His Family

The story follows widower Roger Gale, a sixty-year-old New Yorker with three daughters who is trying to reconnect with them and understand them better. At the same time, he resists change and observes how New York is rapidly growing and changing (for the worse, if you ask Roger). Slow-paced, the writing is peculiar, and the way the author develops the story is very subtle, but soon he slowly drags you deep into Roger's issues, family world, and their dynamics. At times, his lamentations of change and New York being destroyed by newcomers tend to get a bit repetitive, but there are also very charming and warm parts of the book, especially regarding his relationship with his daughters. It's very interesting to see the same issues of immigration, motherhood, and times changing fast, etc., being discussed today, almost in the same way. It's about change, aging, family, differences, and life. Very charming and introspective, although at times it can get a bit tedious and too slow.