A Family Matter: A Read with Jenna Pick: A Novel

Did not enjoy the book.

Gorgeous prose and excellent character building. I loved this short book and hope Ms. Lynch will continue to write! Highly recommend.

Thank you Scribner for the gifted copiesClaire Lynch’s debut, A Family Matter, may be only 240 pages, but its lyrical prose and fully realized characters linger long after the last line. Told through deft shifts in time and perspective, the story captures the messy tenderness of an ’80s custody battle, weaving laugh‑out‑loud moments—Heron’s audacious opening scene is a gem—into passages so intimate they brought me to tears. The deliberate, reflective pacing gives Lynch room to explore identity, family secrets, and the quiet ways the past shapes us, all with striking emotional clarity. A few threads remain tantalizingly open, yet the hope threaded through the heartbreak leaves a deeply satisfying afterglow. I closed the book wishing for just a handful more pages, which is all that keeps this thoughtful, resonant novel from a full five stars. ★★★★—pick it up if you crave compact, character‑driven fiction that delivers an outsized emotional punch.

Spent the fourth quietly wrapping up @readwithjenna June pick, “A Family Matter” by Claire LynchThe book follows two storylines; one in the 80s where a young mom gets caught up in a relationship that ends in a heartbreaking custody battle, and one in the present day where her grown daughter starts piecing together what really happened.The choices in this book are tough and nothing wraps up neatly, but that’s what made it feel real. When the two timelines finally meet, it’s quiet but meaningful.This book didn’t wreck me like many Read With Jenna books do, but I was definitely invested. If you like slow-build, character-driven stories with emotional depth, this one’s worth picking up.

This is a heartbreaking story about a lesbian mother in the 1980’s. Unfortunately, due to her lifestyle, she lost custody and all contact with her four year old daughter. Thank goodness people’s attitudes and acceptance of same sex relationships have come a long way.I was a young mother myself in the 1980’s and I cannot imagine the heartbreak this mother experienced. I especially enjoyed the dual time lines that included 2022. The later time period focused on the child, now an adult. All the secrets and deceptions are finally revealed to her. The separation from her mother at such an early age was a terrible lifelong trauma. This was a sad story but one that needed to be told.