Wish You Were Here

A year after the death of her husband, Emily Maxwell gathers her family at Lake Chautauqua for what will be a last holiday at their summer cottage. Joining her is her sister-in-law Arlene, silently mourning both the loss of the lake house and a bygone love affair. Emily's firebrand daughter Meg, a recovering alcoholic recently separated from her husband, brings her children from Detroit. Emily's son Ken, who has quit his job and mortgaged his future to pursue his art, comes accompanied by his children and his wife, who is secretly heartened to be visiting the house for the last time.



Memories of past summers resurface, old rivalries flare up and love is rekindled and born anew, resulting in a timeless novel that 'succeeds beautifully [and] showcases some of the finest character studies a contemporary reader could ask for' (Boston Globe).



Stewart O'Nan is the author of sixteen novels, including City of Secrets, West of Sunset and Last Night at the Lobster, as well as several works of non-fiction, including, with Stephen King, the bestselling Faithful. He was born and raised in Pittsburgh where he lives with his family.



Stewart O'Nan loves us and forgives us and watches us when we aren't looking. And he has given us this big, fine, openhearted book in which the inner and outer lives of a family come together, with depth and art.



An unflinching portrait of an American family that's remarkable for its precision, intelligence, and heart. You will not soon forget these people.



[O'Nan's] finest and deepest novel to date.



Offers a stark and brilliantly mesmerising glimpse into the lives of the Maxwells, the most aggressively average American family this side of The Corrections.