Hard Laughter by Anne Lamott
Anne's first novel is a work of genius. It's the story of a family where the father has been diagnosed with a brain tumor, and his three children cope. It is narrated by daughter Jen, who is 23 and wild.
The father Wallace is a brilliant man who made his career as a writer, and the legacy of his intelligence continues in his children's' wit. Their group interactions are sarcastic and hilarious, full of love.
They live near each other, scattered north of the San Francisco Bay, centered around a tiny town full of personalities.
There's no real storyline hooking it all together except Wallace's diagnosis. What keeps it going is the honesty of Jen, in what she's up to and how she feels about it. She's crazy and messy and frustrating and a whole person who is so damn lovable it makes you want to forgive everything you ever thought was wrong about yourself.
This family has been through their rough patches. None of them are perfect and they remind each other of it constantly. But they're fun and they love each other deeply.
General consensus: Anne is so good, so brilliant in her writing. Beautiful and insightful.
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