All Together Now
By: Julie Buxbaum
ISBN: 9781668266397
Publisher: Avid Reader Press / Simon & Schuster
Publication Date: 03/30/2027
Format: Other
My Rating: TBR (ARC)
For readers of Alison Espach and Emma Straub, brimming with joy, honesty, humor, and heart, All Together Now charts the extraordinary life of the relatively ordinary Hazel Stein—as told by every version of herself she ever has been and ever will be.
Every decade, give or take a few years, Hazel Stein wakes up on a party bus, complete with neon lighting, purple argyle carpet, and a stripper pole, to find seven of her past and future selves: There's Hazel, age eight, making paper airplanes out of napkins; eighteen, with catastrophic bangs and the insecurities to match; twenty-eight, an undeniable knockout who’s still learning to be independent; thirty-nine, flush with the exhilaration and anxiety of new motherhood; forty-nine, gaunt and bald (she’s so terrifying, the other Hazels can barely look her in the eye); fifty-seven, whose ring finger is suddenly, disturbingly bare; sixty-eight, the happy victim of overzealous injectables; and seventy-seven, with wiry white hair, a gash on her forehead, and threadbare clothes.
Together, they must unravel the mysteries of Hazel’s life and tell the story of her three great loves—from an unforgettable one-night stand at the turn of the millennium, to friendships that span decades and continents, from the chaos of the “sandwich” years, to the seismic, reality-warping grief of unexpected loss. Together, they ask: what do we owe to the people we used to be, and those we’ve yet to become—especially when time makes them feel like strangers to us? Is this recurring reunion a blessing or a curse, a cautionary tale to avoid at all costs or proof that Hazel’s fate is already sealed?
Hilarious, exuberant, and wise in turn, All Together Now is a dazzling journey through the moments that make up life’s unimaginable, spectacular bounty and a celebration of the endlessly surprising process of becoming ourselves.
Praise
“All Together Now is a love story in the broadest, fizziest, most heartbreaking sense, exploding with romance, family, and friendship. All of the joys, all of the losses, all of our selves, all of the time. Julie Buxbaum, what a gift you are.”
—Catherine Newman, New York Times bestselling author of Wreck
“Told with equal helpings of hilarity and wisdom, All Together Now collides one woman's past identities with her present self in a decked-out party bus hurtling straight into the future. The next time someone insists you 'never change' this book will make you realize you already have--and it's a good thing.“
—Bonnie Garmus, New York Times bestselling author of Lessons in Chemistry
“Hilarious, moving and poignant. A delight of a novel about how life changes us, and yet--how we remain, everlastingly, ourselves.”
—Rebecca Serle, New York Times bestselling author of Once and Again and Expiration Dates
"Expansive and beautiful—All Together Now reflects the entirety of womanhood with deep empathy, humor, and biting wit. I absolutely ugly cried through my laughter, and finished it with my heart bursting out of my chest. An unforgettable ride."
—Maurene Goo, author of One & Only
About the Author
Julie Buxbaum is a New York Times bestselling and award-winning author of books for readers of all ages. She's written two critically acclaimed novels for adults, The Opposite of Love and After You, which have been translated into twenty-five languages. She is also the author of five young adult novels including Tell Me Three Things and a middle grade series, The Area 51 Files, which have won numerous young reader awards. Julie is a graduate of University of Pennsylvania and Harvard Law School. She lives in Los Angeles with her husband, two children, a dog named Potato, and more books than is reasonable.
