I am a HUGE Ann Napolitano fan - Dear Edward was beautiful and emotional and Hello Beautiful is on my list of all-time favorites with characters that I will never ever forget. So I was really excited when I saw this re-release of a backlist book and had to read it!

Just like her other books, Within Arms Reach features a cast of characters that are very well-written and developed. This novel features multiple narrators with alternating chapters and the reader really gets immersed in the dynamics of this Irish-American family.

It's one of those books where not a lot happens, yet a lot happens - if that makes sense. I feel this was almost a first go at the concept of Hello Beautiful - with siblings and parents and the dynamics of each person and how they affect and impact each other. Even with these incredibly developed characters, I just didn't feel the emotional resonance in this novel like I did with Hello Beautiful (which I still think with so much emotion towards the characters!) and Dear Edward.

I am glad I got to see earlier Ann Napolitano to see where she started and how her writing and character/story development have evolved and grown over the years. She is absolutely an autobuy author for me - even if this book didn't hit me in the way her other two novels did.

Early last year, I read Hello Beautiful, and it became not only my favorite book of the year but one of my favorites of all time. So, when I was offered an advanced copy of this book, I could not start it fast enough. Within Arm’s Reach is a poignant family drama following multiple generations of an Irish American family. Each character is masterfully crafted and (at times) frustratingly complex. The characters felt so authentic that despite being incredibly flawed, it was hard not to root for them. I really loved the alternating points of view and the many topics that this book tackled. This book solidified Ann Napolitano as one of my new favorite authors, and I cannot wait to see what she releases next!

I love Ann Napolitano but this one just did not do it for me. All of the characters were so incredibly unlikeable and the plot fell flat for me.

This was a huge disappointment as I have loved Napolitano’s other novels. This fell mostly flat for me. I was not interested in any of the characters (and there were MANY), and it felt as though the story was going nowhere. That being said, I still enjoy reading family dramas and liked that enough to finish the book.

Hello Beautiful was my first Napolitano book and I immediately knew I would read everything she's ever written. Family dramas are one of my favorite subjects especially Catholic family drama. From the first sentence of Within Arm's Reach, I paused and thought "is the book about my family?!" If you're also a member of a Catholic family, with a matriarch of stone, and nice children (plus two deceased twins), this book is for you. I adored this book. Not a single character is likable, but it doesn't matter. The reader feels for them anyway. And if you're the above, you'll see yourself and your family in this. I've never highlighted so many passages before. I could go on and on about how much I loved this book, but, in short, this gets a strong recommendation.

Thanks to Netgalley for the free ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Loved this book. This was everything I wanted from Hello Beautiful which was wonderfully immersive and well written yet the plot was just not for me. This book is tender and loving, if not easy at all times. It really brings you along masterfully for the gentle story telling. Will always read an Ann Napolitano book!

This is a family drama that follows the mundane lives of three generations of an Irish American family. Many of the characters are trying to find themselves and are struggling with general discontent. Catherine, the family’s matriarch, was the most fully formed character of interest to me. Everyone else seemed whiny and not relatable. Overall, I’d suggest sticking with Napolitano’s most recent work. Thanks to NetGalley and Random House for a digital copy.

This one just made me love Ann Napolitano more than I already did! When I saw this beautiful cover and realized who the author was, I had to grab it from the bookstore too!

The story is told by three generations of an Irish American family. It is especially about motherhood and how we get so much wrong while trying to do the best thing for our children. We are all navigating our own past family traumas. Ann Napolitano is a master of writing complex families and I love complex families. The messier the better. This story was not quite as developed as Hello Beautiful. It was ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ for me and Hello Beautiful was ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️. That's probably because she's had 20 years to grow as a person and writer between them. But don't get me wrong, I loved it. She is an auto buy author for me! This was a perfect Mother's Day read.

I've enjoyed other books by Napolitano but unfortunately, this was a DNF for me, despite a few attempts to read to give a full-read review. There were a lot of POVs -- 6 is too many to keep track of, especially when most are women -- and it just didn't keep my interest. A bit of a letdown, as I like her writing, but perhaps I'm just not the target audience. Thanks to NetGalley for the copy!

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for providing an ARC for review.

I'm a huge fan of Napolitano's novels Dear Edward and Hello Beautiful. I didn't realize until AFTER I finished this novel, that it was actually her first published novel, written 20 years ago. I had a hard time getting invested in this story of a large Irish Catholic family. There were a lot of characters, and I didn't really like most of them. This is a novel about family dynamics, but I feel it ends so suddenly that I didn't feel much resolution.

This is about three generations of a large Catholic family jarred into by an unexpected pregnancy.. The author Ann Napolitano is a poignant reminder of how connected we are to those we love even when we cannot find the words to say it. She did a great job with this book. I highly recommend it. …I enjoyed reading Within Arms Reach. Thanks to NetGalley for the arc.

Reading this book was an immersive experience, rich with traditions and cultural nuances that I found deeply captivating. The author's writing style is nothing short of mesmerizing, weaving a tapestry of vivid imagery and emotional depth that kept me hooked from the first page to the last.

However, I have to admit, the open ending left me feeling a bit unsatisfied. While I understand that life is often ambiguous and people evolve and change, I yearned for a more conclusive resolution. The characters were complex and their actions sometimes baffling, which made it challenging to fully grasp their motivations and transformations. Despite this, I appreciated the realism in their development, acknowledging that people are multi-faceted and often unpredictable.

This book's strengths lie in its beautiful prose and the rich traditions it portrays. It was a journey worth taking, even if the destination was not as clear-cut as I would have liked. The experience of reading it was rewarding, and I look forward to exploring more works by this talented author.

Not my favorite of Napolitano's, and I am a major fan of her work. But I can see why they reissued it. It deals with such great themes and has great character development. If you're a fan of Ann you must read it to see her debut novel and how's she progressed overtime.

I struggled a bit with this one. I loved Hello Beautiful and the writing and prose were captivating. While reading Within Arms Reach, I kept waiting for something to happen, and it really never did. This one was a DNF for me, unfortunately. I really had high hopes for this one!

I loved Dear Edward and Hello Beautiful, so I was thrilled to read Napolitano's next book. The writing is beautiful, but the story is lacking. In the end, I found myself asking, what was the point?
Thank you, NetGalley, for an advanced copy of this novel.

Family dynamics are often complex and the family portrayed in this novel is most certainly not an exception to that . Inspired by stories of her mother’s “large Irish Catholic family”, Ann Napolitano’s debut novel has a big cast of characters . At times it felt like maybe too many . The first person narratives from six characters are intimate and telling not just about themselves, but about extended family and the people in their lives. Three generations as well as a sixth point of view from a person connected to them in the present and the past. An unwed pregnancy, an accidental death, infidelity, things we can understand and maybe relate to are some of the things the characters experience .

I loved her later novels:Dear Edward and Hello Beautiful, both 5 star reads for me, but I didn’t connect with this one. In all fairness, it is her debut novel which was published twenty years ago and the other novels are fine examples of an author’s growth. I liked this one, but didn’t love it.

In her notes, Napolitano says, “The publication of Within Arm's Reach felt like official permission for me to write another book, which was all I wanted to do.” Even though this is not my favorite of hers , I’m glad that her writing it moved her to write the two others I loved . My recommendation would be to read those.


I received a copy of this book from Dial Press through NetGalley

A bit underwhelming after reading Napolitano's more recent works. Ultimately the members of the family are just trying to find their own happiness as most of them are dissatisfied with their current trajectories. However, there are a lot of characters to keep track of and many make questionable and confusing decisions that seem to worsen their situation.

I am sorry for the inconvenience but I don’t have the time to read this anymore and have lost interest in the concept. I believe that it would benefit your book more if I did not skim your book and write a rushed review. Again, I am sorry for the inconvenience.

thank you netgalley for the free e-arc. i'm confused, why is this being marketed as a new book when it's a republicated version of the book that came out in 2004? her writing is very beautiful and well-done but i guess i don't like what napolitano writes about, because i also did not like dear edward.

I really enjoyed this.

It was actually my first Ann Napolitiano book and I must say I'm eager to read Dear Edward next. Without spoiling anything, I found this book sweet and sad. A complex story that navigates family dynamics from a range of narrative viewpoints.

4/5