Laura & Emma

by Kate Greathead

A tender, witty debut novel about a single mother raising her daughter among the upper crust of New York City society in the late twentieth century from a nine-time Moth StorySLAM champion.

Laura hails from the Upper East Side of Manhattan, born into old money, drifting aimlessly into her early thirties. One weekend in 1981 she meets Jefferson. The two sleep together. He vanishes. And Laura realizes she’s pregnant.

Enter: Emma.

Despite her progressive values, Laura raises Emma by herself in the same blue-blood world of private schools and summer homes she grew up in, buoyed by a host of indelible characters, including her eccentric mother, who informs her society friends and Emma herself that she was fathered by a Swedish sperm donor; her brother, whose childhood stutter reappears in the presence of their forbidding father; an exceptionally kind male pediatrician; and her overbearing best friend, whose life has followed the Park Avenue script in every way except for childbearing. Meanwhile, the apple falls far from the tree with Emma, who begins to question her environment in a way her mother never could.

Told in vignettes that mine the profound from the mundane, with meditations on everything from sex and death to insomnia and the catharsis of crying on the subway, a textured portrait emerges of a woman struggling to understand herself, her daughter, and the changing landscape of New York City in the eighties and nineties.

Genres: Fiction, Contemporary, New York, Adult, Book Club, Literary Fiction, Family

337 pages, Hardcover

First published March 13, 2018

About the author

Kate Greathead is the author of the novel Laura & Emma. A graduate of Wesleyan University and the MFA Program for Writers at Warren Wilson College, her writing has appeared in The New Yorker, The New York Times, and Vanity Fair, and Moth Radio Hour. She was a subject in the American version of the British Up documentary series, and she lives in Brooklyn with her husband, the writer Teddy Wayne.

Reviews

[Elyse Walters · Rating 4 out of 5]

Kooky and Quirky are words that kept popping into my head as I read - and enjoyed
“Laura & Emma”......
with dialogue that included such sayings as “hippy-dippy”, “lousy-goosey”, and “hoity-toity”.
Don’t get me wrong - there ‘are’ plenty of serious themes in this novel ......but there are just so many wacky moments - that this novel becomes really comical.

Emma was born in 1981.....( the same year my first born child was born too)- but unlike Emma - our daughter was raised with a mom & dad.
Laura was a single mother.

Laura not only had a one night stand - oops no birth control protection - but she had sex with a con-artist bunk mate potential thief ( the maid chased him away before he got away with suitcases filled with loot), who tells her he was roommates with her brother years ago when they were in boarding school.
When Laura mentioned to her brother that she met his roommate from boarding school - that he was staying at the apt. the same week she was - his response was...
“He had a Single”. Oops against!

Wouldn’t you be somewhat embarrassed to discover you’re pregnant for allowing yourself to be seduced by charm and wine by an intruder-scumbag?
Laura was too. She didn’t want to tell her parents, her brother or her child the truth.
Mr. Hot Stud was apparently from Sweden—-so it was very easy to produce a story about artificial insemination —-donated from Swedish sperm —of course. ( a little truth never hurt anyone).

So.....
.....We watch Emma grow up - “spirited”- a word her mother uses herself. I thought she was a kick - refreshing - real - wise - observant - often picking up on ‘value-inconsistencies’ of her mother.
.....We watch Laura grow up - ( questionable) : good book club discussion JUST ABOUT LAURA’S character.
Given that Laura had very little experience with men, sex, and social variety/experiences and awareness- before having a child — she really didn’t ‘fully’ know who she was or where she best fit in the world yet.
Even her enjoyment of the one-night stand -- letting go sexually - excited her to beautify herself with happy anticipation to see her guy again the next day......( which didn’t happen)....was an indicator that Laura could have blossom in many varied directions— but Emma is born.
Emma becomes prime priority over more wine & ravenous evenings. Even Laura’s mother supported her being a single mother - as she sure didn’t talk very highly of husbands! Laura and her mother - both consider men ‘handy-tool guys’ of little other value! oh my!!! Wow...ok?

Laura and Emma had relationship struggles which were frustrating - and at times it was hard to see the source of the problem. Mother? or Daughter?
The author - Kate Greathead did a great job demonstrating the extreme difficulties in being able to see where a problem starts - and where one ends between a mother and daughter. It’s ‘not’ easy to identify the absolute truth in these types of relationships. ANY MOTHER KNOWS THIS! ( single or married).


.....Each chapter in this novel from 1981 - 1995 covers a year - the setting is in Manhattan at the end of the twentieth century — so we re-visit the hostile environment - homicides near record high -the crack cocaine epidemic- lots of small businesses— as compared to more Big chain stores today - and the AIDS epidemic-
fashion memories ( too funny— I didn’t see myself wearing clothes mentioned- but I enjoyed some great laughs) - and cultural society changes that touch personal lives.
.....More laughs with Bibs- Laura’s mom- Emma’s grandmother.
.....Douglas is Laura’s dad — has a side of him that has you shaking your head.
.....Margaret: Bossy best friend to Laura - another character to form opinions-
.....Dr. Brown: A guidance counselor to Laura - another interesting character - with his own issues to deal with too.
.....Nicolas: Laura’s brother - pediatrician - ( very sensitive to his father’s opinion)- Sweet kind guy

So....lots going on —- not without flaws - but this is REALLY ENJOYABLE ....
My best way to sum things up —-is there are serious themes...relationship issues -
thought provoking enough to make this a great book club pick —-
But it’s the quirkiness in the writing - with intelligent authentic angst- that adds so much charm - that makes this story come alive.

Thank You Simon & Schuster, Netgalley, and Kate Greathead

[Diane S ☔ · Rating 3 out of 5]

Nothing big happens in this novel. There are no big splashy scenes, no dramatic renderings, no horrific accidents, just the life lived of a young woman, Laura and her daughter Emma. Just life as it goes day by day, in all it's often messy glory. Laura comes from a very privileged background, and as much as she discards part of its trappings on one hand,on the other her job is owed to this background. As is part of her financial health and the monetary with all to buy the apartment she lives in and send her daughter to an exclusive school. Although she tries to make conscientious choices in her dress and shopping habits, she doesn't question many of the things her family's wealth provides.

She conceives Emma in a slightly funny, slightly sad way. The young Emma is alot of fun, some of the early scenes involving her a joy to read. As she ages she questions many of the things her mother never could. The humor is restrained, ironic and amusing. In fact I felt the writing itself was restrained, kept me at a distance, an observer of the mother and daughter process.

This was a good book, an interesting look at the differences and similarities between mothers and daughters. Laura's own mother provides quite a bit of humor in the early chapters. A fascinating look of family!y dynamics at play. One doesn't always need big scenes to enjoy a book, and this book proved,for me, that to be true. Would have rated this higher but I would have liked a little more emotion, so I could feel part of the story instead of just looking in from a distance.

ARC from Netgalley.

[Cheri · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 Stars

“Sometimes you picture me--
I'm walking too far ahead
You're calling to me, I can't hear
What you've said--
Then you say--go slow--
I fall behind--
The second hand unwinds

“If you're lost you can look--and you will find me
Time after time
If you fall I will catch you--I'll be waiting
Time after time”
-- Time After Time, Cyndi Lauper, Songwriters: Rob Hyman / Cyndi Lauper

Laura was raised in the Upper East Side of Manhattan, her parents themselves born into old money.
But Laura never really seems to fit into that world, her goals, her sense of style are borne of another era from the 1980’s, but she is comfortable with herself the way she is. She likes to think of herself as not as much a part of the elite as her parents. And then she meets a man, and soon enough Emma will be born, but the father hasn’t been heard from since the night Emma was conceived.

She tells her parents, and others that she conceived via a sperm donor with Swedish roots. And life goes on with Laura very content to continue on with her routines, and add those of Emma’s, and time passes the way it usually does, occasionally ruffled by something of note, but typically routine, otherwise.

There was something about Laura, her world felt so protected – and not because she was born into wealth, or expected this lifestyle to continue – it felt as though her view of the world, and her world was a half-breath away from reality. In this sense, she reminded me of Eleanor Oliphant, that sense of quirky charm and appeal she had simply because she lived slightly apart from the world.
Emma, on the other hand, seems very much swayed by her world as she ages. She wants very much to find her place, where she fits in.

New York City, silently overlooking all, is always changing, with new people, new buildings, new shops and restaurants, yet in some ways the essence of what draws so many there remains.

There’s nothing momentous that takes place in this story, which is very much a part of its charm. There is a exploration of the awakening of both Laura and Emma as the years pass, the realities and decisions we all face, and a nod to how much easier it is to face them with a little more money. The changes we all go through, although our circumstances are not identical to theirs, the changes they go through, are part of life and living.

Another quiet read, a simple story, beautifully told - but sometimes that is just what you need.


Many thanks to the Public Library system, and the many Librarians that manage, organize and keep it running, for the loan of this book!

[Victoria · Rating 4 out of 5]

A pensive, subtle story that provides us scenes in a life from the weighty to the commonplace.

I read a column recently where the writer extolled the virtues of memoirs of lives that exemplified the challenges and realities of our common, daily existence, those that didn’t face the extraordinary, but instead were about the decisions people have made before and millions will make again. That’s what this book of fiction aims to do and in that way delivers a textured portrait of a woman’s life over the span of 15 years where nothing cataclysmic happens, yet its beauty is in its nuanced portrayal of a woman at odds with her family, her daughter, and sometimes even herself.

I am drawn to character studies and family dramas and this delivered in both contexts. It was as much about what makes us human as about class exploration and family dynamics, and as with most novels set in New York, the city becomes another character amongst the eccentrics in this story. The writing is elegant, the wit understated and it’s just slightly quirky. Check, check, check, check for my reading tastes.

I also found its structure added to its originality. Starting in 1980, Greathead offers us glimpses into these lives, ordinary moments that take on meaning, big moments that don’t and even one year that offers no more than two paragraphs about an asteroid passing by the earth. The author writes ‘and so their lives continued, much as they had before…’ and how many of us can’t relate to the passing of years, some of which you can’t remember one single thing that stood out, but the spinning of the earth?

This may not work for everyone, but if you like the occasional quiet read, not one where you will learn something or are shocked by something, but just revel in the simplicity of a story, then this might just work for you too.

[Marie · Rating 4 out of 5]

What I loved most about this book, was the unexpected heroine, Laura. She is an unassuming woman who dresses plainly despite her beauty and avoids social gatherings. However, she takes delight in the fisherman’s gaze when she sunbathes topless. She spends an eight week summer vacation in Ashuant repeating this ritual, while the other extended family members play and socialize elsewhere. Each chapter in this book is filled with quirky, humanizing stories through which we get to know Laura so well. This is a debut novel which follows Laura, and eventually her daughter too, through vignettes, each chapter representing a new year.

Laura, born to an affluent family from New York’s Upper East side, never had any interest in marriage or having a family of her own. Her friends around her are all married and starting to have children, yet she has no interest. Nor does she have interest in intercourse. She prefers to live a quiet life. Just to be sure that nothing is wrong with her, she visits an analyst so as to be declared mentally sound.

Not interested in vacations, she sometimes visted her parents’ apartment on the Upper East side while they were in Europe in August. One time, she stays there alongside Jefferson, whom she presumes to be one of her brother’s friends from back in boarding school. After a week of cohabitation, he opens up a bottle of her father’s wine which leads to a one night stand and pregnancy. He is gone the next day and she later discovers that there was no relationship between Jefferson and her brother. Subsequent to their night together, he narrowly escapes being caught from a neighbor’s home, and leaves behind all the belongings he had stolen from her parents home. She ends up having the baby, who is named Emma, and tells people that she used a sperm donor. Her mother presses her on the origins of the sperm and is very pleased when Laura responds, that it is Swedish.

From this point, the story pivots around the relationship between Laura and Emma and their immediate circle of friends and family. There are many themes running through the novel. One theme has to do with labels and how difficult it is to label others or even oneself. Laura, once a single woman with no plans of adding to population explosion, becomes a mother. She goes from not wanting to date at all, to attempting to date men, then women. She continues to accept her share of money flowing from her parents, but attempts to live less luxuriously and to help others.

Laura seems to be a study in contradictions. She lives to a great extent off of the money from her parents. She has a job which she was given solely because she is the daughter of her parents, planning weddings at the library museum which was once her great grandfather’s residence. Even though it is the height of wedding season, she is able to take 8 weeks off in the summer, so she can summer in Ashaunt. However, she takes pride in living in an apartment building across the street from Harlem. She works at a local women’s shelter on Sundays. She tries not to embody her upper class status and privilege, while accepting its’ advantages handily.

I very much enjoyed reading this book. Like Laura, there is much more than meets the eye with this book. It may seem like a quite unassuming book, but is so much more. For me, this was a surprisingly entertaining read with endearing well developed characters and deeper themes beneath it’s lighthearted surface.

[Cindy Burnett (Thoughts from a Page) · Rating 4 out of 5]

Laura and Emma is a beautifully written book about the relationship between a mother and daughter, each an individual who marches to the beat of a different drummer. They are born into privilege in New York City’s Upper East Side, and Laura in particular struggles to separate herself from this life while still relying on aspects of this privilege. But the novel covers so much more – New York City in the 1980’s and 1990’s, the AIDS epidemic as it unfolds, and post-partum depression. Greathead has written a novel about life and managing the hand one is dealt while overlaying the issues of a complicated era. I received this book to read and review. All opinions are my own.

[MaryBeth's Bookshelf · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thank you to NetGalley for providing me with an advance copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

What a beautiful debut novel from Kate Greathead! Laura and Kate deals with the relationship between a single mother and her headstrong daughter. Set in New York City during the 1980's and 1990's it is filled with stories of private education, summer houses, family ties, the AIDS epidemic, and trying to find one's place in the world. I loved that the story was told through a series of vignettes, inviting us in and exploring the lives of a whole cast of characters; including Laura's hilariously eccentric mother, her brother who suffers from a stutter that rears its ugly head around their demanding father, a loving pediatrician, and friends who come and go from their lives.

[Irene Adam · Rating 1 out of 5]

I received a free e-copy of this book and have chosen to write an honest and unbiased review. I have no personal affiliation with the author. I did not enjoy this book. This is the story of a single mother and her daughter as she becomes a young woman. The characters all seemed quite superficial to me. They lived a life of privilege that seemed to be without purpose and meaning. The ending was quite abrupt and confusing. There didn’t seem to be a point to the story.

[Bam cooks the books · Rating 4 out of 5]

A delightfully fun, character-driven debut novel by Kate Greathead about Laura, a quirky young single mother, raising her daughter Emma in NYC.

But "life hadn't required Laura to navigate unknown territory on her own." She is a WASP descendant of one of the Robber Barons of old and works as an event planner at the museum that was once the private residence of her great-grandfather. The way in life has always been smoothed for her, even when it requires a few white lies: such as about the paternity of her child. Her work hours are adjusted to fit her needs and she is given eight weeks paid vacation, even though she wants to take those weeks during the most inconvenient peak wedding season.

Life for these people is buffered by their social network of 'who's who' and such privilege comes with its own set of rules, the right things to say and do. But Laura tends to go her own way. Her friends think Laura is oblivious to things like fashion because she wears a simple daily uniform of her own devising: white turtleneck, Laura Ashley skirt and Frye cowboy boots. But she feels she does this to 'save the earth' from over-consumption; she took to heart the environmentalists' credo: "Use it up, wear it out, make it do, or do without." She lives off her salary, donating her trust fund dividend checks to charity. But don't worry--daddy does help with things like tuition to a private school for little Emma.

But are you really experiencing life if you always have to pause and wonder: What am I supposed to feel? How am I expected to react? If you don't get down and get dirty in the trenches of life? If your family doesn't make their own Thanksgiving turkey?? (gasp!)

And speaking of turkey, I enjoyed this story immensely and devoured it down in one day! (Pffft--sorry!) The chapters are specific years of Laura's life beginning in 1980 and ending in 1995, years when I raised my own children so I could relate to some of the situations she finds herself in. Does Laura grow as a person? I think so but she makes as many mistakes as the rest of us along the way!

Many thanks to Simon & Schuster for providing me with a copy of this lovely new book. I believe Kate Greathead's career as a writer is off to a great start!

[Jennifer]

I received this book from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review

DNF @ 20%

I wanted to like this book SO MUCH. I loved Gilmore Girls and when a book is being touted as comparable to it, I knew I had to have it. Unfortunately, I just could not connect with the writing style. On top of that, I was really hoping for a character deep dive, but everything seemed to just be skimming the surface. The vignette style of storytelling was just not for me and sadly, I must put this one aside.

If you are in the mood for something lighthearted and nothing too deep, you may still want to pick this one up.

[Sherri Thacker · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a quirky little book that has short chapters which makes for quick reading. I really enjoyed this book and laughed out loud in many spots. This is Kate Greathead’s debut novel and I think she did a great job with it.

Thank you for this complimentary copy of this book from Simon & Schuster through NetGalley. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

[Catherine (The Gilmore Guide to Books) · Rating 2 out of 5]

I requested Laura & Emma because it ticked every box in my ‘oh, this is going to be so good’ reading checklist. Debut? Check. Female author? Check. New York City? Check. Quirky female protagonist? Double check because she’s rich as well. The novel is the story of Laura, a young woman who comes from such wealth that after college she doesn’t even need to look for a job, she just goes to work at one of her family’s foundations in a job they create for her. After an unusual one night stand she’s pregnant and decides to have the baby. Emma. The novel covers both their lives for the next fifteen years.

Laura is an odd blend of earnest and entitled. She seems uncomfortably aware of being in the 1% but again and again in the novel, takes full advantage of her advantages. She has no problem informing her ‘job’ that she wants to work part-time but continue to be paid a full-time salary and to get two months paid summer vacation. What? Either you care or you don’t. She recognizes that she’s entitled, but doesn’t want to own it nor does she want the reverse—to turn away from it and get a real job, making real life decisions. Whenever anything goes the slightest bit wrong, she heads home to live off Mummy and Daddy. Or, to be more specific, to make the family housekeeper/cook babysit Emma whenever Laura needs a break. In fact,

Life was much easier at 136. Dinner was prepared, the house was cleaned when she wasn’t looking, she could pass Emma off to Sandra when she needed a break. After a week, Laura decided that it made sense, at least while Emma was a baby, to stay there…

I’m a big fan of both subtlety and satire and appreciate both, but in Laura & Emma it felt as if there was too much of one and not enough of the other. As in, author Kate Greathead overdosed on subtlety—to the point I couldn’t tell what was humor and what was meant seriously, and held back on the satire, which made what may have been meant as scathing feel completely tone deaf. Just as importantly, I never got any sense of connection between Laura and Emma. She seems to have had her because…why not?

Ultimately, Laura & Emma gave me nothing to hold onto. To the point that I set it down twice, for over almost two weeks, when I was already 80% of the way through, which is almost unheard of for me and not a good sign. Greathead did not create a bond between her characters and my brain. However, after hearing other people’s opinions on the book I did pick it up and finish it ,which was not a great idea because the ending made me furious. I’ve yet to talk to anyone who can tell me exactly what it meant. It confirmed my initial feelings about the book then multiplied them tenfold. And, to quote Forrest Gump, “That’s all I have to say about that.”

[BELLETRIST · Rating 5 out of 5]

APRIL #BELLETRISTBOOK is in! Laura hails from the Upper East Side of Manhattan, born into old money, drifting aimlessly into her early thirties. One weekend in 1981 she meets Jefferson. The two sleep together. He vanishes. And Laura realizes she’s pregnant. Enter: Emma....
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[Jerrie · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book deals mainly with the relationships between mothers and daughters. The women in this book all come from old money in New York, so there’s also a lot about privilege here. The writing and characters are good, but in the end I was left thinking “so what?” There wasn’t anything at stake in the story and it seemed like the author had no idea how to end the story. 2.5⭐️

[Nancy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Laura & Emma by Kate Greathead follows the relationship between mothers and daughters, told in vignettes against the changing times between 1980 and 1995. It is a comedy of manners novel with loads of laugh out loud moments.

Laura comes from a wealthy New York City family descended, from a Robber Baron whose inherited wealth supports her. She has a degree in English and a job through the family. She envies self-made people.

Laura has never been in love. Her mother's favorite saying is that it doesn't matter who you marry--you will end up thinking, "Anything would be better than this!"

The book begins with Laura pondering that a husband would be nice to have around the apartment if the window were swollen or the fire detector battery needed replacing. She wouldn't have to wait until morning to call the super.

She dresses in Fry boots and a flowered Laura Ashley skirt and turtleneck sweater--a uniform she wears all of her life. (I had those fry boots and made a Ralph Lauren full skirt. Unlike Laura, they went to the Goodwill long before the 1980s were over!) She has no intention of having children, no interest in marrying. She is concerned about the environment. She has The Enchanted Broccoli Forest and Moosewood cookbooks but rarely cooks.

In 1980 while her parents are away, she stays at their home for a week. She is surprised that a man is also staying there. She assumes he is a friend of her brothers, and he does tell her stories of their time together in boarding school. Before the week is out, he charms her into bed with him. The next day he is gone.

He was not a friend of her brother's but a house-crashing burglar. The one-night stand leaves her pregnant. Laura makes up a story of artificial insemination with donated Swedish sperm. Emma is born, and Laura does her best as a mother, hoping to give Emma a life different from hers, apart from artificial high society values. She finds an apartment on the border of Harlem--but on the 'right side' of the street.

I laughed out loud so many times. Laura goes on a date and notices the man has earrings. She decides they aren't meant to be, but the earrings turn out to be his daughter's stickers.

Laura's friend Margaret explains she has joined "the club", seeing a "shrink." After years of marriage, she sometimes looks at her sleeping husband, whose snoring keeps her awake, and thinks that it is a good thing she didn't have a gun in her bedside table.

Don't worry, things turn out fine for the marriage. But what a clever scene to talk about the idea that "it doesn't matter who you marry, one day you'll be sitting across the table from him, thinking, Anything would be better than this." I'm pretty sure husbands think the same thing about wives. I'll ask mine the next time I am wearing sweatpants and a sweatshirt to keep warm--my Oompa Loompa look according to him.

The book was promoted in terms of, "if you liked Ladybird or Gilmore Girls." Gilmore Girls included a single mom at odds with her wealthy parents, and Ladybird showed a teenager wanting the freedom to find her own way. The themes are similar.

We learn about Laura by her actions and passivity. She is the least self-aware character imaginable. Her inner conflicts are hinted at without an overt authorial voice. We make connections about Laura by implication.

Emma, on the other hand, is sharp as a tack. As a preschooler she asks Laura why they don't live "in their neighborhood," that is where their friends and stores are.

I know readers who do not like this book because 1) it is episodic, without a strong linear plot; 2) it is character-driven without a lot of inner dialogue; and, 3) it is open-ended.

But I enjoyed it. I love a good comedy of manners. Laura's inability to deal with adult intimate relationships, Emma's zeroing in on the inconsistencies of their lives, and the gaps between mothers and daughters all feel real.

I received an ARC from the publisher through NetGalley in exchange for a fair and unbiased review.

[Natalie · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is such a special and charming book about an odd and delightful heroine, Laura, and her relationship with her daughter, Emma. Told in a series of vignettes that begin with Emma’s unusual conception and end with the sad separation of the two.

Greathead paints an authentic portrait of the WASPS who inhabit Manhattan’s old money’s Upper Eastside. Every word is perfectly chosen so that the reader can see each character and empathize with the unusual Laura and her life choices.

Living in Manhattan, having a child in an Eastside school (public), I spent years walking among these denizens. The uniformed children, their virtually identical mothers, made it clear that the eccentric Laura would face many issues. Her home is on the edgy street that is the line of demarcation between the two distinct areas of Manhattan’s Eastside. It is a wonderful metaphor for Laura and her child.

The charicature that is Laura’s mother, Bibs is spot-on. Each segment of fading WASP life is examined, even the money issues that plague the old rich. We even get to sit through an agonizing dating experience with Laura.

This is such a wonderful book and I was so invested in the characters that it broke my heart when there was a chasm between mother and daughter. The end was left to the reader, I want mine happy, because I was so enamored with these two women.

[Ellen · Rating 5 out of 5]

"Laura and Emma" is a beautiful and brave big book. From so many little miraculously interesting stories, something big emerges. And the writing! The writing is incredibly beautiful.

Kate Greathead is a wonderfully gifted storyteller. Each section–the book is divided by years–made me want to go on to the next. The only reason it took so long to read (a week) is that life, work, and fatigue got in the way.

I loved the story of Laura and Emma’s visit to Round Bush, Laura’s great grandfather’s estate on Long Island. There, alone, in the dining room of the ancestral manse, Emma steals a chocolate wafer and puts it on her tongue, which gave her a funny feeling–as if her heart were beating–“except-you-know-where.” That’s Greathead’s quiet, subversive humor on display: arranging for her exceptional little girl character Emma to have her first orgasm in the “robber baron’s” sanctum sanctorum of propriety.

[The Blonde Bookworm · Rating 3 out of 5]

Laura is a single mother in NYC who comes from a good bit of money. She's the "Plain Jane" type and doesn't seem to get too excited about many things. After a random one night stand, Laura becomes pregnant with Emma. The novel continues with the story of Laura and Emma's lives and the ups and downs they experience together. I really thought this novel was going to be amazing because other readers said it was similar to Gilmore Girls, but it fell a little flat for me.

There were definitely some fun and hilarious moments, but I thought Laura's character was pretty bland and I also wasn't too crazy about her relationship with her daughter. They didn't seem all that close to me and I thought the whole novel just had a sad feeling to it. There were some definite character positives, I loved Laura's mother and I thought Emma was pretty charming the more we got to know her.

All in all, I thought Laura & Emma was a little slow and boring. I felt like the novel didn't really have much of a direction and the ending left me wanted something more. This novel was not my typical read, so I don't want to judge too harshly as I think there are a lot of people who would really enjoy this read. I would recommend this novel if you enjoy contemporary women's fiction.

Thank you to Simon and Schuster and NetGalley for sending this novel in exchange for an honest review.

Rating: 3/5

[Mary · Rating 4 out of 5]

Maybe I’m being a little more generous with my stars than usual, but this book felt inordinately special, charming, and completely took me by surprise with the big (but quiet?) feels it evoked. I wasn’t sure what to expect of it before reading, and even after finishing– it has left me puzzled as to how to truly characterize it.

I’d heard some pre-release buzz about this one being Gilmore-Girls-esque– and frankly, I think that does a disservice to what this story actually becomes. I’d go so far as to say it felt almost like what would’ve happened if GG were a story about Emily raising Lorelei as a single mother instead, but beyond the exploration of a two-person, mother-child family, this is where those comparisons end. I laughed and I grieved for both Laura AND Emma, I chose to have hope and feel a tide turning in the ambiguousness of the ending (“speak up”, advice from Martin, perhaps finally being put to use?). I’ll be thinking about this one for a while.

[cluedupreader · Rating 1 out of 5]

A snore of a story set in the city that never sleeps.

It's as though the author talked wrote to hear her own voice. Told in vignettes by year, the story is really just copious descriptions of the minutiae in the life an uptown woman — whose daughter's upbringing paralleled mine, making me think I was its ideal audience.

The novel had been atop my 2018 Must List, and when it was available to Read Now, I jumped at the opportunity! Although the blurb had captured my interest, the book didn't. I abandoned it after 1989. One decade was enough.

Thanks though to Simon & Schuster and Netgalley.

[Janilyn Kocher · Rating 2 out of 5]

I couldn't connect with this book, I found the story dry and somewhat dull. None of the characters had depth. They just glided along the surface of the story. The ending was abrupt, leaving me asking What?? I honestly didn't care what happened to any of the characters, they were just devoid of emotion. Thanks to NetGalley for the advance copy.

[Lolly K Dandeneau · Rating 3 out of 5]

via my blog: https://bookstalkerblog.wordpress.com
'Laura was envious of others’ accounts of struggle, which were recalled with a certain fondness. It had been an adventure, the thrill of the hustle; they’d chased a dream against the odds, and now they were living it. She could only imagine the pride of being personally responsbile for everything one had- professional success, friends, apartment- and being able to trace all this back to hard work. Knowing that everything in their lives wasn’t a given, that it all could have gone a different way.'

Laura comes from money, she never thought she’d have a child but a one night stand changes everything. Laura isn’t the most passionate of women, sex seems more like a thing to just get through. It certainly isn’t the center of her life. She can just get rid of the problem. Reading a magazine an idea strikes her, she can be a Supermother, one who doesn’t need a man! Raising a child without a father, it’s just what she does with her eccentric family and the guidance of Dr. Brown. For a woman who choses to be ‘progressive’, Laura is uptight. Emma is the light in the novel, constantly at odds with her mother. Laura knows her daughter isn’t the right fit for the “Winthrop Way”, her ‘inappropriate’ daughter, creating a drawing of a man fully in the nude. Emma’s actions always seem to get under her mother’s skin, a proper woman.

The fun of the novel comes from Emma, her untamed spirit, her funny comments and actions. She doesn’t know the truth of how her mother got pregnant, and her Bibs (grandma) assures her she was conceived with Swedish seed, because isn’t that more exciting? Laura wanted to raise her daughter as the Supermother she imagined that day, so long ago when she decided to not abort her. Beyond being a single mother, she isn’t exactly living an overly liberal life and certainly not one of struggle. She is a wealthy woman who wants to be normal, like the rest of us, but there is something annoying rather than nobel about it, considering Emma ends up in the same world. Emma is born more progressive and free anyway, compared to the stuffy world she grows up in, as she says her mother often tells her ‘less is more’ about the way she navigates life, but Emma really can never be ‘less’. Once she hits junior high, anger is born and aimed at her mother. The reader rushes through each year, towards the end Emma finally goes to a boarding school aimed more towards the ‘individual’ and Laura is on her own again. They have discussions on the phone and like many mothers she realizes all Emma wanted was a normal family, maybe… whatever that entails.

I never warmed to Laura, for someone so focused on living a life completely different from how she was raised, it seems it was already too ingrained in her. Bibs was fun, and a bit obnoxious. The storyline with Dr. Brown was interesting considering the times, but he is gone too soon. I feel the way the years are presented is a little too rushed for me to get as involved in the characters as I wanted. Emma drives the story on, I just wish Laura was half as interesting as her daughter. The ending… is it an ending?

I’m curious of what other readers will think of this novel, there were funny moments, I laughed when Emma asks if her mom is glad she doesn’t have brown hair like hers as she is blonde instead, because it’s better. ‘Maybe it’s Maybelline’, it takes you back to the 80s. The novel feels more like hanging out with a single mother and her daughter for a while, nothing big happens, it’s all just small quiet moments. I’ve grown up with friends of single mothers and their lives were nothing like this, but they didn’t come from wealth and comfort.



Publication Date: March 13, 2018

Simon & Schuster

[Karly · Rating 3 out of 5]

I thought I would love this book as it was compared to The Gilmore Girls and was billed as the story of the relationship of a single mom and her daughter living in NYC. However, I did not. The main character Laura is just boring and while she does have some interesting observations about life, I never really "felt" the bond of her relationship with her daughter Emma.

The two standout characters to me are Laura's VERY old-moneyed mother who, was absolutely hysterical, and the city of NYC as seen through the lens of a seventh generation, very wealthy inhabitant.

Thanks to to publisher Simon and Schuster for the ARC.

[♥ Marlene♥ · Rating 2 out of 5]

Well I can say one thing about this book and that is that I tried. I really tried but I can't do it no more. I am not emotionally invested in the main characters at all and I do not care what they are doing or are going to do. What a bore. Now I am not someone who always needs to have action in my books but the characters were one dimensional and tedious.
No more!

[Cathy · Rating 2 out of 5]

The story seemed "all over the place" to me with no real point! I did not like or relate to any of the characters. Laura appeared spoiled and entitled. Thankful I did not buy it as I was fortunate enough to borrow from the library.

[Lois · Rating 1 out of 5]

Disappointing. What was the point? Characters has no personality. Emma was a brat. Laura was stupid. Nicholas was a jerk. Bibs is ridiculous. Doug a nothing man. Stephanie was probably the most interesting person and not a word about her. I want my life back.

[Wendi Lee · Rating 3 out of 5]

Laura is a single mother, hailing from a wealthy Upper East Side family, raising Emma during the 80's and 90's. We see vignettes of mother and daughter through the decades; and if I can be absolutely honest, I wish it had been more than just vignettes, which left me feeling removed from the characters. I started reading this thinking it might be a literary equivalent to Gilmore Girls, and while there are some similarities, especially with wealthy grandparents and single motherhood, this is its own story.

Laura strives to be progressive and liberal, but she's unable to get beyond her conservative, wealthy background. Her attempts are often stifled: she tries to enroll her child into a progressive school, but once denied her first attempt, she then puts her into her alma mater. There's a very sad subplot revolving around Emma's gentle pediatrician, but Laura (and perhaps the novel itself) isn't brave enough, or equipped enough, to reach out in a compassionate way. Ultimately, this is a novel about complacency.

Young Emma is meant to be Laura's counterpoint: she sees their background as stunted and antiquated, and tries to speak up. Yet in many instances, I felt that she was just being shuttered into another stereotype, that of angry young tween/teenager. In many ways, I was more afraid for Emma's future than I ever felt for Laura. There are warning signs emanating from Emma that Laura is just too ill-equipped to deal with.

For me, the biggest stumbling block was the vignette style. I am a fan of character driven novels, but here, I felt that I could never get close enough to either Laura or Emma, or even any supporting characters. We glimpse a moment in their lives, and then immediately, we move on to a new year, a new scene. I wanted to feel for these characters, to ache for them, but instead I felt as if I was seeing them through a wall of glass.

Thank you to Simon & Schuster and Netgalley for an ARC.

[Tara - runningnreading · Rating 4 out of 5]

It's no secret that I'm a sucker for debut novels; I also really enjoy novels that are organized in vignettes, a style that is not often utilized but, when done well, can be very pleasing. When I heard that Laura & Emma had been recommended to fans of Gilmore Girls and Ladybird, and is set in the 1980s and 90s, I couldn't resist!

In 1981, and in her early 30s, Laura discovers that a rare sexual encounter has left her with child; she considers abortion, decides against it, and readers are introduced to Emma. Laura's parents are supportive, though surprised, and go to great measures to ensure that Laura is able to adequately provide for this new member of their family.

Over the years, when meeting her mother’s friends, Laura was aware that she was not what they expected, perhaps a disappointment, and it made her feel bad about herself.

While this story could have taken a more serious turn, it does not; in fact, it's quite hilarious. Laura is rather quirky (think The Rosie Project or Eleanor Oliphant is Completely Fine), but not damaged; the cast of characters around her provide a heartwarming supporting cast and this is where I find the most appropriate comparison to Gilmore Girls.

Among the misperceptions others had about Laura was that she was oblivious to her looks. This was largely due to the simplicity of her wardrobe. To work she wore a white turtleneck, one of three rotating Laura Ashley skirts, and a pair of Frye cowboy boots.

Laura's mother, Bibs, is a big supporter of the local private academy Laura attended, The Winthrop School, and pushes for Emma's enrollment; everything there is referred to as "the Winthrop way." While Laura is not hesitant to enjoy the benefits of her family's financial success, she never takes advantage or does anything extreme; she is always very practical and Greathead uses this trait as a tool to develop Emma into the independent young woman she becomes, throughout the novel.

It wasn’t about cool versus uncool, pretty versus ugly, funny versus boring, or even happy versus sad, but goodness - goodness versus everything else that might not seem bad, but wasn’t good either. To do good things, to be a good person: this was all that really counted.

I'll admit that Laura & Emma is a little tough for me to describe; however, I thoroughly enjoyed this novel! I read it quickly, eager to hear more and learn what would happen to both of these beautifully-written, unique characters; Greathead definitely has a talent for authentic, relatable storytelling and I hope this debut receives all of the attention it deserves.

**Read more of my reviews at runningnreading.com!**

[Cindy H. · Rating 3 out of 5]

Many thanks to Simon & Schuster Publishing and NetGalley for providing me with an ARC of Kate Greathead’s debut novel Laura & Emma.

Billed as a literary Gilmore Girls, set during the tumultuous 1980s, this book was surprisingly quiet and thoughtful. It’s the story of introvert Laura, raised by vivacious upper east side mother Bibs who finds herself suddenly pregnant after an unexpected one night stand. Told in vignettes, the reader follows Laura as she tackles single motherhood and New York society through the 1980s until the mid 1990s. Her daughter Emma is delightful and spirited a nice juxtaposition to quirky straightforward Laura.

More of a character study than a plot driven novel, the reader follows Laura and Emma as they grow close and distant as most mother-daughter relationships often do. NYC is an additional character helping propel the narrative forward as we read about AIDS,regentrification and recession.

I enjoyed this story, although at times the short entries seemed misplaced or lacking substance. I was not particularly attached to any of the characters and the ending was too abrupt and a bit disappointing.

I would like to see what Kate Greathead writes next as this debut shows real promise.

[Jaclyn · Rating 4 out of 5]

There was a lot to love here and if you’re a Gilmore Girls fan this will feel comfortingly familiar: very wealthy young woman becomes a single mother and tries (but fails) to raise daughter differently to how she was raised. The grandmother stole the show for me which also made my Gilmore Girls heart happy. Ultimately though this is a novel for people who like keenly observed novels. It has a lot to say about wealth and privilege and it does so in quiet, clever and subtle ways. Greathead’s choices for the ending are a bit of a headscratcher but otherwise this is an outstanding debut.