All Together Now: A Novel

For readers of Alison Espach and Emma Straub, brimming with joy, honesty, humor, and heart, All Together Now charts the extraordinary life of the relatively ordinary Hazel Stein—as told by every version of herself she ever has been and ever will be. Every decade, give or take a few years, Hazel Stein wakes up on a party bus, complete with neon lighting, purple argyle carpet, and a stripper pole, to find seven of her past and future selves: There's Hazel, age eight, making paper airplanes out of napkins; eighteen, with catastrophic bangs and the insecurities to match; twenty-eight, an undeniable knockout who’s still learning to be independent; thirty-nine, flush with the exhilaration and anxiety of new motherhood; forty-nine, gaunt and bald (she’s so terrifying, the other Hazels can barely look her in the eye); fifty-seven, whose ring finger is suddenly, disturbingly bare; sixty-eight, the happy victim of overzealous injectables; and seventy-seven, with wiry white hair, a gash on her forehead, and threadbare clothes. Together, they must unravel the mysteries of Hazel’s life and tell the story of her three great loves—from an unforgettable one-night stand at the turn of the millennium, to friendships that span decades and continents, from the chaos of the “sandwich” years, to the seismic, reality-warping grief of unexpected loss. Together, they ask: what do we owe to the people we used to be, and those we’ve yet to become—especially when time makes them feel like strangers to us? Is this recurring reunion a blessing or a curse, a cautionary tale to avoid at all costs or proof that Hazel’s fate is already sealed? Hilarious, exuberant, and wise in turn, All Together Now is a dazzling journey through the moments that make up life’s unimaginable, spectacular bounty and a celebration of the endlessly surprising process of becoming ourselves.