This Is How It Always Is

Hilarious and heart-stoppingly emotional ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐
A fabulous book. Topical, moving, full of magic ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐
I was captivated by the story of the love and acceptance this family shares for each other ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐
Amazing, detailed, honest and enlightening. 100% recommend ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐
A Reese Witherspoon x Hello Sunshine Book Club Pick

It made me laugh, it made me cry, it made me thinkLiane Moriarty, No. 1 New York Times bestselling author of Big Little Lies

This is how a family keeps a secret . . . and how that secret ends up keeping them.
This ishow a family lives happily ever after . . . until happily ever after becomes complicated.
This ishow children change . . . and then change the world.

This is Claude. Hes five years old, the youngest of five brothers, and loves peanut butter sandwiches. He also loves wearing a dress, and dreams of being a princess.

When he grows up, Claude says, he wants to be a girl.

Rosie and Penn want Claude to be whoever Claude wants to be. Theyre just not sure theyre ready to share that with the world. Soon the entire family is keeping Claudes secret. Until one day it explodes.

Laurie Frankels This Is How It Always Is is a novel about revelations, transformations, fairy tales, and family. And its about the ways this is how it always is: change is always hard and miraculous and hard again, parenting is always a leap into the unknown with crossed fingers and full hearts, children grow but not always according to plan. And families with secrets dont get to keep them forever.

Thought-provoking and topicalWoman & Home
TouchingGood Housekeeping
An astonishing balance of humour, complexity, and above all, kindness Ruth Ozeki
Wonderful, magicalRed