This was not my favorite Amy Reichert novel—despite the wonderful title—but it's always pleasant to spend time in the worlds she creates.

4.25/5

Ever since reading The Kindred Spirits Supper Club last year, I have really wanted to read more of Amy E. Reichert's backlist, and I'm not mad that I started with The Optimist's Guide to Letting Go. While this was not a funny story like the other book, it was touching, heartbreaking, and hopeful, and did still offer me plenty of moments that put a smile on my face. There is a lot of loss in this story and so there were also many times I had tears in my eyes, but it also left me with such a sense of love and in a way, was an inspirational story as well. I loved watching the relationships between Gina and May as well as Gina and her mom Lorraine grow and change, and this was a really great generational story with a dash of secrets thrown in. Reichert digs into how keeping a large secret can change lives and the different ways we deal with grief and loss.

The audiobook is narrated by Teri Schnaubelt, and she did a superb job of getting all the emotion of the story across, as well as all the awkward moments as well. Due to the jumps between characters and time periods, I do think the audio would have benefited from having 3 narrators instead of 1 (a different person for Gina, May, & Lorraine). I did get a little confused at times as to whose point of view I was in and what the time period was, so in that sense reading The Optimist's Guide to Letting Go might be the better option. However, I still genuinely enjoyed the audiobook, and Schnaubelt is a very talented narrator, so I would still recommend checking it out. Also, the food in this book!! Grilled cheese especially, but there are so many mouthwatering descriptions of food that you might not want to go into this one hungry. I felt very invested in the characters, and they all felt so real and relatable which is just 1 of the many reasons I enjoyed this book and why I love this author.

I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

This was my first Amy E. Reichert experience, and now I want to get my hands on all her other novels. Her characters are so personable and genuine. I loved going back and forth in time to learn more about Gina and Lorraine's pasts and how similar they truly were. It was interesting to see Lorraine's secret unfold and see the impact it had on her daughters. I loved the teen perspective from May, as well. I wish Vicky would get her own book at some point, as I want to see what's next in her story. The grilled cheese truck made me want a grilled cheese sandwich (which I made for dinner while reading this novel).

Overall, this was a great story. Even though there was some romance in it (mainly through flashbacks), it focused on family for the most part. If you are a newbie to Amy's books, I would recommend checking this one out first, although I heard her others are great too.

Movie casting suggestions:
Gina: Lake Bell
Vicky: Joanna Douglas
Lorraine (present): Jane Seymour
Lorraine (past): Victoria Pedretti
May: Sterling Jerins
Roza (present): Grace Zabriskie
Roza (past): Lauren Lapkus
Drew: Michael Cassidy
Floyd: Cameron Monaghan
Joe: Patrick Schwarzenegger

Intergenerational story that is sort of right where I am in my life now - totally relatable. LOVE the cover, and the optimism seeps through this heartwarming story.

This was a new author for me and a break from the typical stories I read. This was hard to read for many reasons and I had to really force myself to finish. I read this after losing my own mother so I assume that colored my view of this book. One day I hope to come back to this author and try again I did enjoy her writing style, just not the story.

A widow tends to her teenage daughter and to her mom who just had a stroke while running a grilled cheese food truck in Milwaukee.

Amy Reichert is one of my favorite authors. All of her books are set in Wisconsin and revolve around food, so she covers two of my favorite things.

If you need some good summer reads, read this one, the Simplicity of Cider, and the Coincidence of Coconut Cake. I loved all three!

A really enjoyable story about a young widow who's struggling with her own grief and her middle-school daughter's, when her very demanding, social-climbing mom suffers a stroke. In caring for her mom, Gina discovers a 40-year-old family secret that explains a lot -- and demands even more explanation. Terrific read (and great advice on making terrific grilled cheese!).

In The Optimist's Guide to Letting Go by Amy E. Reichert, Gina is just trying to get through each day. She desperately misses her late husband, dead only two years, and is struggling to know how to care for her heartbroken teenage daughter, May. Meanwhile May is frustrated that her mother doesn't seem to show any sadness at all or any attention to her. On top of all this, Gina's difficult mother, Lorraine, has had a stroke and Gina must figure out what she needs. When an earth-shifting secret is revealed and a whole lot of together time is required, everyone's perspective gets just a little bit wider.

Gina's struggles with widowhood are heartbreaking and feel very real. Add to that the perplexities of parenting a teenage daughter and it becomes so much more complicated.

..she wanted more than anything to be a good mother. She wanted to be a mommy, or a ma, or a mama. Not the cold "Regina" May had taken to using the last year...when she deigned to address her at all. Gina missed the unconditional love of a baby.

Gina then strives to know how to care for an ailing mother that she never felt cared that much for her. A lifetime of biting criticism and harsh judgement has left Lorraine and Gina unknown to one another.

I really enjoyed reading this book. It was a quick, easy read about characters who were easy to like, or at least understand. Everyone has secrets- from each other or from themselves. This book explores a bit about what happens when they are finally revealed.
Add this one to your summer reading list.

Gina has a happy life running her food truck and raising a (currently) sullen teenage daughter. Her mother suffers a stroke and turns from a crotchety old woman into a relentlessly chipper one. Gina and her sister stumble upon a family secret and then become determined to track down the details.

I had such a good time reading this. It was great to see the mother/daughter perspective. Grief can hurt people in so many different ways. Thank you for allowing me to read this.

The Optimist's Guide to Letting Go is a multigenerational story of family relationships and secrets long hidden. I love Amy Reichert's writing!

A good parallel story of a mother and daughter. Very Gilmore esque. I didn't care as much for this one as a few of her others but it was good.

A novel about family, twisted pasts, love, sadness, forgiveness, gratitude everything that could make a novel a favorite all wrapped in humor and heart.

Heartwarming. Story about a woman who is doing the best she can following the death of her husband. Both her daughter and her mother are difficult and rather unlikeable but as the story unfolds, we start to understand all the characters better and they start to understand each other as well. Liked the growth of the characters, the heart, and the grilled cheese sandwiches!

Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for providing me a free e-ARC of this book.

I was really looking forward to Amy Reichert's latest book and this did not disappoint. I enjoy "food fiction" and I think this would appeal to anyone else who likes to read this genre.

A very emotional mother-daughter story that pulls at your heart strings.When Lorraine suffers a sudden stroke, her daughter Gina stumbles upon a family secret Lorraine's kept hidden for forty years. I truly loved and was invested in the well-being of these likable characters, even more so as they tried to heal and find meaning and hope.

3.5

Two sister's try to navigate life after their mother has a debilitating stroke.

I thought this was simply delightful. Such an honest story about mother, daughter and sister relationships. About what we bring to the table - both in strengths and weaknesses. About pulling together while learning to let go. I liked all the characters and thought this was both heart-warming and uplifting.

My thanks to Gallery Books and Netgalley.

The Optimist's Guide to Letting Go is a lovely book about four women and their strengths, their secrets, and their grief. The book is narrated by Gina, her daughter, May, and Gina's Mom, Lorraine, and also features Gina's younger sister, Victoria, and Lorraine's best friend, Roza. It centers on Gina, who operates a grilled cheese sandwich lunch truck (Grilled G's) and her relationships with her daughter, sister, and mother. Widowed for two years, she is still grieving the loss of her husband and finds solace in creating incredible and unexpected combinations of grilled cheese sandwiches. Unfortunately, she is still so wrapped up in her grief that she doesn't notice how much her fourteen-year-old daughter is suffering. Then Gina's mother has a stroke, and the world as she and her family knew it is turned upside down, and secrets that were never supposed to be told are revealed.

This book is so well-written that I was immediately drawn into the midst of this family and able to relate to each woman's situation and feelings. I laughed, cried and ached for all the characters and finished the book with a smile on my face. I highly recommend this book and also recommend that you have the fixings for grilled cheese sandwiches nearby when you read it.

I love reading anything by Amy Reichert! She has a way with feelings and food that make me want her as a best friend. Her latest book is endearing and meaningful and honest. We’ve got the matriarch the Lovely Lorraine and the daughters Gina and Vicky. Momma Lorraine has kept a secret for decades and she is stuck because her secret is coming out and she is powerless to stop it. Gina is a grieving widow and can’t seem to do anything well unless she has a list and a routine. Her daughter May is struggling too. Loved the storyline and was rooting for these strong women. Highly recommend!

This was a really good book. I enjoyed the characters and the storyline. I would read more books from this author in the future.