In her latest book, The Shape of Family, author Shilpi Somaya Gowda beautifully and sensitively details how a tragedy and its aftermath tears a family apart as each member struggles to deal with the devastating loss that has crippled their family.

With her wonderfully descriptive prose, Gowda brings readers into the Olander family with much of the book detailing how each family member handles their grief in vastly different ways. This is a quieter, slowly paced read that may not have twists and turns but will give readers much to think about making it an excellent book club selection.

This is a poignant and honest look at how grief affects people differently. I believe readers who have experienced such a loss will especially connect with the Olander family’s journey from paralyzing grief, to their subsequent disconnection from each other and onward into healing as this family begins to understand what it means to be a family again.

— Laurie P.