The Frederick sisters are living the dream : a novel /

Enhanced descriptions from Syndetics:

Eleanor Oliphant Is Completely Fine meets Early Morning Riser with a dash of Where'd You Go, Bernadette in this "funny and insightful" ( Real Simple ) novel about one woman whose life is turned upside down when she becomes caregiver to her sister with special needs.

Every family has its fault lines, and when Maggie gets a call from the ER in Maryland where her older sister lives, the cracks start to appear. Ginny, her sugar-loving and diabetic older sister with intellectual disabilities, has overdosed on strawberry Jell-O.

Maggie knows Ginny really can't live on her own, so she brings her sister and her occasionally vicious dog to live near her in upstate New York. Their other sister, Betsy, is against the idea but as a professional surfer, she is conveniently thousands of miles away.

Thus, Maggie's life as a caretaker begins. It will take all of her dark humor and patience, already spread thin after a separation, raising two boys, freelancing, an ex who just won't go away, and starting a dating life, to deal with Ginny's diapers, sugar addiction, porn habit, and refusal to cooperate. "The Frederick sisters will have you laughing out loud--often through tears--in this roller coaster ride of a novel that explores what it means to be family" (Tracey Lange, New York Times bestselling author).

Reviews provided by Syndetics

Library Journal Review

Diabetic and with intellectual disabilities, Maggie's sister Ginny has landed in the hospital after eating too much Jell-O, and Maggie reasons that she should not be living on her own. So she brings Ginny and her cranky dog to live near her in upstate New York, even as she struggles to deal with parenting, impending divorce, freelancing, dating opportunities, Ginny's feuding home aides, and Ginny's own lack of cooperation. Playwright and short story writer Zusy makes her full-length fiction debut; with a 75,000-copy first printing.

Publishers Weekly Review

Playwright and screenwriter Zusy explores in her powerful debut the complicated dynamics of sisterhood and disability. The title is ironic: Youngest sister Maggie Frederick is struggling to care for her intellectually challenged and volatile middle sister, Ginny, 56, while the oldest, Bets, carries on what seems a perfect life in Southern California. As the story begins, it becomes apparent that Ginny--who's been living on her own in Maryland, but nearly dies from sepsis--needs constant care. After Maggie moves Ginny to a nursing facility near her own home in New York City, chaos reigns, as Ginny resists every rule designed to keep her healthy, and Maggie's marriage begins to fail. As the tensions pile up, it becomes apparent that Bets's life isn't so great--and that Ginny has untapped wisdom. Zusy does a great job capturing Maggie's mixed emotions about becoming a caregiver and the resentment she feels toward Bets after taking on most of the responsibility for Ginny. Zusy notes in her afterword that she herself bore responsibility for an intellectually disabled sibling, which brings a sense of authenticity to every page. This admirable story offers an excellent view into the struggles of family caregiving. Agent: Stephanie Cabot, Susanna Lea Assoc. (Sept.)

Booklist Review

There is nothing like family to fuel resentment, guilt, responsibility, and, of course, love. Ginny, 57, middle sister of three, intellectually disabled, with type 2 diabetes and a major sugar addiction, is being moved from her independent life in Maryland to New York by youngest sister Maggie because she can no longer care for herself. Maggie, two years separated and mother of two adult-ish sons, works from home drawing storyboards for advertisers and has found a nursing facility that will take Ginny, whose bone-deep wound will not heal. There is a trust for Ginny, so money is not a problem. Oldest sister Betsy, a professional surfer in California, opposes this. In the four or so years that the novel covers, readers encounter issues with elderly dogs, snowstorms, continuing sugar addiction, immigrant caregivers, nearly ex-spouses, computer dating, and all the other complexities of real life. Amid the chaos and the fear, there is always love. Caring for adult siblings is an under-recognized role, and this novel does a good job exploring the pluses and minuses. For most adult fiction collections.

Author notes provided by Syndetics

Jeannie Zusy has written several full-length plays, screenplays, short stories, and works of fiction. Her work has been performed off-Broadway and beyond and appeared in McSweeney's . The Frederick Sisters Are Living the Dream is her first novel.