Us

by David Nicholls

Overview

Douglas Petersen may be mild mannered, but behind his reserve lies a sense of humor that, against all odds, seduces beautiful Connie into a second date . . . and eventually into marriage. Now, almost three decades after their relationship first blossomed in London, they live more or less happily in the suburbs with their moody seventeen-year-old son, Albie.

Then Connie tells Douglas that she thinks she wants a divorce.

The timing couldn't be worse. Hoping to encourage her son's artistic interests, Connie has planned a monthlong tour of European capitals, a chance to experience the world's greatest works of art as a family, and she can't bring herself to cancel. Douglas is privately convinced that this landmark trip will rekindle the romance in the marriage, and may even help him to bond with Albie.

From the streets of Amsterdam to the famed museums of Paris, from the cafés of Venice to the beaches of Barcelona, Douglas's odyssey brings Europe to vivid life just as he experiences a powerful awakening of his own. Will this summer be his last as a husband, or the moment when he turns his marriage, and maybe even his whole life, around?

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780062365590
Publisher:	HarperCollins
Publication date:	06/30/2015
Pages:	416
Sales rank:	55,356
Product dimensions:	5.31(w) x 8.00(h) x 0.67(d)

About the Author

David Nicholls's most recent novel, the New York Times bestseller One Day, has sold more than two million copies and has been translated into thirty-seven languages; the film adaptation starred Jim Sturgess and Anne Hathaway. Nicholls's previous novels include Starter for Ten and The Understudy. He trained as an actor before making the switch to writing and has twice been nominated for BAFTA awards.

Editorial Reviews

The Petersen family travels through Europe with more emotional baggage than luggage in Nicholls’s winning follow-up to his 2009 bestseller One Day….Few authors do messed-up relationships better than Nicholls.” — People, Book of the Week

“Nicholls is a deft craftsman, a skilled storyteller and a keen observer of contemporary mores.” — Jay McInerney, New York Times Book Review

“In his latest…Mr. Nicholls again deals with love lost and possibly found, offering an unpredictable (and less grim) ending…. Mr. Nicholls mines the setup for laughs, as he should, but he also provides a poignant story of regret in middle age.” — New York Times

“A great novel...Nicholls is a master of nuanced relationships. He’s also a pro at delivering a tight, clever structural narrative, as he proved in his terrific previous novel One Day.” — Entertainment Weekly

“I loved this book. Funny, sad, tender: for anyone who wants to know what happens after the Happy Ever After.” — Jojo Moyes, author of Me Before You and One Plus One

“Wonderful. A novel that manages to be both truly hilarious and deeply affecting. I loved it.” — S.J. Watson, New York Times bestselling author of Before I Go to Sleep

“Nicholls is a delightfully funny writer…and this over-planned vacation makes ripe material for comedy…Us evolves into a poignant consideration of how a marriage ages, how parents mess up and what survives despite all those challenges.” — Washington Post

“A smartly optimistic romantic comedy that uses angst and humor to illuminate the resilience of the human heart… Part requiem, part reboot, Douglas’s...efforts to preserve his disintegrating family take him on another kind of journey, too, from despair to unexpected joy.” — O Magazine, November 2014

“A thoughtful, funny, authentic story…Pitch-perfect dialogue and seamless action propel the story forward in a way that feels cinematic.…This is the kind of book that reminds us what it means to be alive. How often does a reader get to feel that?” — Good Housekeeping

“But for all of their burdens and battles, Douglas and Connie have moments of real joy in their marriage and while it doesn’t always seem like a pleasure, reading about it sure is.” — Time magazine

“Us is a quick read but a charming one; a portrait of two journeys—one measured in kilometers, the other in the heart.” — Seattle Times

“What happens when domestic bliss becomes rote? Is the past strong enough to bind us together when it happens? Nicholls’ answer is complicated, poignant, wise—and disarmingly human.” — Miami Herald

“It’s a great combination of laughs and heart…Just what you need on these too-short days, no?” — Sophie Kinsella, Redbook

“David Nicholls’s latest… is a smartly optimistic romantic comedy that uses angst and humor to illuminate the resilience of the human heart…. Part requiem, part reboot, Douglas’s endearingly inept efforts to preserve his disintegrating family take him on another kind of journey, too, from despair to unexpected joy.” — Oprah.com

“From the author of One Day—which was infinitely better than the movie—comes a pathos-laden love story about marriage on the brink of collapse.” — Entertainment Weekly, “A Dozen Books We're Dying to Read This Fall.”

“The bestselling author of One Day…is back with another crowd-pleaser, this time about a man trying to save his collapsing marriage and connect with his teenage son during a family tour of Europe.” — People, Best Books of the Fall (2014)

“Complex family drama...perfect read for the holidays!” — Huffington Post, Top 10 Books to Read This Winter

“A smartly optimistic romantic comedy that uses angst and humor to illuminate the resilience of the human heart.” — Oprah.com, “Paperbacks that Dazzle”

“Nicholls is a master of the braided narrative, weaving the past and present to create an intricate whole…. A funny and moving novel.” — Kirkus Reviews (starred review)

“Nicholls brings his trademark wit and wisdom to this by turns hilarious and heartbreaking examination of a long-term marriage…. This tender novel will further cement Nicholls’ reputation as a master of romantic comedy.” — Booklist (starred review)

“For those who loved One Day, the author’s latest is another heart-grabber about discovering what makes us happy and learning to let go.” — Library Journal (starred review)

“Liked One Day? Then you’ll find this absolutely fabulous.… Very funny and very moving, often at the same time.” — Daily Mail (London)

From the Publisher

In his latest…Mr. Nicholls again deals with love lost and possibly found, offering an unpredictable (and less grim) ending…. Mr. Nicholls mines the setup for laughs, as he should, but he also provides a poignant story of regret in middle age.

New York Times

Nicholls is a deft craftsman, a skilled storyteller and a keen observer of contemporary mores.

Jay McInerney

The Petersen family travels through Europe with more emotional baggage than luggage in Nicholls’s winning follow-up to his 2009 bestseller One Day….Few authors do messed-up relationships better than Nicholls.

Book of the Week People

A thoughtful, funny, authentic story…Pitch-perfect dialogue and seamless action propel the story forward in a way that feels cinematic.…This is the kind of book that reminds us what it means to be alive. How often does a reader get to feel that?

Good Housekeeping

A smartly optimistic romantic comedy that uses angst and humor to illuminate the resilience of the human heart… Part requiem, part reboot, Douglas’s...efforts to preserve his disintegrating family take him on another kind of journey, too, from despair to unexpected joy.

O Magazine

Wonderful. A novel that manages to be both truly hilarious and deeply affecting. I loved it.

S.J. Watson

Nicholls is a delightfully funny writer…and this over-planned vacation makes ripe material for comedy…Us evolves into a poignant consideration of how a marriage ages, how parents mess up and what survives despite all those challenges.

Washington Post

I loved this book. Funny, sad, tender: for anyone who wants to know what happens after the Happy Ever After.

Jojo Moyes

But for all of their burdens and battles, Douglas and Connie have moments of real joy in their marriage and while it doesn’t always seem like a pleasure, reading about it sure is.

Time magazine

A great novel...Nicholls is a master of nuanced relationships. He’s also a pro at delivering a tight, clever structural narrative, as he proved in his terrific previous novel One Day.

Entertainment Weekly

Nicholls is a delightfully funny writer…and this over-planned vacation makes ripe material for comedy…Us evolves into a poignant consideration of how a marriage ages, how parents mess up and what survives despite all those challenges.

Washington Post

What happens when domestic bliss becomes rote? Is the past strong enough to bind us together when it happens? Nicholls’ answer is complicated, poignant, wise—and disarmingly human.

Miami Herald

Us is a quick read but a charming one; a portrait of two journeys—one measured in kilometers, the other in the heart.

Seattle Times

Liked One Day? Then you’ll find this absolutely fabulous.… Very funny and very moving, often at the same time.

Daily Mail (London)

Nicholls brings his trademark wit and wisdom to this by turns hilarious and heartbreaking examination of a long-term marriage…. This tender novel will further cement Nicholls’ reputation as a master of romantic comedy.

Booklist (starred review)

Complex family drama...perfect read for the holidays!

Huffington Post

The bestselling author of One Day…is back with another crowd-pleaser, this time about a man trying to save his collapsing marriage and connect with his teenage son during a family tour of Europe.

Best Books of the Fall (2014) People

David Nicholls’s latest… is a smartly optimistic romantic comedy that uses angst and humor to illuminate the resilience of the human heart…. Part requiem, part reboot, Douglas’s endearingly inept efforts to preserve his disintegrating family take him on another kind of journey, too, from despair to unexpected joy.

Oprah.com

It’s a great combination of laughs and heart…Just what you need on these too-short days, no?

Sophie Kinsella

★ 10/06/2014
In Nicholls's (One Day) latest novel, Connie Peterson wakes her husband Douglas in the middle of the night to tell him she may want to end their marriage. The family already has a European trip planned, the last before their son, Albie, leaves their London suburb for college, and Douglas, ever the scientist, hatches a plan to change Connie's mind: he will ensure their trip becomes an exemplar of the happy family they can be. Working against Douglas is the fact that he and his son have suffered a strained relationship from birth, and that Connie, an artist at heart, believes an organic vacation—one that evolves from the whims of any given day—would be a great improvement over Douglas's strict, pedantic itineraries. Douglas is an amiably bumbling narrator, and Nicholls convincingly infuses his protagonist's voice with the dry wit and charm that have served the author so well in his previous books. This is Nicholls's most ambitious work to date, and his realistically flawed characters are somehow endearing despite the many bruises they inflict upon each other. (Oct.)

Publishers Weekly

A smartly optimistic romantic comedy that uses angst and humor to illuminate the resilience of the human heart.

“Paperbacks that Dazzle” Oprah.com

What happens when domestic bliss becomes rote? Is the past strong enough to bind us together when it happens? Nicholls’ answer is complicated, poignant, wise—and disarmingly human.

Miami Herald

A smartly optimistic romantic comedy that uses angst and humor to illuminate the resilience of the human heart.

“Paperbacks that Dazzle” Oprah.com

British actor David Haig perfectly portrays the bumbling, good-hearted Douglas Petersen, who hopes to save his marriage while on a modern-day grand tour of Europe with his wife and sullen 17-year-old son. Haig's spot-on timing makes the humor pop, and his sympathetic performance connects listeners to Douglas's moments of despair and frustration, especially when he’s trying to communicate with his son. Haig's portrayal of a straitlaced middle-aged scientist who is trying to fit in with his artistic, laid-back family is flawless, and listeners will be impressed with his ability to seamlessly transition among the characters, capturing each one's personality. This bittersweet comedy of errors and self-discovery is destined to be one of the most talked about audiobooks of the year. C.B.L. Winner of AudioFile Earphones Award, 2015 Audies Finalist © AudioFile 2015, Portland, Maine

MARCH 2015 - AudioFile

★ 2014-09-13
In his picaresque fourth novel, Nicholls (One Day, 2010, etc.) artfully unveils 25 years of a couple's relationship. Shortly before Douglas Petersen, his wife, Connie, and their 17-year-old son, Albie, are to take a "Grand Tour" of Europe, Connie makes a surprising announcement: She thinks their marriage "has run its course" and is thinking about leaving. Connie is panicked at the thought of Albie going to college at the end of summer, leaving her and Douglas alone in the house. Douglas, a straight-laced biochemist who "had skipped youth and leapt into middle age," came along at a time when Connie, artistic and free-spirited but directionless, needed someone sensible. Despite the announcement, Connie still wants to take this holiday together, and as their journey begins, so does Douglas' examination of his marriage. Part travelogue, part personal history, Douglas' first-person narration intersperses humorous observations of their travels, during which Douglas usually finds himself out of step with his art-loving wife and son, with his wistful recounting of their back story, from his unlikely courtship to his recent positioning as a misfit in his family of three. After a ruinous morning in Amsterdam, when Albie unwisely confronts a trio of arms dealers and Douglas intervenes in a way that infuriates his family, Albie runs away, and the "Grand Tour," deemed a failure, comes to an end. Yet before it's too late, Douglas seizes a chance to find his son, win back the affections of his wife, and make this journey, both literal and figurative, a heroic one after all. Nicholls is a master of the braided narrative, weaving the past and present to create an intricate whole, one that is at times deceptively light and unexpectedly devastating. Though the narration is self-conscious at first, it gradually settles into a voice that is wistful, wry, bewildered and incisive, drawing a portrait of a man who has been out of his league for a long time. Evocative of its European locales—London, Paris, Amsterdam, Venice, Madrid—and awkward family vacations everywhere, this is a funny and moving novel perfect for a long journey.

Kirkus Reviews