The Optimist's Guide to Letting Go [Paperback]

Three generations. Seven days. One big secret. The author ofThe Coincidence of Coconut Cakeunfolds a mother-daughter story told by three women whose time to reckon with a life-altering secret is running out.

Gina Zoberski wants to make it through one day without her fastidious mother, Lorraine, cataloguing all her faults, and her sullen teenage daughter, May, snubbing her. Too bad there’s no chance of that. Her relentlessly sunny disposition annoys them both, no matter how hard she tries. Instead, Gina finds order and comfort in obsessive list-making and her work at Grilled G’s, the gourmet grilled cheese food truck built by her late husband.

But when Lorraine suffers a sudden stroke, Gina stumbles upon a family secret Lorraine's kept hidden for forty years. In the face of her mother’s failing health and her daughter’s rebellion, this optimist might find that piecing together the truth is the push she needs to let go...This readers group guide forThe Optimist’s Guide to Letting Goincludes an introduction, discussion questions, and ideas for enhancing your book club. The suggested questions are intended to help your reading group find new and interesting angles and topics for your discussion. We hope that these ideas will enrich your conversation and increase your enjoyment of the book.

Introduction

Three women grapple with a life-changing secret in this mother-daughter generational story.

Owner of gourmet food truck Grilled G’s and recent widow Gina Zoberski finds comfort cooking up deliciously inventive grilled cheeses for her customers as she struggles through each day, especially when challenged by her critical mother, Lorraine, and her moody daughter, May.

Lorraine expects her family to live up to her high expectations, making sure to appear perfect to the public eye. May is mourning her father and wants nothing more than to do so in herl*