd considering how close he and Maggie are. The book highlights important societal concerns and shows the history of societal attitudes regarding same-sex relationships. Unfortunately, these ideas were not fleshed out adequately because the book is shorter. There were times I found myself highlighting passages to save for later. The writing is pretty, concise, and glaringly honest. The author has wonderful talent, and I look forward to seeing what she writes next.
Thank you to the publisher for providing this book for review consideration via NetGalley. All opinions are my own.
The novel is a quick read at 240 pages. The pace is slow initially, but I didn’t mind that. The characters are not likable, except for Maggie. I felt sympathy for them, as they all seemed miserable. I’m not sure the novel went deep enough for me to form any lasting type of engagement with them in my mind. Maggie and her father are very close; this is communicated well throughout the book. Maggie eventually finds out the whole history about her mother. It’s a sad book for many reasons. When I reached the last page, I was not expecting it to end so abruptly. We never found out what happened with the father, even though the book focused almost solely on his health issue when speaking of him. This is odd considering how close he and Maggie are. The book highlights important societal concerns and shows the history of societal attitudes regarding same-sex relationships. Unfortunately, these ideas were not fleshed out adequately because the book is shorter. There were times I found myself highlighting passages to save for later. The writing is pretty, concise, and glaringly honest. The author has wonderful talent, and I look forward to seeing what she writes next.
Thank you to the publisher for providing this book for review consideration via NetGalley. All opinions are my own.
How do you describe a family? The definition has changed so much in the past few decades. Had it been as it is now, so much pain could have been saved for so many families. As it is now, there is still too much pain inflicted. This novel is about tolerance and reconciliation. And hope. We can become our better angels.
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