Error loading page.
Try refreshing the page. If that doesn't work, there may be a network issue, and you can use our self test page to see what's preventing the page from loading.
Learn more about possible network issues or contact support for more help.

If You Were Here

A Novel

ebook
1 of 1 copy available
1 of 1 copy available
  • Watch a video
  • The fiction debut of the New York Times bestselling author of My Fair Lazy.
    Told in the uproariously entertaining voice readers have come to expect from Jen Lancaster, If You Were Here follows Amish-zombie-teen- romance author Mia and her husband Mac (and their pets) through the alternately frustrating, exciting, terrifying-but always funny-process of buying and renovating their first home in the Chicago suburbs that John hughes's movies made famous. Along their harrowing renovation journey, Mia and Mac get caught up in various wars with the homeowners' association, meet some less-than-friendly neighbors, and are joined by a hilarious cast of supporting characters, including a celebutard ex- landlady. As they struggle to adapt to their new surroundings- with Mac taking on the renovations himself- Mia and Mac will discover if their marriage is strong enough to survive months of DIY renovations.
    • Creators

    • Publisher

    • Release date

    • Formats

    • Languages

    • Reviews

      • Publisher's Weekly

        March 28, 2011
        House-proud? For Mia and Mac, it's more like house-crazed after they're forced into a hunt for a better, safer, and more perfect home by a crazed landlady and a firebombing graffiti moron. So begins the laugh-out-loud travails of this smart if hapless Chicago coupleâshe a writer of John Hughesâinspired teenage angst set among the Amish, and he, an impossibly forgiving partner. Lancaster keeps the action fast and funny with a big, rollicking castâMia's grandma Babcia, who runs a Polish cleaning lady syndicate; best friends Tracey and Kara, who share Mia's adoration of all things John Hughes; neighbors from hell; and, of course, Hughes himself, who, when not cited, is spoken to by Mia as she struggles through home renovation, career maintenance, and regular ol' relationship stuff. It helps to know the oeuvre of the prolific Breakfast Club genius, but it's innocence that Lancaster is mostly concerned about in this rambunctiously related (it's footnoted) yarn about finding a home and making it your own.

      • Booklist

        May 15, 2011
        Popular memoirist Lancaster turns to fiction with this humorous tale of one couples attempt to renovate their dream house. Mia and Mac decide to forsake the city of Chicago for upscale suburb Abington Cambs. Mia is over the moon when she learns that a house straight out of John Hughes movie Sixteen Candles is on the market. Sure, it needs some work, but Mia refuses to let that deter her. As soon as she and Mac move in, they find themselves in a war with termites, which threaten to bring their dream home down around them. To make matters worse, their vapid former landlord has blackballed them, making it impossible for the couple to find a contractor. Mia starts to visit Hughes grave, hoping that she isnt going to lose the house shes come to love, or her marriage, which is starting to collapse under the weight of the stress she and Mac are facing. Lancasters snappy debut will appeal to anyone who has ever fallen under the spell of a fixer-upper.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2011, American Library Association.)

    Formats

    • Kindle Book
    • OverDrive Read
    • EPUB ebook

    Languages

    • English

    Loading