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3.8 AVERAGE
3.8 AVERAGE
dark
emotional
hopeful
reflective
sad
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
“Sometimes the best we can do is live for each other. It’s enough even when it seems like it isn’t.”
Loved this one. First book of the year, but I bet it will stay in my top 10 for the year. Had me in tears several times. The love of it all. The unfairness of it all. The queerness of it all.
Be warned that is a tough read in the first part of the book as you read from POV of Cam, who is quickly becoming more and more self destructive after the loss of his partner. It was difficult to read through all of these self destructive behaviors, but Washington beautifully ties everything together by the end.
Washington expertly tells the story from 3 POVs in 3 different parts and it is done in a way that allows you to have more understanding and empathy for each of these characters that, while not always making the best choices for themselves or for others, are deeply human. They are flawed but by the end of the book you grow to love each of them in their own way.
Family Meal challenges the notions of our culture of hyperindependence. It explores what it means to be a part of a community, what it means to be there for those around you, and what it means to love. It explores forgiveness and grief with a biting realism. Many of these characters express their love and show up for their people in different ways, but it is clear that they all care deeply.
This is a character-driven plot. It is well written and well paced. The only issue I had with the book was the lack of quotation marks did cause me to re-read at times.
Family Meal will make you consider what means to show up for the people in your life and what really matters in life. I highly recommend.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Alcoholism, Drug abuse, Drug use, Mental illness, Grief
Moderate: Eating disorder
Minor: Police brutality
emotional
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Family Meal, my first read of 2023, enters my canon of modern gay classic literature. It joins the ranks of On Earth We're Briefly Gorgeous by Ocean Vuong, What Belongs To You by Garth Greenwell, The Great Believers by Rebecca Makkai, and so on. Bryan Washington brings us back to Houston for his second novel, but this time there is big emphasis on food and how it brings us together. I think it set a good tone for the reading year to come.
This book is a beautiful of addiction and redemption, where we watch a central character fail repeatedly, constantly trying to find his way out of the various challenges he finds himself in, but struggling not to repeat the destructive patterns he is used to.
I found the book to be incredibly affecting and clever in its portrayals of both complex issues but the nuances of how people interact with each other when that is all happening. Incredibly tender and thoughtful.
I received an advanced copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
I found the book to be incredibly affecting and clever in its portrayals of both complex issues but the nuances of how people interact with each other when that is all happening. Incredibly tender and thoughtful.
I received an advanced copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
challenging
emotional
hopeful
reflective
sad
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
i don’t even have words for a review right now. i love this story.
I think this might be my book of the year.
It's the kind of novel I had to hold to my chest after I read the final line.
A story of friendship, love, grief and survival told in three parts, Family Meal takes us into the lives of Cam and TJ and Cam's lost love, Kai. We follow them as they explore snippets of their lives, with tragedy, sexuality, gender, racism, homophobia and mental health all intwined.
There's a lot of sexual exploration in this novel but none of it is ill-placed or timed. It's confused and desperate, searching for connection in the difficulties that these characters experience.
Family Meal is a beautiful story of connection, found family, failures, love and hope. Bryan Washington writes in a beautifully melancholic way that makes my chest ache and I love him for it.
Thank you Netgalley and Atlantic for the ARC.
It's the kind of novel I had to hold to my chest after I read the final line.
A story of friendship, love, grief and survival told in three parts, Family Meal takes us into the lives of Cam and TJ and Cam's lost love, Kai. We follow them as they explore snippets of their lives, with tragedy, sexuality, gender, racism, homophobia and mental health all intwined.
There's a lot of sexual exploration in this novel but none of it is ill-placed or timed. It's confused and desperate, searching for connection in the difficulties that these characters experience.
Family Meal is a beautiful story of connection, found family, failures, love and hope. Bryan Washington writes in a beautifully melancholic way that makes my chest ache and I love him for it.
Thank you Netgalley and Atlantic for the ARC.
I really liked this book. Deeply readable. I kept wanting to get back to it. The first 2 sections are fantastic. Part 3 gets a bit lost. Overall it’s really good and I’m so glad I read it.
i read memorial as well, and i feel like there’s something about washington’s style that doesn’t click with me all the time, but i can’t pinpoint what that is. regardless, he knows how to pack an emotional punch, and you never see the wind-up. he invites you to frequently read between the lines. the subtlety is sometimes frustrating and other times devastating. i’m going to sound like a prude, but i thought the number of sex scenes was a bit excessive. i can sense that they hold a purpose, though, and i can at least respect that.
Cam grapples with the loss of his love, Kai, (and the appearance of Kai’s ghost) as he returns to his hometown and reunites with his old friend TJ and TJ’s family bakery.
Through different timelines and povs, Washington explores grief, self-destruction, old wounds, family, and more. It was interesting to see varying stages of grief and the lingering threads of the past come to light. This book does have heavier subject matter, yet still manages to capture the idea of community, with a focus on queer bipoc characters. Though I felt disconnected at times, I still enjoyed seeing these complex relationships seep into each other!
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
reflective
sad
tense
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