Download Friends And Strangers [PDF] By J. Courtney Sullivan

Friends And Strangers book pdf download for free or read online, also Friends And Strangers pdf was written by J. Courtney Sullivan.

Friends And Strangers Book PDF download for free

Elisabeth, an accomplished journalist and young mother, is struggling to adjust to small-town life after nearly twenty years in New York City. Alone at home with her young son all day (and waking up with him most of the night), she feels restless and helpless.

She neglects her work, wastes countless hours on her Brooklyn moms’ Facebook group, her “influencer” sister’s Instagram feed, and texts her best friend, whom she never sees again. Enter Sam, a senior at the local women’s college who hires Elisabeth as a babysitter.

Sam struggles to choose between the path he always planned and a romantic entanglement that threatens his ambition. She is concerned about student loan debt and what the future holds. They soon get closer. But when Sam finds an unlikely soul mate in Elisabeth’s father-in-law, the true differences in the two women’s lives become clear and a betrayal has devastating consequences.

A masterful exploration of motherhood, the dynamics of power and privilege in its many guises, Friends and Strangers shows how a single year can change the course of a lifetime.

Friends And Strangers Book PDF download for free

Friends and Strangers is really a good book, a really good book. I’m in my thirties and this book seems to have been written about people I know. I have a lot in common with the characters in the book. Like Sam, I went to an all-girls college. Like Elisabeth, I have found an online moms group that has been a strong support system since I had my first baby 8 years ago. Sam reminded me of a younger version of me and Elisabeth lives a parallel life to where I am now. I really found much of the book quite relatable and that is a testament to the author’s skill.

The story of the book isn’t really a single story, it’s multiple threads that are woven together. There’s Sam’s long-distance relationship with an older man, Elisabeth’s estranged relationships with her family, marital tensions over money and questions about having more children, the prospect of Elisabeth’s in-laws losing their home as the job market has made the father-law’s company obsolete, and much more. Sometimes I couldn’t see where the story was going and then I realized it wasn’t that kind of book…it didn’t all fit perfectly in the end.

In addition, the book contains many observations on modern life. Some of the observations are unique (like the pressure on new moms to breastfeed at all costs) and others are themes that run throughout the book (the Hollow Tree stuff, the observations on different types of privilege, etc.). I think these subtle comments make the book feel very modern at this point, but they may not hold up over time. After the pandemic, our world will look very different.

I found Elisabeth’s character a bit off-putting. She makes some decisions that are just… bad. Really mean and immature as she didn’t think to consult her husband Andrew on these important life changing decisions she made (either before or immediately after). That left a bad taste in my mouth about her… Elisabeth is definitely not an aspiring character who has figured out her adult life.

For me, Sam was the nicer of the two women. On the one hand, he is much younger and his naivety is believable. On the other hand, as the book progresses he learns some hard truths about the world and grows up.

My only complaint is that only Sam has a voice in the epilogue. I had some questions about Elisabeth’s life in 10 years, and meeting her at a traffic light didn’t give me enough answers.

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