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The Most Fun We Ever Had
In this “rich, complex family saga” (USA Today) full of long-buried family secrets, Marilyn Connolly and David Sorenson fall in love in the 1970s, blithely ignorant of all that awaits them. By 2016, they have four radically different daughters, each in a state of unrest.
Wendy, widowed young, soothes herself with booze and younger men; Violet, a litigator turned stay-at-home-mom, battles anxiety and self-doubt; Liza, a neurotic and newly tenured professor, finds herself pregnant with a baby she's not sure she wants by a man she's not sure she loves; and Grace, the dawdling youngest daughter, begins living a lie that no one in her family even suspects.
With the unexpected arrival of young Jonah Bendt—a child placed for adoption by one of the daughters fifteen years before—the Sorensons will be forced to reckon with the rich and varied tapestry of their past. As they grapple with years marred by adolescent angst, infidelity, and resentment, they also find the transcendent moments of joy that make everything else worthwhile.
This discussion guide was shared and sponsored in partnership with Doubleday Books.
Book club questions for The Most Fun We Ever Had by Claire Lombardo
Use these discussion questions to guide your next book club meeting.
Gingko leaves and trees show up many times during the course of the novel—during the opening scene and when David and Marilyn first fall in love, just to name a couple. How do gingkoes function as a symbol in the book? What do they represent?
Who is your favorite character in the novel? Who are you most similar to?
By the end of The Most Fun We Ever Had, we’ve seen decades of David and Marilyn’s marriage unfold through many ups and downs. What do you see as the key to their successful and enduring marriage?
Do you think the way Wendy surprised Violet with Jonah was ethical? Do you think Violet’s reaction was warranted?
Were you surprised by Violet’s secret that gets revealed toward the end of the novel? How would you react if you were Wendy?
Many readers share that reading The Most Fun We Ever Had was an emotional experience. What was the most emotional scene for you to read? Why?
The narration switches between the perspective of each family member throughout the course of the book. What did this style add to the novel as a whole? How would the book be different if the author only focused on one character?
The book starts and ends with Marilyn’s perspective. Why do you think the author made this choice?
In what ways is the Sorenson family like your own family?
What did you think about the book’s ending? What do you think will happen to the Sorenson family after the book ends?
The Most Fun We Ever Had Book Club Questions PDF
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"A rich, engrossing family saga, spiked with sisterly malice." —The New York Times Book Review
"Ambitious and brilliantly written." —Jane Smiley, The Washington Post
“If ever there were to be a literary love child of Jonathan Franzen and Anne Tyler, then Claire Lombardo’s outstanding debut . . . would be a worthy offspring. . . . It’s an assured and highly enjoyable debut.” —The Guardian
“A deliciously absorbing novel with—brace yourself—a tender and satisfyingly positive take on family.” —NPR
“[A] satisfying multicourse feast.” —O Magazine
"Everything about this brilliant debut cuts deep: the humor, the wisdom, the pathos. Claire Lombardo writes like she's been doing it for a hundred years, and like she's been alive for a thousand." —Rebecca Makkai, author of The Great Believers
“Lombardo's impressive debut is a gripping and poignant ode to a messy, loving family in all its glory.” —Madeline Miller, New York Times bestselling author of Circe