THE MOST FUN WE EVER HAD

the most fun we ever had

When Marilyn Connolly and David Sorenson fall in love in the 1970s, they are blithely ignorant of all that awaits them. By 2016, their four radically different daughters are 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 arrival of 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: years marred by adolescent angst, infidelity, and resentment, but also the transcendent moments of joy that make everything else worthwhile.

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(out 4/6/21)

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praise

Instant New York Times bestseller
Longlisted for the 2020 Women's Prize in Fiction
Named a most anticipated book of the summer by O Magazine, People, Chicago Tribune, NY Post, InStyle, Good Housekeeping, Daily Beast, PopSugar, and LitHub
“A rich, engrossing family saga, spiked with sisterly malice…[rendered] with such skill and finely tuned interest that it feels like a quiet subversion of the traditional family saga.” --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, which ranges from ebullience to despair by way of caustic but intense familial bonds, would be a worthy offspring…This is a novel epic in scope—emotionally, psychologically and narratively. Combining a broad thematic canvas with impressive emotional nuance, it’s an assured and highly enjoyable debut.” --The Guardian
“A wonderfully immersive read that packs more heart and heft than most first novels…A deliciously absorbing novel with—brace yourself—a tender and satisfyingly positive take on family.” --NPR
“The Most Fun We Ever Had is a remarkable first-time novel offering such an intimate picture of people’s interior lives I feel as if every one of these characters is now a close friend. Lombardo has the remarkable ability to delve into people’s minds so deeply that the most quotidian moments become utterly fascinating.” --Ruth Reichl, Los Angeles Times