All Together Now (Hardcover) (ISBN-13: 9781668266397)

For readers of Alison Espach and Emma Straub, brimming with joy, honesty, humor, and heart, All Together Now charts the extraordinary life of the relatively ordinary Hazel Stein--as told by every version of herself she ever has been and ever will be.

Every decade, give or take a few years, Hazel Stein wakes up on a party bus, complete with neon lighting, purple argyle carpet, and a stripper pole, to find seven of her past and future selves: There's Hazel, age eight, making paper airplanes out of napkins; eighteen, with catastrophic bangs and the insecurities to match; twenty-eight, an undeniable knockout who's still learning to be independent; thirty-nine, flush with the exhilaration and anxiety of new motherhood; forty-nine, gaunt and bald (she's so terrifying, the other Hazels can barely look her in the eye); fifty-seven, whose ring finger is suddenly, disturbingly bare; sixty-eight, the happy victim of overzealous injectables; and seventy-seven, with wiry white hair, a gash on her forehead, and threadbare clothes.

Together, they must unravel the mysteries of Hazel's life and tell the story of her three great loves--from an unforgettable one-night stand at the turn of the millennium, to friendships that span decades and continents, from the chaos of the "sandwich" years, to the seismic, reality-warping grief of unexpected loss. Together, they ask: what do we owe to the people we used to be, and those we've yet to become--especially when time makes them feel like strangers to us? Is this recurring reunion a blessing or a curse, a cautionary tale to avoid at all costs or proof that Hazel's fate is already sealed?

Hilarious, exuberant, and wise in turn, All Together Now is a dazzling journey through the moments that make up life's unimaginable, spectacular bounty and a celebration of the endlessly surprising process of becoming ourselves.

Author: Julie Buxbaum
ISBN-10: 1668266393
ISBN-13: 9781668266397
Publisher: Avid Reader Press / Simon & Schuster
Language: English
Published: 03/30/2027
Pages: 304
Format: Hardcover