All I Love and Know - Hardcover

Judith Frank

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0062302876 ISBN 13: 9780062302878

Publisher: HarperCollins, 2014

Synopsis

Told with the storytelling power and emotional fidelity of Wally Lamb, this is a searing drama of a modern American family on the brink of dissolution, one that explores adoption, gay marriage, and love lost and found.

For years, Matthew Greene and Daniel Rosen have enjoyed a quiet domestic life together in Northampton, Massachusetts. Opposites in many ways, they have grown together and made their relationship work. But when they learn that Daniel’s twin brother and sister-in-law have been killed in a bombing in Jerusalem, their lives are suddenly, utterly transformed.

In dealing with their families and the need to make a decision about who will raise the deceased couple’s two children, both Matthew and Daniel are confronted with challenges that strike at the very heart of their relationship. What is Matthew’s place in an extended family that does not completely accept him or the commitment he and Daniel have made? How do Daniel’s questions about his identity as a Jewish man affect his life as a gay American? Tensions only intensify when they learn that the deceased parents wanted Matthew and Daniel to adopt the children—six-year-old Gal, and baby Noam.

The impact this instant new family has on Matthew, Daniel, and their relationship is subtle and heartbreaking, yet not without glimmers of hope. They must learn to reinvent and redefine their bond in profound, sometimes painful ways. What kind of parents can these two men really be? How does a family become strong enough to stay together and endure? And are there limits to honesty or commitment—or love? 

About this title

Review:

“In this wonderfully rich, absorbing novel, Frank sheds light on gender and identity, the anguished politics of the Middle East, the limits of love and one family’s struggle to stay intact.” (People)

“Deeply moving . . . Frank shows profound empathy for her characters, making this book heartbreaking, yet jubilantly hopeful.” (Publishers Weekly)

“A thoughtful look at how grief isolates survivors and how families may, or may not, come together in crisis.” (Library Journal)

“I Loved it! Read it non-stop. These people catch you by the heart so powerfully you can hardly believe it is a novel. I’ve already had to loan it to a friend.” (Dorothy Allison, award-winning author of Bastard out of Carolina)

“A tender novel that deals with the emotional riptides left by an act of terrorism long after the headlines have faded. It is a brave, moving, and deeply compelling book, written with grace, about the ways even love and family devotion are challenged when the worst occurs.” (Scott Turow, #1 New York Times bestselling author)

“[A] timeless story... beautiful, expansive, and deeply humanistic... Frank is a perfect storyteller, creating vivid landscapes and characters and events.... We have little choice in how we, or those whom we love, die. But when it comes to life, we can choose. Judith Frank shows us how.” (Huffington Post)

“[This is] strong storytelling driven by emotionally complex characters: first-rate commercial fiction.” (Kirkus Reviews (starred review))

“This tender, intricate domestic drama both engages and informs what is arguably one of the critical issues of our time. It feels quite revolutionary, not just in the political sense, but in terms of the kind of stories we value.” (Alison Bechdel, New York Times bestselling author of Fun Home)

“This is a big American story, a tapping into the zeitgeist that few other novelists have really traveled --- taking the life of gay American couples beyond the struggle for marriage equality and giving a look at the usual challenges of any relationship.” (Bookreporter.com)

“A powerful novel about love, loss and the will to endure after inconceivable tragedy.” (BookPage)

From the Back Cover:

With the storytelling power of Wally Lamb and the emotional fidelity of Lorrie Moore, this is the searing drama of an American family on the brink of dissolution, one that explores adoption, gay marriage, and true love lost and found

For years, Matthew Greene and Daniel Rosen have enjoyed a contented domestic life in Northampton, Massachusetts. Opposites in many ways, they have grown together and made their relationship work. But when they learn that Daniel's twin brother and sister-in-law have been killed in a Jerusalem bombing, their lives are suddenly, utterly transformed.

The deceased couple have left behind two young children, and their shocked and grieving families must decide who will raise six-year-old Gal and baby Noam. When it becomes clear that Daniel's brother and sister-in-law had wanted Matt and Daniel to be the children's guardians, the two men find themselves confronted by challenges that strike at the heart of their relationship. What is Matt's place in an extended family that does not completely accept him or the commitment he and Daniel have made? How do Daniel's complex feelings about Israel and this act of terror affect his ability to recover from his brother's death? And what kind of parents can these two men really be to children who have lost so much?

The impact that this instant new family has on Matt, Daniel, and their relationship is subtle and heartbreaking, yet not without glimmers of hope. They must learn to reinvent and redefine their bond in profound, sometimes painful ways. How does a family become strong enough to stay together and endure when its very basis has drastically changed? And are there limits to honesty or commitment—or love?

About this edition

• Publisher: HarperCollins
• Publication date: 2014
• ISBN 10: 0062302876
• ISBN 13: 9780062302878
• Binding: Hardcover
• Number of pages: 432