This Is Where I Leave You

"I loved the concept of the book and how the characters were complex. Everyone was intertwined throughout the book. Judds dreams were some of my favorite parts"

"I can see why this was made into a movie. This book was like reading a romcom. It was funny, a little sad, and highly entertaining. "

"Really good book, the story is sad and moving and happy. All the things you would expect during the death of a loved one with a very quirky family mixed in. I consider this a must read, and I bought this book for several of my friends."

"A terrific entry in the humorous dysfunctional family genre, ripe for a movie adaptation (and indeed the author is working on one). Judd Foxman, more sinned against than sinning, is the much pitied, much reviled middle brother: his wife has left him for his boss, and he finds himself living in a crappy apartment with no job, no family and no future. Older brother Paul is bitter over a loss he blames on Judd. Older sister Wendy, smug in her upwardly mobile marriage to a Type A jerk, sees Judd as a perennial lost cause. Only Phillip, the prodigal youngest, is a greater headache to the Foxman family. When their mother, a celebrity family therapist (whose children are NOT the best advertisement for her expertise) insists that all 4 Foxman children return home for a 7 day shiva to mourn their father, family tensions, secrets, and resentments come to a raging boil.<br/><br/>Tropper has created a lively, enjoyably screwed up cast of characters, and he has an ear for the nuances of marital and familial in-fighting. There are no easy resolutions, and no character is completely exonerated or blamed; as Judd realizes late in the book "sometimes you realize the lousy brother is you"."

"Dark, funny, raunchy. Didn't want to put it down. I wish there was a more definitive ending."

"As a gift from a dear friend, I knew I was going to finish this book. However, I must clarify that I would’ve stopped if it *hadn’t* been a gift. <br/><br/>The strength of the plot was diminished by how awful the descriptions of the female characters were. Now, as this is the first book of Tropper’s I’ve read, it’s hard to distinguish whether he just wrote Judd as a misogynistic character or if his writing itself is innately misogynistic. The in-depth (and negative) breakdowns of women’s bodies made me uncomfortable. <br/><br/>My resentment of how the women were written and described with an almost hyperfixation on body image and procreating was too strong for me to appreciate a story that was otherwise about complicated grief and complicated family."

"My favorite laugh out loud book."

"I had a rough time getting into this one, which is why it took me so long to read. Nice to see a romcom from a guy perspective, but he was a little self indulgent and didn't grow much as a character. Everyone else was one dimensional. The ending was ambiguous and frustrating. The only positive is that it very funny and an easy read once you get into it. I also liked that it talked about Judaism and some of their customs."

"Love the book and the movie."

"i typically don’t read this genre but i read this in a few hours. funny, relatable, the right balance of cheesy "