Within Arm’s Reach is a captivating tale of the expansive McLaughlin family residing in New Jersey. Narrated through the perspectives of five family members and an unrelated woman, the initial challenge of keeping track of everyone in this large family was mitigated by a helpful family tree provided at the beginning of the book. The narrative weaves through various threads, subplots, and issues, drawing the reader into its intricate web. Themes explored include the loss of connection, diverse perspectives on sexuality, the complexities of love, unplanned pregnancy, feelings of guilt and shame, sibling rivalries, lingering grudges, adherence to tradition, mental health struggles, the art of compromise, and the monumental task of maintaining family unity, which emerges as the ultimate priority.

This novel explores elements of love, betrayal, and the enduring bonds of blood. It is cleverly crafted, balancing seriousness with moments of humor and wit. I loved it.
Many thanks to Random House and to Netgalley for providing me with a galley in exchange for my honest opinion.

Multiple generations of a large Irish-American family filled with strife, lies, and heartache, are brought together by a surprise pregnancy. Throughout the nearly 9 months until the baby is born, they confront everything from grief and infidelity, to cherishing the loved ones you have and finding new beginnings. This is told from multiple POV from three generations of the family and everything that happens in-between.
I enjoyed the idea of the story and the way everyone’s stories came together.
Thank you to Random House for the advance copy in exchange for my honest review.

Ann Napolitano is an auto read author for me. She always does a great job of giving perspective to the story and depth to characters- even when they are not very likable. I have enjoyed all her books so far and was glad to see her first book republished to a wider audience.

This was my first Ann Napolitano read, and I'm definitely curious to read her other work now! I will say - I needed that family tree becaue early on I had a lot of trouble figuring out who was who. Overall, I thought this story gracefully lead us through many complicated and realistic subplots. However, the ending felt... incomplete? I don't think everything had enough time to be fully resolved.

Well written story, but the end left me wanting more. I have enjoyed her other books too. ARC provided by NetGalley in exchange for a fair review.

Within Arm’s Reach by @annnapolitano is a touching story about family and love. It’s all about how we sometimes struggle to express our feelings. Set in an Irish American family, it’s beautifully written and really makes you think. If you liked Napolitano’s Dear Edward and Hello Beautiful, you’ll love this one too!
Thank you @thedialpress @randomhouse @netgalley for the gifted arc. Publication date - 04.30.2024

Within arms reach is Anne Napalitono debut novel written 20 years ago and rereleased after much success with her other more recent novels.
I had no idea this was the case but as I listened to the Multigenerational story of the McLaughlin family- I could tell the writing just was not nearly as polished and protected as Anne’s current novels(I’m looking at you Hello Beautiful)
The story is about Catherine McLaughlin, Queen Irish reigning grandmother and her grown children and grandchildren and all their inadequacies and quirks they carry in their lives.
We have an unplanned pregnancy that rocks the family, an affair, and a very sad and depressive husband who feels guilty over a coworkers death but they just skim the surface of these areas. There is very little expansion. Other than that, this story is fairly mundane and boring.
I feel bad saying this but I would definitely read Anne’s newer novels and skip this one. The ending comes fast and furious and leaves the reader with questions. I would definitely tell you that I didn’t feel connected or like I knew any of these characters after 10 + hours of listening. Onto the next.

I received an ARC from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

One of my reading goals for the next year is to become an expert on an author or two, getting familiar with their entire body of work. I want to see where writers started and how they developed. For this reason, I was excited to read WITHIN ARM’S REACH by Ann Napolitano, author of one of my favorite books of last year. At the end of the novel, Napolitano explains its origins as her first book published a

Thank you to NetGalley and to the publisher for this advance readers copy in exchange for an honest review. I did start and stop this one a few times due to life... and being in a reading slump. Wasn't my typical style of book to read but in the end I did enjoy it.

Thank you for the opportunity to read this novel. I adore Ann Napolitano's recent work, and I recognize this is an early novel of hers, but I could not get past the early pages. I did not connect with the story and I also thought the beginning was too graphic for me.

Ann Napolitano's book Hello Beautiful was one of my favorite books last year so I was excited for a chance to read her newest. Within Arm's Reach did not disappoint at all. I love messy family dramas and this story has tons of it. The McLaughlin family is big, dramatic and wonderful. I loved that the history was told through the eyes of several female characters. There are so many characters it was a bit hard to keep everyone straight but I quickly started to track who was who. This book addresses so many heavy topics but in a way that feels warm instead of harsh. The ending is not a neat, tidy bow but instead a bit of an open end. I personally liked how real that felt. I was very sad to reach the end and say goodbye to these characters. I cannot wait to read the author's next work! Thanks to Ann Napolitano, Random House Publishing Group - Random House | Dial Press Trade Paperback, and NetGalley for an advanced copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

Within Arm's Reach is a family drama focusing on a large Irish Catholic family living in New Jersey whose world is turned upside down with an unexpected pregnancy.

I love family dramas and although this one didn't flow as well or as quickly as I would have liked, there were certainly elements and character traits that resonated with me. The matriarch of the family, Catherine, at times, reminded me of my own grandmother--stern, reserved, and a little scary. I appreciated the relationship between the sisters, Lila and Gracie and found their stories the most interesting. I would have liked a little more depth to their characters.

The writing felt choppy and unfortunately, at times, too slow. Certain storylines felt like they ended abruptly and I would have loved to have seen some relationships play out a bit more. But overall I was compelled to continue reading and enjoyed the story.

Thanks to Netgalley and Random House for the digital copy of this book.

My rating: 3.5 Stars

I typically love this author, this book was just ok. Seemed like I had to try and keep
Up with whose story I was on. Thanks NetGalley for the advanced copy. I did enjoy it just not as much as I hoped I would have.

I really enjoyed the authors previous book but this one was a bit slow going. The characters and story were interesting and the writing was engaging... Just not as good as Hello Beautiful

What a beautiful, heartbreaking, honest look at what it means to be a family. Ann Napolitano is quickly becoming one of my favorite authors - her writing is just so fantastic and sincere.

I loved Napolitano's Hello Beautiful and Dear Edward, so when I saw this one on NetGalley, I jumped on it without realizing it was a reissue of her debut novel. The result was that I did not want to like this one as much as I did! I wasn't mentally prepared for how drawn in I became to this family drama. It helped that every single character was engaging in their own way, even if you didn't quite relate to their struggles. Highly recommend!

Last year, I read Ann Napolitano's novel, "Hello Beautiful" which was a loose adaptation of "Little Women." It was a fantastic novel in my opinion. Ann is able to write about big, dysfunctional families and she does it well!

"Within Arm's Reach" is actually Ann's debut novel which was originally published in 2004 and was just re-released. A reader who has read "Hello Beautiful" may find similarities in this novel as this novel is also about a large, dysfunctional novel. "Within Arm's Reach" is about an Irish-Catholic family, the McLaughlins and their dramas. This novel is told from the viewpoint of 6 different characters. Five of them are family members. Once I began this novel, I could not put it down. I just wanted to see what would become of the characters. I also enjoyed the setting--this book takes place in NJ, in an area I'm very familiar with.

All in all, I think this was a well-written debut novel. If you're interested in reading about large, dysfunctional family dramas, you'll like this one. I only wish the ending tied things up a bit more. It left things very open-ended.

Thank you to the publisher for the digital copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

Beautiful writing and a poignant storyline. I enjoyed getting to know all of the characters and, although there were some slow moments, this was a rewarding read.

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/203019737

A reissue of Ann Napolitano's first novel, Within Arm's Reach tells of a sprawling Irish-American family, told mostly through the inner lives of its women. Each character is given a distinct voice, and the fact that Napolitano made use of her own family's history gives authenticity.