We All Live Here

Jenna Coleman's skilled narration elevates this heartfelt and hilarious family drama. Lila attempts to co-parent her kids with her ex-husband, who left her. Her oldest daughter has been skipping school, and her sweet and grieving stepfather has quietly moved into their home, which is in constant need of repair. Lila faces writer's block and is navigating the complexities of dating again. The unexpected return of her biological father, Gene, after 35 years further complicates her life. Coleman captures the quirky family dynamics, delivering dialogue that ranges from an annoyed parent's steely tone to a teen's droll responses. Coleman's portrayals of Lila's youngest daughter's jokes and Gene's folksy charm are highlights. A.L.C. © AudioFile 2025, Portland, Maine

July 18, 2025

Lila used to think she had the perfect life, but then, just two weeks after she publishes a self-help marriage book, her husband leaves her. Now, following the death of her mother, Lila lives with her stepfather, Bill, and her daughters, a moody teenager and a precocious eight-year-old. Their old house needs constant and costly repairs. Adding to the chaos, Lila's birth father, Gene, reappears after a 35-year absence and joins the household. Lila needs money. Her editor is eager for her to write about being a newly single, swinging woman, but she hasn't even gone out for a drink with a man. After a series of bumps and bruises, the household begins to come together into something positive. As Lila figures out what she wants and how to achieve it, the true meaning of friendship and family comes into focus. Bestselling Moyes (The Giver of Stars) crafts a sweet, if predictable, tale about love, loss, change, and resilience. Jenna Coleman narrates with a pleasing British accent, highlighting the frustration and conflict each person feels. She is especially effective at voicing the teenage Celie's eye-rolling snark. VERDICT A charming, familiar tale of family, ending on a happy note.--Joanna M. Burkhardt

Copyright 2025 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

Lately, a good deal of attention has been given to women who are in what’s called the “sandwich generation.” These are women who’ve taken on, or been given, the responsibility of caring for their elders even as they still have children to raise. In the case of Lila Kennedy, the protagonist of Jojo Moyes’ We All Live Here, this sandwich is a muffuletta. Everything is in it.Lila, the British, 40ish writer of a bestselling self-help book, can’t be said to have a bad life, but when we meet her she’s having a series of bad days. Her stepfather, the overly fastidious but devoted Bill, has pretty much moved into her home. Her ex-husband, Dan, has moved out and is now shacking up with his girlfriend, Marja. Lila discovers by accident that Marja is pregnant, even though Dan said he didn’t want any more kids—at least not with Lila. The kids, by the way, are stroppy 16-year-old Celie and confident 8-year-old Violet. Truant, the dog, bites people. Lila has the feels for Jensen, Bill’s gardener. On top of all this, Lila is imposed on by Gene, her dad, a bombastic has-been American actor who abandoned her and her lovely, bubbly mother when Lila was a child. Her mother who died, hit by a bus. Moyes, the author of Me Before You, Someone Else’s Shoes and Paris for One, deeply understands the tribulations of women like Lila, who have a roof over their head, a garden out back that needs renovating and a bit of money even though their exes aren’t paying their fair share of child support. It’s easy to dismiss these women as privileged and clueless about what real hard times look like, but Moyes knows we all live in an entropic universe and things fall apart even in the cushiest life. It’s not a coincidence that nearly everyone in the family ends up at Violet’s school to watch a rather alternative production of Peter Pan. Growing up is not for the faint of heart, says this wise, funny and compassionate book.