Family and Other Catastrophes

February 1, 2018
A wedding weekend tests an eccentric family's bonds.Emily Glass, a woman in her late 20s with a handsome fiance and a whole lot of anxiety in tow, flies back to the family home in Westchester for her wedding. The youngest of three, she quickly finds herself mixed back up in the dysfunctional ways of her family. Her older sister, Lauren, a progressive so far to the left she may as well be in a different country, and her brother, Jason, a recently divorced dad aggressively putting himself back on the market, provide surprising comfort to the bride as the three face guilt trips from their psychologist mother and family secrets unraveling as the wedding week marches on. With a fast pace and constantly shifting point of view, the book adeptly weaves between the characters, making them all feel real and three-dimensional without losing track of the narrative. Beyond just the members of the Glass family, Emily's fiance David's family, including his Renaissance Faire-loving, fedora-wearing little brother and eternally bored teenage stepsister, and various members of the wedding party fill out a cast that showcases many different perspectives while not seeming overrun with characters. It's brimming with humor and pop-culture references that will make older millennials smile but never seems too on-the-nose or cheekily self-aware. There are moments where the tone feels slightly off, and sometimes it punches down with its humor, especially when it comes to Lauren and her social justice ideals, but ultimately, it presents a sympathetic picture of a family with issues it doesn't want to face and the ties that bind them together anyway.Humor and heart mix in Borowitz's debut novel, which will resonate with anyone who loves their family despite said family's best efforts.

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March 15, 2018

Emily Glass is seven days away from her wedding. Diagnosed by her therapist mother, Marla, with an anxiety disorder, among other things, Emily is trying to keep it together. But prewedding week, with her own family and that of her fiancé David, the dysfunction is too much for her to cope. Her feminist sister Lauren, who doesn't believe in gender roles, requests that her son be the "flower person" instead of ring bearer. Her divorced brother Jason is trying--and failing--to get back in the game. And then there's David's Renaissance Faire attending, Medieval English-speaking brother Nathan. Interactions between the families heat up as the ceremony gets closer. Debut author Borowitz comes on strong in this feisty, laugh-out-loud comedy of two families with completely different backgrounds all clamoring for their opinions to be heard. The laughs just keep coming. VERDICT Hats off to Borowitz for bringing to light the comedy of what happens before "I do." An excellent read for anyone who has been part of a wedding. [See Prepub Alert, 10/22/17.]--Erin Holt, Williamson Cty. P.L., Franklin, TN

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