Good Minds Suggest—Adriana Trigiani's Favorite Books About Families
Posted by Goodreads on April 2, 2012
The Moonflower Vine by Jetta Carleton
"This is the story of the Soames family in Missouri, a portrait of farm and family life in middle America during the first half of the 20th century. A stealth novel, it grips you from the first page and calls upon the emotions you felt when first reading Pride and Prejudice about a family of sisters. But this novel, alas, is the American version—four headstrong daughters who grow up connected and yet yearn to break free of the emotional ties that keep them on the farm that shackles them. This story could only happen in America, where we are groomed to believe anything is possible—even for a girl. Tragic and yet resplendent, this book delivers."

Tales of the South Pacific by James A. Michener
"A novel about the notion of family and one woman's (Nellie Forbush) prejudices that keep her from joining one. Emile de Beque has mixed-race children, and the shiny penny from America's South can't accept their color. But true love prevails when Nellie grows up and finds happiness. This is a delicious novel, with potent threads and small story lines that build beautifully to a spectacular finish, a novel that still resonates with step-families and contemporary definitions of family. And when you've read it, you can watch the Rodgers and Hammerstein version called South Pacific."

A Short History of Tractors in Ukrainian by Marina Lewycka
"Two sisters have to deal with their aging widower father's desire to marry a big-busted beauty from the Ukraine that he met via an advertisement. This is a tale of a family coming together after the loss of a mother, who clearly was the reasonable center of the family. An immigrant tale (they live in England but emigrated from the Ukraine) with a contemporary spin, it hits all the best notes about dealing with aging parents and navigating sibling rivalries while healing old wounds."

I Capture the Castle by Dodie Smith
"Cassandra wants to be a writer. She lives with her family in a dilapidated castle in England, recording all the hurts and losses she has endured while sorting through her first love. The family character portraits are so fresh in this novel, including a sparkling and often disturbing dramatization of a stepmother who cares more about herself than the new family she joins. A classic—deservedly so."

Toast by Nigel Slater
"I include one memoir, because truthfully, this book reads like a novel. I read it on a flight back from a book tour in the UK, fresh from rolling green hills, castle tours, and Irish teas before the fire. I was in the mood for Nigel Slater and his very British view of the world from his mother's kitchen. He wrote so beautifully and humorously about his birth mother's inability to cook that you will laugh until you cry. When food becomes the glue of his new family after the death of his mother, a reinvention of what makes a family is defined and then redefined. A jewel."

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Thank you, Adriana, for sharing your favorite family books. They all look interesting: Marina Lewycka I have on my TBR, the others are new. I think some of them will be added to that list or my wishlist too:-)





Don't forget about Cold Sassy Tree by Olive Ann Burns in your list of family-centered reads! An oldie but a goodie!



Patrick lemuel.
You're the best!