endless_tbr_list's Reviews (537)

4 stars for Lydia, Daphne, and the entire Mandel(a) Community Center crew! 

This is my second Clare Pooley read and I simply adore the way she makes found family such a prominent part of her stories. Chaos and laughter abound when a middle-aged woman and the group of septuagenarians from her newly created seniors club cross paths with a teenage father and his eight-month-old daughter. 

Alongside all the book's humor and wit, Pooley's characters are battling a range of true to life problems - loneliness, loss, and gang culture to name a few - and have flaws that make them feel real. At it's core, this story is a reminder that growing old doesn't have to mean slowing down, and community is an important part of life, no matter your age. 

Thank you to Penguin Group Viking, Pamela Dorman Books, and NetGalley for the digital ARC to review. Opinions expressed in this review are my own. 

How to Age Disgracefully is out June 2024! 

I never knew I needed a quintet of arthurian-ish teens in my life, but I clearly did and now will never let them go. Arthur and Gwen are a mix of chaos and kindness that I absolutely adore! Watching them stumble their way through crushes is so endearing, but then come the struggles with familial expectations and all I want to do is give them a hug (and punch one person in particular). #ExcaliburNine 

Noelle Shepard's grandmother was one of her favorite people in the world, but now she's gone and Noelle is grieving. When looking through boxes of her gram's things, Noelle discovers stacks of long hidden photos and letters from a man who was clearly her first love, and decides she needs to meet this man and learn the whole story. One viral TikTok later and Noelle finds herself embarking on a "honeymoon" road trip with her gram's secret love, Paul, and his grandson, Theo, who just happens to have been Noelle's high-school rival. Two weeks in a car with the infuriating and attractive man who was her nemesis for years - what could go wrong?

I've now learned there's nothing quite like road-trip-level forced proximity, this was an absolute joy to read! Noelle and her grandmother had such a lovely relationship, it was great watching her get to have this one last, new connection with a women she so obviously adored. As for Paul, he was a total sweetheart and I loved to see the interactions between him and Theo because it really did mirror the type of love Noelle and her gram shared. In the end, despite the somber reason the trip came about, it was clear that this was something they all needed. Laughter and tears abound, You, with a View is a beautifully heartwarming tale of love and loss, and I truly cannot wait to see what Jessica Joyce's future brings.