Any Other Family

By: Eleanor Brown

Narrated by: Brittany Pressley, Lindsey Dorcus, Sean Patrick Hopkins, Soneela Nankani, Anthony Rey Perez, Thérèse Plummer, Jamil Schulze

A New York Times Book Review Editors' Choice

The New York Times bestselling author of The Weird Sisters returns with a striking and intimate new novel about three very different adoptive mothers who face the impossible question: What makes a family?

Though they look like any other family, they aren’t one—not quite. They are three sets of parents who find themselves intertwined after adopting four biological siblings, having committed to keeping the children as connected as possible.

At the heart of the family, the adoptive mothers grapple to define themselves and their new roles. Tabitha, who adopted the twins, crowns herself planner of the group, responsible for endless playdates and holidays, determined to create a perfect happy family. Quiet and steady Ginger, single mother to the eldest daughter, is wary of the way these complicated not-fully-family relationships test her long held boundaries. And Elizabeth, still reeling from rounds of failed IVF, is terrified that her unhappiness after adopting a newborn means she was not meant to be a mother at all.

As they set out on their first family vacation, all three are pushed into uncomfortably close quarters. And when they receive a call from their children’s birth mother announcing she is pregnant again, the delicate bonds the women are struggling to form threaten to collapse as they each must consider how a family is found and formed.

Adoption

Author makes one reexamine the definition of the word family. These characters all have foibles that make the family dynamic even more complex. Great listen.

Good book. disappointing ending.

Good book on non-traditional families and adoption. My own family has our adopted daughter and we are friends with the other adoptive family who adopted her biological sister and brother so it was great to see this scenario in a novel. Also Elizabeth's infertility struggles hit home for me and the author does a great job with the truth of her infertility story. The performance of each woman's chapters were also well done. I just was really disappointed with the ending and unanswered questions.

What is family?

This story attempts to answer the question of what makes a family, and does it quite well. All narrators are excellent, with Brittany's performance being a stand out among the rest. A great cast of characters as well.

Very inventive story.

You like then dislike most of the women then like again. All the men are great. The story is about open adoption with a very inventive twist.

Family

Eye opener for the struggles of infertility and dynamics of adoption.
Keeping family a priority.