On the HahaFiction shelf
This Is Where I Leave You
Judd Foxman’s marriage has fallen apart when his father dies. A week of shiva brings the family under one roof, where mourning leaves plenty of time for old resentments and everyone’s current troubles.
From the publisher’s blurb
“The death of Judd Foxman’s father marks the first time that the entire Foxman clan has congregated in years.”Read the full description at Penguin Random House
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What makes it funny?
News of their father’s death sends Judd and his sister Wendy into a disagreement about grammar. Their mother worries about tipping the coroner. This is a family that can find something to argue about even before the mourning begins.
The comedy at work
Wisecracks and insults help the Foxmans avoid talking plainly about grief. The enforced time together makes that evasion difficult. Their mother’s reputation as a parenting expert adds another discomfort: her own adult children are struggling.
Try this if…
Sharp family arguments and irreverent narration may appeal if you like comedy that stays close to painful failures in marriage and family life. Readers in funny-fiction discussions include the novel among their recommendations.
Good to know
Bereavement and terminal illness receive detailed attention. Infidelity, miscarriage and infertility are among the family’s troubles; the book also includes profanity and sexual material.
A few distinguishing details
- A parenting expert’s troubled children gather to mourn their father.
More funny family comedy
Sources & further reading
- Publishers Weekly review
Review
- Opening chapter
Reading sample
- Publisher
Publisher
- Reader discussion
Reader discussion
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