{"product_id":"same-as-it-ever-was-1","title":"Same as It Ever Was","description":"\u003cb\u003eNATIONAL BESTSELLER - NAMED A BEST BOOK BY \u003ci\u003ePEOPLE \u003c\/i\u003eAND \u003ci\u003ePARADE - \u003c\/i\u003eThe \u003ci\u003eNew York Times \u003c\/i\u003ebestselling author of \u003ci\u003eThe Most Fun We Ever Had\u003c\/i\u003e returns with brilliantly observed novel of a woman in midlife on the verge of upending everything when sudden family events threaten to unearth her painful past.. \"Infidelity, dysfunction, secrets - this family novel delivers.\" --\u003ci\u003eThe New York Times\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003ci\u003eSame As It Ever Was\u003c\/i\u003e showcases the wit and profound emotional intelligence that made \u003ci\u003eThe Most Fun We Ever Had\u003c\/i\u003e one of the most beloved novels of the decade (dubbed \"the literary love child of Jonathan Franzen and Anne Tyler\" by \u003ci\u003eThe Guardian\u003c\/i\u003e) This remarkable follow-up--another elegant and tumultuous story in the tradition of Elizabeth Strout, Ann Patchett, and Celeste Ng--introduces us to Julia Ames, a singularly complicated protagonist. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eAfter a youth marked by upheaval and emotional turbulence, Julia resides on the placid plateau of her mid-50s. But Julia has never navigated the world with the equanimity of her current privileged class. Having nearly derailed herself several times, making desperate bids for the kind of connection that always felt inaccessible to her, she believes she has a firm handle on things. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eShe's unprepared, though, for a surprise announcement from her straight-arrow son, an impending separation from her spikey teenaged daughter, and a seductive resurgence of the past, all of which place her on the kind of razor's edge that she knows all too well. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003ci\u003eSame As It Ever Was \u003c\/i\u003etraverses the rocky terrain of real life, exploring maternal ambivalence, intergenerational friendship, and the happenstantial cause-and-effect that governs us all. Delving into the core of relationships--how they grow, change, and sometimes end--Lombardo proves herself a true and definitive cartographer of the human heart and is, without doubt, among the finest novelists of her generation.","brand":"Claire Lombardo","offers":[{"title":"Paperback","offer_id":46719142527212,"sku":"9780593469958","price":19.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0684\/1791\/3068\/files\/9780593469958.jpg?v=1754544748","url":"https:\/\/intl.allstora.com\/products\/same-as-it-ever-was-1","provider":"Allstora","version":"1.0","type":"link"}