Meet the Newmans by Jennifer Niven
After more than a month in a reading slump, during which I opened and then promptly abandoned ten new books, I finally found Meet the Newmans, the latest novel from bestselling author Jennifer Niven.
Set in California in the 1960s, Meet the Newmans has everything I personally look for in a great read. A richly imagined cast of characters, an era defined by shifting cultural values, and multiple narrative threads unfolding at once.
At the centre of the novel is the Newman family, who for decades have lived two parallel lives. To the outside world, they are known for their wildly popular television series, a show that for twelve seasons has presented an idealized version of America’s favourite family each week. Behind the scenes, however, the reality is far more complicated. By 1964, on the cusp of the counterculture movement, the Newmans’ carefully curated image suddenly feels outdated, both to a public that has grown up with them, and to the family members themselves.
When Del Newman, the patriarch and creative force behind the show, is involved in a mysterious car accident and placed in a medically induced coma, the family is forced to fend for themselves. At the same time, television ratings are falling and the future of their show is uncertain. What follows is not a single dramatic unravelling, but a series of smaller, more personal reckonings, as each member of the family begins to question the roles they’ve long inhabited.
Through themes of gender roles and feminism, racial and sexual inequality, Niven takes on complex ideas in a way that doesn’t feel overwhelming. Despite such weighty subjects, each one is well woven into the story, and Meet the Newmans never loses its warmth. It’s funny, beautifully written, and by the final pages, I truly felt like I knew the Newmans.
Praised by Judy Blume as “one of [Jennifer Niven’s] best,” and by Camille Perri as “a warm, humorous, emotionally resonant tale of family and feminism,” Meet the Newmans is ultimately a story about the dual lives we lead. It’s about the version of ourselves we present to the world, and the quieter more reserved parts of ourselves.
There is always that one book that comes along at the perfect time to pull me out a reading slump. This time it was Meet the Newmans. I hope you enjoy it as much as I did.
About the Author
Jennifer Niven is the #1 New York Times and internationally bestselling author of thirteen books, fiction and nonfiction, including the massive breakout All the Bright Places, which she also adapted for film. Her award-winning books have been translated into more than seventy-five languages and have sold upward of 3.5 million copies worldwide. Jennifer has loved television and film her whole life and has been lucky enough to develop projects with Netflix, Sony, ABC and Warner Bros. She divides her time between coastal Georgia and Los Angeles with her husband and literary cats.
Meet the Newmans is available to purchase in hardback, paperback, e-book and audiobook formats. Check Bookshop.org to support an independent bookstore near you.
