Reviews with content warning for Drug use - Big Gay Wedding

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Big Gay Wedding by Byron Lane

6 reviews

rayofhope's review against another edition

challenging funny hopeful reflective medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

I read this for a local queer bookclub. I'll admit that I had some trouble with it at the beginning, some of the topics approached in the book hit a little too close to home (like having a homophobic parent and grappling with being raised in a religion that doesn't support queer identities) -- but in that awkward way where it's a little to the left of my own experience, and so instead of feeling seen I just felt misunderstood.
I didn't really connect with any of the characters, none of them seemed like people I would be friends with in real life. However, I feel like part of the issue was the audiobook reader. Once I mentally replaced Ezra and his family with version of the Rose family from Schitt's creek, (in terms of line delivery at least) I ended up liking them a lot better lol.
The narrative poses a lot of interesting questions about the nature of life, and afterlife, and meaning. But most importantly it's about families. About navigating the misunderstandings and heartbreak that caring about other people inevitably brings. I'm glad I read it, even if it was challenging for me.

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kerrygetsliterary's review against another edition

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challenging emotional funny hopeful reflective medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

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soobooksalot's review against another edition

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emotional funny hopeful lighthearted medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

Read Big Gay Wedding, posthaste!
Byron Lane's latest book is absolutely hilarious.
It took me a couple of chapters to settle in on Chrissy Durang's Polite Society Farm. But then her son Barnett arrives home. And his fiancé Ezra. And his mother Victoria. Add in Paw-Paw and Nichole and I couldn't keep up with the laughs. There are also bittersweet moments and tensions to add depth to the "Countdown To Damnation".
You know what's on the horizon from the title. But how big and how gay will Barnett and Ezra's wedding be? Well, it's not all fireflies and organic fireworks. There's scandal, and a vandal.
Prepare to read Pride all year and pick this one up. Recommended!

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louisekf's review against another edition

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emotional funny hopeful reflective medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

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noladawnreads's review against another edition

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emotional funny reflective sad medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

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patelyne's review against another edition

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emotional funny hopeful reflective sad

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

Far outside New Orleans, Miss Chrissy runs the Polite Society Ranch. Before her husband passed on it was a functioning farm, but since it’s gotten a facelift and turned into a sanctuary for misfit animals and regular field trip venue.

Her son is coming for a visit, says they need to talk, and when he adds that he doesn’t have a return flight yet, she jumps to assume he’s moving back from LA to stay and run the farm for her. Instead he’s there to announce his engagement to Ezra.

While her reaction to Barrett’s (objectively awful) outing had not been as volatile as her late husband’s, it was not any more supportive and she’s made it clear she “doesn’t accept the gay thing” and hoped it would all go away

So you can imagine how this reveal went down (and how strained their relationship has been)

Still, she wants her son to stick around longer, so she agrees to have Ezra come down and meet him. Soon Ezra’s force of nature mother, silent father and frankly terrifying sister join them and before you know it there’s going to be a wedding in the farm in less than two weeks.

Going in I had expected this was going to be a book about a fun wedding in an unexpected place, and for the first half the book I kept thinking this was Not It. Homophobia and bigotry are a big theme - even more so at the start - BUT as the story continued, the wedding was more in focus. And what a wedding it was.

Overall though, this story is just as much about the broken complicated relationship between a mother and her son. Throughout the book I had many unkind thoughts about Chrissy. It wasn’t until she had some eye opening revelations about herself and the people she surrounded herself with that any of that changed. And things didn’t get magically all better, but there was So Much Growth.

(And yes, I totally cried by the end)

Thanks to NetGalley and Henry Holt Books for the ARC

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