This is Where I Leave You Audiobook Review

This is Where I Leave You Audiobook ReviewThis Is Where I Leave You by Jonathan Tropper
Narrator: Roman de Ocampo
Published by Penguin, Recorded Books on 2009-09-24
Genres: Family Life, Fiction, General, Humorous
Pages: 352
Format: Audiobook
Length: 10 hrs. 21 mins.
Source: Purchase
Buy on Amazon
Goodreads
four-stars

The death of Judd Foxman's father marks the first time that the entire Foxman family - including Judd's mother, brothers, and sister - have been together in years. Conspicuously absent: Judd's wife, Jen, whose 14-month affair with Judd's radio-shock-jock boss has recently become painfully public.

Simultaneously mourning the death of his father and the demise of his marriage, Judd joins the rest of the Foxmans as they reluctantly submit to their patriarch's dying request: to spend the seven days following the funeral together. In the same house. Like a family.

As the week quickly spins out of control, longstanding grudges resurface, secrets are revealed, and old passions reawakened. For Judd, it's a weeklong attempt to make sense of the mess his life has become while trying in vain not to get sucked into the regressive battles of his madly dysfunctional family.

I love a good dysfunctional family story, and This is Where I Leave You features the ultimate family train wreck. In this book, the Foxman family gathers to remember their recently deceased father Mort. He wants them to sit shiva for a week, and that brings the family under one roof for socializing, reflecting, and fighting. Personalities clash, old wounds reopen, and secrets slip out in this dramedy.

The reason I picked this one up is because of the upcoming movie release. The movie has an all-star cast featuring Jason Bateman, Jane Fonda, Tina Fey, Connie Britton, Dax Shepard, and on and on.  I saw the trailer with all these funny people and it sparked my interest in the book. The movie reminds me of those dysfunctional family comedies like Little Miss Sunshine, The Royal Tenenbaum‘s and The Family Stone. And from what I’ve seen so far it looks like the movie is very similar in tone to the book.

The book is written in the dejected Judd Foxman’s POV. His life is turned upside down when he catches his wife in bed with another man, and now he’s grappling with his father’s death and dealing his siblings baggage and other skeletons in the closet. He and his three siblings may all be grown now, but being back at home (with the spouses and kids in tow) brings back some juvenile tendencies.

The tone of the book is darkly comic, and the book’s narrator Judd is wry and bitter. It’s one of those books where the situations get more and more outrageous, and you’re wondering what could possibly happen next to this family. There is an eccentric cast of characters that bring comic relief to what is obviously a sad occasion, and the revelations come on fast and furious.

I listened to the audiobook, performed by Ramon de Ocampo. His delivery is great, and his voice kind of reminded me of Steve Carell, so I was kind of imagining Carell as Judd when I was listening. The narrator has a deadpan style that gels nicely with the book, and de Ocampo delivers an engaging performance. There are a lot of different personalities for de Ocampo to inhabit, and he gets into character without going over the top. A quick listen, overall.

I’m glad the movie got me to read this book and introduced me to Jonathan Tropper’s writing.  I like his writing style and look forward to reading more from him. If you like dark humor (and very adult humor) give this one a try before the movie comes out.  Check out the movie trailer:

Ornament

6 thoughts on “This is Where I Leave You Audiobook Review

  1. EM says:

    This sounds interesting. It’s not something that I would usually choose to read but I would love to give this a try 😀 (I’ve been trying to get into some adult fiction stuff, hehe)

  2. This is on my library wish list. I think it is one that I would enjoy but I am always hit/miss on general fiction. Good to know it is very solid.

    Felicia the Geeky Blogger recently posted: #LoveMyLibraryCard What is coming your way September 2014
  3. I really like the sound of this book. I am quite the fan of dark humour and Little Miss Sunshine was a film I loved in terms of a dysfunctional family. I actually have not heard of this film, but it sounds lots of fun. I’ll be keeping both my eyes peeled for book and film. Great review.

    Liv_TheAbsentHistorian recently posted: The Blue Blazes
  4. kay says:

    Ha, I am glad to see you enjoyed this one! I’ve been planning on reading it before I see the movie but I have yet to put my hands on a copy. I need to hurry things up!

    kay recently posted: News from the Curio – 13
  5. stacybuckeye says:

    I’ve heard such great things about the book and am really looking forward to the movie. Not sure if I’ll time to read it first though.

    stacybuckeye recently posted: Sundays with Gage- Back to School
  6. Thanks for sharing the trailer. This looks enjoyable.

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