3.5 stars. I love Ann's writing and how we as readers get to know so many nuanced characters. They are like us - flawed, imperfect. These characters were particularly eccentric and handled an unexpected pregnancy, grief, and love in such fascinating ways. I love a good family drama and stories told in multiple perspectives! I would have rated higher if we weren't left with so many open-ended questions.

I love a good multi-generational family drama. I sympathized with the matriarch of this large Irish-Catholic family. She has endured so much during her life and invested so much in the well being of her family. She has the respect of her children and grandchildren, but just wants to make sure that she is still around to see her first great-grandchild come into the world and be taken care of well.

There are a lot of complex sibling relationships, parental regrets, and even infidelity. There were several situations that were left hanging at the abrupt end, but I understand the significant plot of at a climax and point of closure. The author let's us into the minds of so many various characters of all ages and genders and is truly talented at expressing interiority.

I think the reading of this book started off kind of slow to explain who everyone was and their backstories, but from the midpoint to the end, I was invested and much more intrigued and read much more quickly.

As I read this novel, I was so enchanted by the family central to the story. It is told from the point of views of multiple narrators over the course of about a year in their lives. After I finished it, I learned it was Ann Napolitano's debut novel which first appeared 20 years ago...my guess is it went through some rewrites and editing. There were moments where I could see the close knit sister relationships you find in Hello Beautiful. I also took a shine to the novel as it takes place in Ramsey, NJ which is a few towns away from where I grew up and I know the town quite well. I am so glad I got to read this one!

Thank you Random House for the invitation to review Ann Napolitano's Within Arm's Reach (release of her first book). I love Napolitano's writing and that is what stands out here along with her ability to open up complicated, and at times messy and chaotic, family relationships (see Hello Beautiful). This first book works for those reasons, her writing always shines as does her ability to offer characters who aren't easy to love but are worthy of a good story in the hands of a talented writer. Within Arm's Reach is an examination of the messy love that is a part of big families and a lot of the themes on not diving into emotions, not really sharing true feelings, or putting the best face forward, yeah I get that. It's honest and I connected with a lot of those themes and I appreciated that Napolitano captured that kind of family dynamic without making it filled with unlovable or hard to connect with characters.

This was a re-release, it is a great family story. Most of the characters are unlikeable and each have issues. It was a good story, but at some points did not keep my attention.
3 star

The re-release of Napolitano’s debut novel Within Arm’s Reach originally published twenty years ago shows the origins of the author’s natural ability to tell the story of a family. In this instance the grandmother character is based on her own grandmother and the number of children she had. It is an Irish American family in which a single 29 year old granddaughter has become pregnant out of wedlock. While this may have been shame inducing in 1980s Ireland it didn’t quite fit the less strict society within the United States.

This novel features a fair amount of family members and a few extra characters but I was able to hold most of them in memory with the assistance of a family tree at the beginning. I found myself well engaged with the story for the most part while losing a bit of steam at the end.

Grandmother Catharine’s visions of people passed worked for me because of mumblings of my own father in his dying days.

Overall, I am happy to have read Napolitano’s debut and will continue to follow this author’s work after especially loving Dear Edward and Hello Beautiful. While it is clear that the author has grown in her ability to tell a story, it is also certain that she was developing a talent she has always had.

Thank you to @netgalley and @dialpress / @randomhouse for an ARC of this re-release in exchange for my honest opinions. Within Arm’s Reach returns to shelves on April 30, 2024.

Ann Napolitano has a gift of sharing the beautiful but sometimes difficult inter workings and relationships within families. Catharine is the aging matriarch of an Irish Catholic family of 9 kids since her husband recently died. . Their oldest also died while she was pregnant with the 2nd and she had a set of twins that were stillborn and both these losses left huge scars and holes in her heart. Catharine was largely a caretaker with that many kids and starts to feel that her family has fallen apart especially when one of her unwed granddaughters becomes pregnant until she sees that the baby might be the tie that binds them again.

I was always jealous of my friends who had large families even though they would tell me of the chaos, factions, and arguments that occur with a lot of siblings. Catharine’s family is no different - they are full of drama, resentments and words that should and should not have been spoken. Fictional drama based on real life lessons in love and the family ties that bind us.

Thank you to Random House Publishing and NetGalley for the ARC! #NetGalley #WithinARmsReach

Thoroughly engaging, you'll find yourself almost part of this large Irish family as they navigate a surprise pregnancy.

I've only read two other books by Ann Napolitano. I enjoyed the family exploration and the three generations of voices that this story is based on. It is also based on how an unexpected pregnancy affects different family members. Which I thought was an interesting concept. I don't usually read books like this, but it got me to enjoy it. Ann Napolitano's writing style had me engaged and didn't seem slow to me. The mix of emotions that you feel though out this book felt appropriate. If you are a reader that enjoys multi- generational stories this is right up your alley.

I fell in love with Ann Napolitano’s writing while reading Hello Beautiful. When I was offered the chance to read another novel by her, I jumped at the chance. When I first started reading Within Arm’s Reach, I kept thinking these characters were related to the characters in Hello Beautiful. They are not; they just have a similar feel.

I didn’t enjoy this book as much as I did Hello Beautiful. This is understandable because Within Arm’s Reach was Napolitano’s debut novel, written 20 years ago.

This novel is about three generations of an Irish American family told by six different people.
To me, the title is perfect because we all, at times, hope and yearn for something to make us happy, something to connect us all. I believe the grandmother, Catherine, thought that the newest baby coming into the McLaughlin family would bring the family together.

I suggest reading this book first or skipping it and going to later works. But remember, if you have read the author’s latest novels, this is her debut novel, and it’s an impressive first book.

My thanks go to NetGalley, Random House, and the author for my advanced reader’s copy.

Every family I have ever known has seemed somewhat dysfunctional. But the McLaughlins
bring new meaning to the term dysfunctional. Every one of them has issues. And not one of them seems to have any redeeming qualities.

I wanted to like this book. I wanted to like it as much as I did Ann Napolitano's last two books. But, alas, I just couldn't. It wasn't the writing because Ms. Napolitano is a very good writer. It was the story itself. There was so much whining! There were so many miserable people. And as for the story, well, I just kept waiting for something to happen. I wanted a twist or a turn that brought everything together. I wanted something to make me care about these people. But that never happened. The book just made me feel depressed from beginning to end.

This book is based on three generations of Irish American women .there is heartbreak , loss and secrets . It is full of believable characters and situations. I loved this author’s other Two novels and this was no exception

Some parents feel certain topics like pregnancy are considered too taboo to be discussed with their children and by the time that it is it’s too late. For some families it can even cause strife in the family unit. I thought this was another good read by this author and I’m looking forward to reading more and would recommend.

HELLO BEAUTIFUL is the only book by Ann Napolitano that I've read and I want to read her entire backlist, so I was excited to see her publisher was re-releasing her debut novel, WITHIN ARM'S REACH. I love a sprawling family drama, especially ones about big, Catholic Irish or Italian families. WITHIN ARM'S REACH is told from several points of view from three different generations of the McLaughlin family. There are a lot of family secrets, grudges, and unspoken jealousies, centered around the nine months of the oldest granddaughter's unexpected pregnancy. Everyone in the family, especially the women, seem to be struggling with the direction their life is going in, whether they are just starting out or have been married for thirty years. This is a solid family drama, but I am not a big fan of loose ends, so I just wish some of the family issues had been resolved more fully at the end of the story.

I will always jump at the chance to get an ARC of Ann Napolitano. The author's note at the end explains this book was first published in 2004 and is being republished this year. I feel like that should have been explained at the beginning because no one is texting or calling cell phones and I thought maybe we were in the 80s. Finally a cell phone was mentioned about halfway through so I feel like the book needs to say it is 2004 because I was very confused and maybe the final copy will explain that. On to the review...

I am not normally into "quiet" novels. I need action and more plot heavy than character heavy but somehow Ann Napolitano gets me to love her characters. This is a family drama with three generations of an Irish Catholic family. They live in a small town so everyone knows everyone else's business. Catharine is the grandmother and she has 6 surviving adult children. There is a family tree at the beginning and I kept referencing it until I figured out who everyone was. The main characters are Catharine, her daughter Kelly and son-in-law Louis, and her granddaughters Lila and Gracie, Kelly and Louis's daughters. Gracie has shocking news and it is just about their lives. They all appear fine on the outside but of course everyone has their own issues that they keep quiet from their family. We get to see their struggles and how they face them or don't. I really enjoyed it. I think the book makes you think about your own family members and when you think everything is fine maybe it is not. Maybe reach out more.

-No one in my mother's family ever talks about anything that can be categorized as unpleasant or having to do with emotions, and, as a result, they no longer have anything to say.

-Is life made up of strands that link us all?

-I should have released my tears instead of holding them in. I shouldn't have been embarrassed or worried over appearing weak.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with this book for free in exchange for my review! All opinions are my own.

I had high hopes for this book given that I loved Hello Beautiful by Ann Napolitano and it was one of my favorite books of 2023. While I enjoyed the first part of the book, I started to lose interest towards the middle of the book. I couldn't really see that the book was going anywhere. I am planning on trying the audiobook version though as I've found that books with multiple POVs seem to flow better as audiobooks for whatever reason. This book wasn't amazing but it wasn't horrible either.


Many Thanks again to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with this book in exchange for my honest review.

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Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the opportunity to review this book!

Within Arm’s Reach tells the story of a sprawling Irish New Jersey family and their many dynamics during one family member’s pregnancy. The story is told in chapters of alternating points of view of six characters. I thought the characters were well drawn and interesting. Each had their own voice and it was fascinating to read their inner monologues. I found the family dynamics fascinating and some interactions felt very realistic. The book is well written, but as it is a re-release of a past book, it doesn’t feel as developed as Hello Beautiful. I liked the plot better than Hello Beautiful and it felt like a true snapshot of an extended family. It was a fascinating portrayal of various forms of grief - for people and for lives you thought you’d live - and how that impacts individual lives and family dynamics.

I didn't mind this one, necessarily, but it really didn't draw me in as much as "Hello, Beautiful". If you like family drama, then sure, but generational trauma wasn't really the speed I was looking for?

A special moment for me - my first ever e-book! 🤓

I read Napolitano’s “Hello Beautiful” last year and it was one of my favorite reads of 2023, so I knew I wanted to read her re-issued 2004 book “Within Arms Reach.” One thing I love about both of these stories is the focus on creating a compelling family history. I feel like there were so many relatable family moments in this novel which is always a plus.

However, this novel did fall short for me. I wanted more from the characters, and I just found it at times very boring. Napolitano has a beautiful way of writing, and I will definitely read more things she writes, but I found this one was lacking substance.

Thank you @netgalley and @randomhouse for the ARC!

#bookstagram #2024reads #withinarmsreach #aprilreads

I love a good family drama and I really enjoyed Ann Napolitano’s recent releases. I was really excited to read this. The book starts good. I was interested to see where it goes. The family is tight knit. The parents have no spark left in their marriage. The father recently witnessed a sudden death and it seems everyone just brushes off the trauma. As the story unfolds I feel like it gets bogged down with little details and moves very slowly. I found out that this book is a re release of her first book and it makes a lot of sense because she has grown as an author. I definitely recommend reading her newest books.


Thank you to netgalley for a copy of this book.