A New York Times Book Review Paperback Row Selection ABA Indie Next Great Read Picks: Hardcover, Paperback, & Reading Groups Library Journal, starred review Shelf Awareness, starred review Bookbrowse Editors' Choice Association of Jewish Libraries Highly Recommended Stunning Novels That Explore Family Dynamics, Wiki.ezvid.com 8 New Thrillers You Definitely Need to Read, Bustle Best New Books in July, Brit+Co 7 Diverse Novels to Read in July, BethFishReads.com This Week's Top Book Reviews, The Toronto Star
REVIEWS
NEW YORK TIMES BOOK REVIEW: Wolas illuminates the rich, complex histories of the older Tabor generations, when they were Tabornikovs, and the sense of loyalty to one’s family history is so vivid in the novel it is practically its own character.
CHICAGO REVIEW OF BOOKS: The Family Tabor is a hypnotic generational saga... the prose is arresting, elegant turns of phrase, which are cerebral and finely tuned... pitch-perfect... a supple and engrossing read - highly recommended for people who love an intricate family drama.
ABA INDIE NEXT GREAT READS PICK LIST: When you have the most skillfully prepared, decadent dessert placed in front of you, do you plunge in and devour it? Or do you slowly savor it? This is the happy predicament I find myself in when approaching the work of Cherise Wolas... This brilliantly executed novel is filled with secrets, repressed memories, and unforgettable characters under a blazing California sun.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY: The Family Tabor, Wolas' follow-up to her acclaimed The Resurrection of Joan Ashby, is a piercing and multilayered portrayal of an accomplished yet deeply troubled family.
BUSTLE: A fascinating story about family, faith, and loyalty, The Family Tabor is not to be missed.
LIBRARY JOURNAL, Starred Review: Wolas, whose much-acclaimed debut novel, The Resurrection of Joan Ashby, earned countless well-deserved accolades, once again writes with gorgeous intensity about the strata of loving relationships that entwine families in all their messy contradictions that often stubbornly resist transparency, the truth, and resolution. Savor this.
SHELF AWARENESS, STARRED REVIEW: "The past is not dead. It's not even past,"wrote William Faulkner. The Family Tabor provides compelling evidence of that truth. Despite its roots in family drama and the mystery that propels its final third, The Family Tabor is, at its heart, a philosophical novel. Wolas poses big questions: What does it mean to live a good life? How can we atone for a serious misdeed? And how do we seek forgiveness when others have been wronged profoundly by our conduct?
AMERICAN BOOKSELLERS ASSOCIATION: A brilliant family. Unforgettable characters. Irrepressible secrets.
THE TORONTO STAR: Brace yourselves for prose that is confident and prickly, and characters that are complex and problematic.
BOOKPAGE: The Resurrection of Joan Ashby was one of the best of 2017. We're thrilled that she's returning with another novel, about a family that gathers in Southern California over a weekend to celebrate their father being named Man of the Decade. As in all good family dramas, secrets come out when the family unites.
LIBRARY JOURNAL, CRITICS & AUTHORS, BARBARA'S PICKS: In this follow-up to The Resurrection of Joan Ashby, Wolas’ absorbing, multi-starred debut, Harry Tabor’s family gathers in Palm Springs to celebrate his being proclaimed Man of the Decade. But son Simon seems troubled, attorney daughter Phoebe is tight-lipped about her boyfriend, and another daughter, Camille, remains uncertain about her path in life. Then there’s Harry, hiding a dark secret. Read Ashby if you haven’t, then grab this.
WINNIPEG FREE PRESS: [A] richly textured, engrossing family saga of secrets and deception, atonement and spirituality...lush, descriptive and captivating.
CRIMINAL ELEMENT: ...a fascinating case study of an outstanding family
HELLO GIGGLES: This thoughtful family novel will make you think deeply about your own.
BRIT+CO: Told from alternating perspectives, this book is a wonderful read for anyone who loved Cynthia D'Aprix Sweeney's The Nest.
THE JEWISH WEEK: In this compelling story, luck, like love, can be elusive, ever-present and lost. Wolas explores Jewish identity and the connection to the past, with a nod to Leonard Cohen.
SOUTHERN PINES PILOT: A great story about family relationships.
THE COUNTRY BOOKSHOP, Southern Pines, NC: Spanning the brief but extraordinarily eventful 24 hours before and after Harry’s celebrity gala, this breathtakingly beautiful story wades through a cacophony of emotions. Experiencing delight, anticipation, warmth, discovery, surprise, questioning, devastation, and hope just as any family may do on any average day. But this is no average day nor is this an average book. The Family Tabor absolutely demands to be on the top of the must-read stack, the head of the book club list, and the front of the staff picks table in every single bookshop.
TURNROW BOOK CO., Greenwood, MS: Cherise Wolas is a writer ascending to the top of her game. The Family Tabor outshines even Wolas’s spectacular debut.
BOOK VAULT, Oskaloosa, IA: Excellent, simply excellent. With skill and deftness, layer by layer, Wolas peels this family down to its true core, giving readers a truly exceptional reading experience.Book Clubs must not miss this one!
BLUE WILLOW BOOKSHOP, Houston, TX: Another stunning novel of family secrets. I loved every one of the characters. Oh, how my heart ached for all of them. And what a perfect ending.
READ BOOKSELLERS, Danville, CA: An engrossing, character-rich novel. [Wolas'] talent, as writer and psychologist, her deep understanding of the human condition, is extraordinary.
DDG BOOKSELLERS, Farmington, ME: [A] book not to miss is Cherise Wolas' superb second novel, The Family Tabor ... an exploration of family dynamics, what we really know of each other, the measures of success between parents and children, encased in shifting perspectives and compelling characters.
EXCELSIOR BAY BOOKS, Excelsior, MN: ...the Tabors are a complex and secretive group who keep truths from each other and themselves. The reunion will force them to reveal lies, negotiate decisions, and try for second chances. Cherise Wolas returns with a sympathetic and stirring tale and characters with whom readers will connect as deeply as their own relatives.