Cutting Teeth: A Novel
When families from a New York City play group gather together for a Labor Day retreat, personalities clash in a weekend of cliquey behavior and tantrums. Nicole organized the party as an excuse to get her family out of the city during what she anxiously fears will be a terrorist attack, and her friends all come for their own ulterior reasons. Susanna hopes the trip will convince her partner to move to the suburbs, Rip aims to persuade his wife to have a second child, and Leigh is avoiding a crisis awaiting her at home. With spouses and toddlers in tow, the weekend drags on and patience wanes, but it’s Tiffany, mom to the only girl in the group, who is the ultimate loose cannon. Fierro’s first novel captures the complexity of forging new friendships and redefining lives as contemporary parents. Although largely unsympathetic, her characters are meticulously drawn, the situations emotionally charged. Readers, especially young parents, won’t be able to look away from the train wreck of urban family dysfunction on display here. --Cortney Ophoff