Publishers Weekly
In Stewart’s new novel (after The Myth of You and Me), Eloise Hempel, at 45, is a history professor whose rising career is derailed when her sister dies, leaving her custody of her sister’s three children. Eloise returns home to Cincinnati, Ohio, where she does her best to raise Theodora, 11; middle-child Josh, and two-year-old Claire in her family’s large, enviable home. Seventeen years later, her sister’s children now adults, Eloise reveals her plan to sell the house and, maybe, move in with Heather, her secret girlfriend. But Theo, Josh, and Claire, none of whom want the house to be sold, confront Eloise, each other, and themselves; in trying to come to terms with adulthood and responsibility, they are all nearly ripped apart. Stewart’s novel is an intimate exploration of a family in crisis and the different ways in which people cope with grief. While the plot meanders and the characters seem paralyzed with indecision, readers will empathize with their plight. Unfortunately, the combination of a melodramatic story line and a focus on minutiae make for a forgettable read. Agent: Gail Hochman, Brandt & Hochman. (Jan.)
From the Publisher
Starred Review. "With a playwright's precise, sometimes excoriating dialogue and an insightful novelist's judicious use of interior monologue, Stewart crafts a tearful yet unsentimental family coming-of-age story." - Kirkus Reviews
3 out of 4 stars. "Faced with urgent choices, Eloise and the grown kids react with varying degrees of wisdom and pigheadedness, but as Stewart tenderly demonstrates, they remain - for better or for worse - a family." - People Magazine
"Stewart's novel is an intimate exploration of a family in crisis and the different ways in which people cope with grief." - Publishers Weekly
"Domestic fiction fans favoring strong, intelligent characters will be intrigued by Stewart's introspective examination of a family." - Library Journal
"Stewart takes what could have been a sitcom premise - a single aunt left to care for her sister's three orphaned children - and turns it into a poignant exploration of the meaning of family." - Booklist
"...an emotionally charged story that, at times, will leave you breathless." - The Examiner
"Stewart is a wonderful observer of family relationships, and she adroitly weaves the stories of Eloise and the children she's raised - their work, their loves, their disappointments and dreams - while focusing on what ties families together, and what ultimately keeps those ties from breaking." - Book Page
"A genuine and heartwarming story about the complicated thing we call family, and what it means to be home. I laughed. I cried. And I was very sorry to turn the last page." - Meg Waite Clayton, author of The Four Ms. Bradwells and The Wednesday Sisters
"Leah Stewart possesses magic. It is awe-inspiring to see how clearly and sensitively she presents the numerous ways her characters are broken and then finds a way to offer some hope of healing. With the family at the heart of The History of Us, Stewart shows that she is unafraid of difficult characters and that she is equally unafraid of making sure they matter to us." - Kevin Wilson, author of The Family Fang
"Leah Stewart plunges deep into questions of home and heart. The History of Us is a lovely novel. Just lovely." - Ann Hood, author of The Red Thread and The Knitting Circle
"Tender and compelling, The History of Us explores how we define our family and who, ultimately, we are both with and without them. These characters and their stories stuck with me long after the final page, and Leah Stewart proves once again that she is a master of understanding the complexity of human nature." - Allison Winn Scotch, author of The Song Remains the Same and Time of My Life
BookReporter.com
"The History of Us stays the course and shows how a family negotiates through a particular crisis. Leah Stewart seems to love her characters even when they are not especially lovable, and gives them space and time enough to grow and change."
Kevin Wilson
Leah Stewart possesses magic. It is awe-inspiring to see how clearly and sensitively she presents the numerous ways her characters are broken and then finds a way to offer some hope of healing. With the family at the heart of The History of Us, Stewart shows that she is unafraid of difficult characters and that she is equally unafraid of making sure they matter to us.
Booklist
A poignant exploration of the meaning of family…the life they’ve lived was as much a gift as the life they lost.
People
Touching drama . . . Faced with urgent choices, Eloise and the grown kids react with varying degrees of wisdom and pigheadedness, but as Stewart tenderly demonstrates, they remain – for better or worse – a family.
Parenting Magazine
Stewart’s novel reminds us how family ties trump all else.
Star Tribune
"Charming. . . Stewart weaves a smart, redemptive tale of maturation."
BookPage
Stewart is a wonderful observer of family relationships, and she adroitly weaves the stories of Eloise and the children she’s raised—their work, their loves, their disappointments and dreams—while focusing on what ties families together, and what ultimately keeps those ties from breaking.
Meg Waite Clayton
A genuine and heartwarming story about the complicated thing we call family, and what it means to be home. I laughed. I cried. And I was very sorry to turn the last page.
Allison Winn Scotch
"Tender and compelling, The History of Us explores how we define our family and who, ultimately, we are both with and without them. These characters and their stories stuck with me long after the final page, and Leah Stewart proves once again that she is a master of understanding the complexity of human nature."
Ann Hood
"Leah Stewart plunges deep into questions of home and heart. The History of Us is a lovely novel. Just lovely.
Boston Globe
A sprawling novel with some of the off-kilter charm of Anne Tyler’s work, The History of Us glows with affection for its wounded, familiar characters.
Booklist
A poignant exploration of the meaning of family…the life they’ve lived was as much a gift as the life they lost.
Parenting Magazine
Stewart’s novel reminds us how family ties trump all else.
Marisa de los Santos
"This narrative voice is so alive. . . . I cherish this wry, funny, aching, intelligent character and this book!
Library Journal
Stewart (The Myth of You and Me) has a knack for introducing characters in need of mending: they are not broken, just disjointed, needy, and, at times, without emotional support. Eloise Hempel is the de facto mother to three twentysomething siblings, having become their primary caregiver after their parents were killed in a car accident. Always planning to put her life back on track as a Harvard professor, Eloise has found herself rooted in Cincinnati for 20 years as she parented her sister's children to adulthood. There's Josh, her kind nephew, something of a negotiator and very much the middle child, a young man who has recently tossed away a life in music. The youngest, Claire, is a wispy, wily ballet dancer, and sensitive Theodora, the eldest, is nearly as sensible and strong as Eloise. Inextricably linked together, the three also have strong ties to their childhood home. Looking toward future domestic arrangements, Eloise slowly hedges toward momentous decisions, while the siblings dabble in their own decision making, sometimes with disastrous results. VERDICT Domestic fiction fans favoring strong, intelligent characters will be intrigued by Stewart's introspective examination of a family.—Andrea Tarr, Corona P.L., CA
Kirkus Reviews
A professor who raised her late sister's three children grapples with the long-term consequences. At 28, Eloise is a rising star in Harvard's history department, having just published a much acclaimed book. She's prepared for a fulfilling academic career but not for the phone call she receives from her 11-year-old niece, Theo, telling her that she and siblings Josh, 9, and Claire, 2, need her to return home to Cincinnati immediately. The children's vacationing parents have perished in a helicopter crash, and their grandmother, Francine, is lying in bed, unable to cope or even phone Eloise about the tragedy. Seventeen years later, the makeshift family is at a turning point. In less-than-free-wheeling Cincinnati, Eloise is loath to come out as a lesbian, although her lover is pressuring her for a commitment. She's had to settle for a less prestigious position at a local college in order to raise her nephew and nieces in their preferred domicile, Francine's large, crumbling Cincinnati home. (The narcissistic oldster has long since departed for Sewanee, where she makes trouble from a distance.) Josh was once a near-famous rock star before giving up music to please a manipulative girlfriend, who has since dumped him. Theo, now 28, has followed her aunt into academe but is stalled in her dissertation and her love life. Ballet prodigy Claire, 19, the only one to achieve escape velocity from Cincinnati, has left for NYC…until by chance, Theo spots her on the street, Cincinnati being not all that big a town. Francine has complicated matters by reneging on her promise to sign the house over to Eloise. Now, the Machiavellian matriarch insists that she'll give it to whoever marries first. This hook is not as gimmicky as it seems. Rather, it forces Eloise and her charges to fully examine their connection to each other and to the world. With a playwright's precise, sometimes excoriating dialogue and an insightful novelist's judicious use of interior monologue, Stewart crafts a tearful yet unsentimental family coming-of-age story.
