{Thank you Berkley Publishing for my gifted copy}
Are We There Yet? by Kathleen West
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️💫
Book Summary:
Among fake Instagram pages, long-buried family secrets, and the horrors of middle school, one suburban mom searches to find herself in a heartfelt and thought-provoking novel from the author of Minor Dramas and Other Catastrophes.
Alice Sullivan feels like she’s finally found her groove in middle age, but it only takes one moment for her perfectly curated life to unravel. On the same day, she learns her daughter is struggling in second grade, a call from her son’s school accusing him of bullying throws Alice into a tailspin.
When it comes to light that the incident is part of a new behavior pattern for her son, one complete with fake social media profiles with a lot of questionable content, Alice’s social standing is quickly eroded to one of “those moms” who can’t control her kids. Soon she’s facing the very judgment she was all too happy to dole out when she thought no one was looking (or when she thought her house wasn’t made of glass).
Then her mother unloads a family secret she’s kept for more than thirty years, and Alice’s entire perception of herself is shattered.
As her son’s new reputation polarizes her friendships and her family buzzes with the ramification of her mother’s choices, Alice realizes that she’s been too focused on measuring her success and happiness by everyone else’s standards. Now, with all her shortcomings laid bare, she’ll have to figure out to whom to turn for help and decide who she really wants to be.
Publication Date:
March 16th, 2021
Genre:
Contemporary Fiction
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My Review:
When it comes to page-turners, I definitely have a type! A family drama with nods to female friendship, family secrets, and the struggles of parenting? Check! Are we There Yet? has it all!
In addition to this book being totally engrossing, it is also super thought-provoking and just feels so real! As a mom who is navigating having a middle school student for the first time this year (during a pandemic no less), there is nothing that I find more stressful than figuring out how to parent in the digital age.
Kathleen West shines at alternating between adult and teen perspectives so flawlessly and this added so much to the storyline. The characters are imperfect and multifaceted and this story just filled my reading bucket this week. This would make an amazing book club discussion and I highly recommend adding this one to your list! 
Thank you to Berkley Publishing and NetGalley for my gifted copy in exchange for my honest review.
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