What do readers think of The House We Grew Up In?

This novel was an excellent read. It detailed the dysfunction of the Bird family--father Colin, mother Lorelei, children Meg, Bethann, Rory and Rhys--and all the fallout that stemmed from that dysfunction. Lorelei was a hoarder and her disorder got worse and worse as time went on and the children grew up and left the family home. The children were definitely not without their own issues and each character in this book was a complex one. The writing was wonderful; the characters described in such vivid detail that they were all larger than life. This was my first book by this author but I will definitely read more by her. I received a review copy of this book from BookBrowse in exchange for a review.

The author grabs the reader's attention immediately by using an email from November of 2010, then a short passage from April, 2011 which is chillingly alarming before moving back in time to April, 1981 to introduce the Bird family. As the novel moves back and forth in time, often using Easter as the time visited you meet the family and watch as they begin to react in their own ways to the chaos that is the home they live in. After a tragedy occurs, each one spins away to try and find a different and better existence only to find in the end that the home they grew up in is the one uniting thing to bring them together again. This is a novel that will stay in the reader's thoughts for a long time. I highly recommend this book for individuals and book clubs- much to discuss about this story.

I believe this is the first time I have reviewed a book here and given it 5 stars. I didn't just eat this book up in two days...I devoured it! It is a captivating story full of twists, turns and many surprises. I found myself aching for this family and their many "issues"....the author created such an interesting character in Lorelei and every single player in this story was quirky. The dynamics in this family made me sometimes laugh, sometimes cringe, but this book pulled me into it's grips and held me until the end.

At what point did I get hooked? For the first 30 pages or so I thought I wasn't going to like this book. And then everything changed. I say this as encouragement to anyone who has the same initial reaction. Keep reading. There is treasure in those pages.

Lisa Jewell's characters are flawed, complicated individuals who have trouble understanding their own motivations and reactions, let alone those of others, The Bird family's history is told through events and episodes toggling back and forth in time. Misunderstandings and withheld information complicate the relationships among the siblings and their parents. Their journey has unexpected twists and turns on the way to revealing deep family secrets. Each member feels guilty, but is the guilt correctly placed? Over 30 years the family grows to appreciate and accept each other and achieves relative peace.

If you have ever wondered about what "normal life" really is, this may be the book for you. I was completely drawn into the saga of the Bird family, finishing the book over a weekend. The telling of the family journey was beautiful, with so many wonderful and unique characters. I felt it showed that families can be quirky and lives can play out in ways unexpected. This dramatic story of a family touched by the tragedy of a young death, as well as other unusual events, touched me deeply. The ending was somehow satisfying even if I would not necessarily call it "happy". The English author touches were also interesting to me since I am from the united States. I definitely plan to read more of Lisa Jewell's work!

Four children then three, traditional chocolate-Easter-egg hunts ?where you had to save the foil wrappings, a tidy house and then a very cluttered one.

The Bird family was loving but very eccentric with Lorelei, the mother, being the oddest of all and who kept a secret that made her hold onto things.

Colin her husband re-installed the wall in their once duplex house and lived next door to his wife, Megan turned out to be a neat freak, Beth never left home until she was 30 because she thought her mother needed her, and the twins were total opposites as well as having a tragic incident happen to them.

There were a lot of strange things about the Birds, but they all loved each other. As the years went on and the children grew into adults?, Lorelei still held onto their childhood toys, clothes, blankets, ?and even drawings as she herself remained an adult? child and a compulsive shopper and hoarder. The children couldn't believe what was in their childhood home when they visited and how they had to navigate through a small path surrounded with things Lorelei just had to have and couldn't part with.

If you want to read a book that will have you shaking your head but also not wanting to put the book down because of total enjoyment, you will want to read THE HOUSE WE GREW UP IN. The storyline and writing were marvelous.

I enjoyed THE HOUSE WE GREW UP IN because of the unique, creative storyline with characters that kept you wanting to know how each of their lives would turn out. They all were quite unconventional, but you couldn’t help but love them.

THE HOUSE WE GREW UP IN will have you thinking back to your childhood and wonder if what happened in the home you grew up in has actually shaped you into the person you are today.

We definitely can't forget the cover. It is absolutely gorgeous with the egg being the basis of the Bird family's many memories of their Easter egg hunts which kept them all connected.

Along with being a beautifully told story, THE HOUSE WE GREW UP IN has a happy ending along with characters you will remember long after you turn the last page.

I don't think there will be any reader no matter what their preferred genre is who won't get caught up in this splendid story.

My rating is going to be a 4/5 simply because I was lost in the beginning pages, but the rest of the book definitely made up for my being lost.

Make THE HOUSE WE GREW UP IN a must read for yourself.

This book was given to me free of charge and without compensation by the publisher in return for an honest review.

Four children then three, traditional chocolate-Easter-egg hunts ?where you had to save the foil wrappings, a tidy house and then a very cluttered one.

The Bird family was loving but very eccentric with Lorelei, the mother, being the oddest of all and who kept a secret that made her hold onto things.

Colin her husband re-installed the wall in their once duplex house and lived next door to his wife, Megan turned out to be a neat freak, Beth never left home until she was 30 because she thought her mother needed her, and the twins were total opposites as well as having a tragic incident happen to them.

There were a lot of strange things about the Birds, but they all loved each other. As the years went on and the children grew into adults?, Lorelei still held onto their childhood toys, clothes, blankets, ?and even drawings as she herself remained an adult? child and a compulsive shopper and hoarder. The children couldn't believe what was in their childhood home when they visited and how they had to navigate through a small path surrounded with things Lorelei just had to have and couldn't part with.

If you want to read a book that will have you shaking your head but also not wanting to put the book down because of total enjoyment, you will want to read THE HOUSE WE GREW UP IN. The storyline and writing were marvelous.

I enjoyed THE HOUSE WE GREW UP IN because of the unique, creative storyline with characters that kept you wanting to know how each of their lives would turn out. They all were quite unconventional, but you couldn’t help but love them.

THE HOUSE WE GREW UP IN will have you thinking back to your childhood and wonder if what happened in the home you grew up in has actually shaped you into the person you are today.

We definitely can't forget the cover. It is absolutely gorgeous with the egg being the basis of the Bird family's many memories of their Easter egg hunts which kept them all connected.

Along with being a beautifully told story, THE HOUSE WE GREW UP IN has a happy ending along with characters you will remember long after you turn the last page.

I don't think there will be any reader no matter what their preferred genre is who won't get caught up in this splendid story.

My rating is going to be a 4/5 simply because I was lost in the beginning pages, but the rest of the book definitely made up for my being lost.

Make THE HOUSE WE GREW UP IN a must read for yourself.

From the cover of the book, I anticipated a light, "chick lit" type of story, but the author delivered so much more than that. All the characters were well developed and the story was gripping. I finished in just two days (and then forgot to post my review - oops!) Grab this one to take along with you on a relaxing trip or to read over a long weekend.