Adult Assembly Required by Abbi Waxman
My Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/5

Adult Assembly Required by Abbi Waxman is a heartwarming story about family, friends, and new beginnings. I loved the full cast of endearing characters and the sense of community throughout the story. This is one of those stories where I found myself rooting for everyone and appreciating the way the group of strangers supported each other.

Considering all that’s happened in Laura’s life, it’s no wonder she decided to completely change her life by moving from NYC to LA. She didn’t pick LA because she had friends there or was ready to deal with the traffic. Instead, she picked it because it was as far as she could go to get away from her life in NYC.

Why?

  • She comes from an overbearing yet unsupportive family.
  • She suffers from PTSD from a car accident, as is trying to recover.
  • She wants to move on from her ex-boyfriend.

This is a funny and emotional story about a difficult time in Laura’s life. The day she unexpectedly ends up living in Maggie’s home is unbeknownst to her, the beginning of her new life. Maggie is an empty nester, who rents out the rooms in her home. She loves having a house full of people, and being able to care for them. The day Laura moved in was also the day that Maggie’s and the housemates’ lives changed for the better. Each of the residents at Maggie’s boarding house are dealing with issues they need to overcome, and are supportive of each other.

There was a lot going on in this story, but it all came together well. This is a story about friendships, new beginnings, and second chances. It has a great message about believing in yourself and letting only supportive people into your life. The story gets pretty serious at times, but it’s balanced by Nina Hill’s trivia mania and some humor dispersed throughout.

This is Book 2 of The Bookish Life of Nina Hill. Don’t be discouraged if you haven’t read Book 1 (or can’t remember it). I actually read The Bookish Life of Nina Hill back in 2019, and realized I can’t remember much of it at this point 🫣. It didn’t matter, because this book reads just fine as a stand-alone.

If you watched the show Parenthood, you might get some vibes from that show in this story. I loved that show, and was reminded of it while reading this book.

This book was a part of My Fall 2022 Reading List, so I’m glad I finally got a chance to read it! The story begins during summer and transitions into fall. I enjoyed the mention of the pumpkin patch, decorations, and Halloween in the storyline … even though it’s now winter.

Have you read this book?