mIf you’re looking for a short read that will have you nod your head in agreement and make you think, “wow this is totally me”, this is the book for you! A super relatable book that i think anyone would enjoy picking up to read.

If you're looking for a nice, chill book to read, I would really recommend this!

Aubert makes all her characters in this book super relatable, particularly Ida, who feels like her life is speeding ahead of her. I think we all need reminding that we all go through different stages in our lives all at a different pace, which Aubert definitely demonstrates.

This was a short novella which packed a powerful punch. Two sisters gather at their seaside cabin to celebrate the 65th birthday. of their mother. Ida, now 40 and wondering whether to freeze her eggs so she can have a child in the future, has had a series of short affairs with unavailable men, and has always felt less important than her younger sister, Marthe, whose health needs have meant she got her mother’s attention. Marthe is now with Kristoffer, awkward stepmum to his young daughter and with news of her own. The conflicts within the family all come to a head in a sharp, sometimes funny and deeply relateable snapshot of the ties that bind siblings, parents and children and the differences that drive them apart. The characters are flawed but realistic, and what becomes clear is that when it comes to our parents, we never fully grow up or away from those childhood experiences.

Short but sweet- an insight into sibling rivalries and thoughts on motherhood. Very relatable and somewhat messy. Would be ideal for fans on Emma Straub and Olive by Emma Gannon. An enjoyable read!

I enjoyed this book throughout but the ending was a bit disappointing for me where it just ended with no result. I enjoyed how it felt like I was reading Ida's diary and the way she was thinking about things. The sisterly love hate relationship, the brother in law crush, the step niece relationship and her relationship with her mum and step dad were all portrayed well. Definitely some real life scenarios/likeness in there. I feel the term "grown ups" is jusf something we feel we should be and act grown up, whatever that is. It showed the childish sides of everyone.

3.5 stars

Grown Ups is a short read, but it definitely packs a punch. Although as a younger person, I doubt that I am the intended audience for this book, I still think it did a good job of conveying the emotions, worries, and relationship dynamics of being 40.

The narrator was slightly unlikeable, but I expect that that was the point; she definitely seemed to have a superiority complex over her sister’s abilities as a parent, which was interesting to read about and see the characters’ different interactions with Olea, the child of the book.

I wanted more out of the ending, but I think it fit well with the nature of the book and the writing style. Overall, it was a quick and interesting read, with a lot of room for introspection.

The tagline of “Venomous, Bitchy, Brilliant” summed it up perfectly!
A really refreshing take on the story of a single woman who is negotiating her feelings around her personal life - family, friends and fertility all included.
If you’re a fan of Olive by Emma Gannon and Pretending by Holly Bourne, this would be a perfect read for you as it’s full of the same kind of wit, sarcasm and self discovery.

So I actually really enjoyed this short book about Ida and her family. I thought that it was interesting how none of the grown ups in the book, actually acted like grown ups. It was a very character driven story with not much happening in terms of a plot. But learning about everyone from the point of view of Ida was really interesting. I'm just not sure I like how the story ended. I was kind of looking for something surprising to happen at the end or a more formal ending to wrap everything up. I felt like the story just ended, when I could have used another couple of chapters.

This book makes for a pleasant read. Even if the main character Ida is terribly annoying and childish she can also be very relatable as she faces society's pressure to fit into a mold she doesn't quite know if she wants to go into (being a mother, settling down with a partner). It's also easy to recognise the way most of us fall back into patterns from our childhoods as soon as we're surrounded by family for holidays, all of this making it impossible to hate her.
The setting is beautiful, I too long to sail along fjords!
However the story fell a bit flat towards the end, I was hoping for some sort of resolution, instead she still seems very stuck in her ways. I think the character lacks a sense of reflexion that most people would have reached long before they hit 40..

Imperfect story but interesting and reflective (also a very quick read).

It was well-written but I felt like the main character was incredibly not self-aware that I struggled to want to finish, but I feel like fans of Sally Rooney might really like this (based on what I read of Beautiful World Where Are You before I quit it).

Book Review: Grown Ups,

Does 'Life begin at 40'? wonders Ida....

This short novella from Ida's perspective centres on the family dynamics between Ida and her younger sister Marthe.
During a family weekend at their cabin to celebrate their mum's 65th birthday they find themselves again reverting to the childhood roles they assume around each other (Ida the people pleaser/protector/responsible one vs Marthe sensitive/weak/sickly) and Ida continually compares herself to Marthe; how their mum relates to them and their own hopes of becoming mothers being biggest issues of contention.

If you need your protagonists to be likeable this probably isn't for you; but I enjoyed this insight into the passive aggressive sibling rivalry between the two and being able to immerse yourself in Ida's psyche rather than a fluctuating point of view gave good continuity. Rather than rooting for Ida, she is increasingly irritating but I thought it ended on a more hopeful note. Not a read for escapism, but some honest if ugly truths that many will be able to relate to.

Aubert's "Grown Ups" is a character study, a short yet intense novel that grows on the reader every time s/he turns the page.

I blitzed through this book over the weekend as I just could not get enough. Light and witty I enjoyed every second. Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for providing me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

“Grown Ups” achieves what I imagine it aspires to. While reading it, I really felt how grounded the story was, and so, the conflict felt palpable.

The plot of the novel unravels like a sometimes uncomfortable invitation to empathy. Sentiment that I felt being directed towards every character, except for the narrator’s sister, something that sometimes bothered me. The setting, a somewhat lone house on a fjord, works perfectly in achieving two things. First, the need to contain the story being told to a place of aesthetic familiarity, and second, as a literary device used to explore the material concept of family. What belongs to us?, what is passed through to us?, what can we take ownership of? This, I though, was realized marvelously in the novel.
And even though this story reads as such a product of its time — being, nowadays, this type of middle-aged (white) woman literature so popular — it still manages to keep its ground and carve some space for itself. On the surface, it may be perceived as just another entry into the canon that I just mentioned, but under its swift prose, this is a corner of this narrator’s life worth exploring. Aging and motherhood are far from being novel topics in conversation with each other, but I believe there’s a real heart in the way “Grown-Ups” went about it.
The main problem I encounter when thinking back on this read, is that the writing, as a whole, feels uncharacteristic and doesn’t manage to leave a lasting impression. Detail that can easily be attributed, in part, to “Grow Ups” being Marie Aubert’s debut novel and, in other part, to the translation. There is something about the beginning of the novel that makes it a bit hard to get into, and that I can see being a problem with the translation, but once that first part is through, the text reads much more delightedly.
I believe this novel will be a lock for its intended reader demographic — it is biting, thought provoking, and a quick, lively summer read.

I rather enjoyed this interesting little (translated) novella. I went through a love-hate relationship with main character Ida - at times I sympathised with her for feeling she had failed in life being unmarried and childless at 40. Yet at other times I thought she was rather petty and cruel towards her sister Marthe!
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I loved the Scandavaian setting with the descriptions of the beach house and boat, it really made me want to go on holiday and lie in a hammock! I would recommend this book to fans of Olive. A nice easy read but I was hoping for just a tiny bit more from the ending.

The synopsis of Grown Ups by Norwegian writer Marie Aubert really appealed to me but I found it to be a mixed read. I loved the writing style and the setting, a cabin in the Norwegian countryside. I love this kind of family drama and the themes of sibling rivalry and how women in their 40s are navigating the world, all resonated with me. However I found the central character, Ida completely unlikeable and her behaviour towards her family extreme. A disappointing read but I'll definitely look out for this author in the future.
Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read and review this digital ARC.
3.5 stars

Grown Ups by Marie Aubert is an engrossing family tale. It narrates the life of forty year old Ida who spends a few days with her family in the cabin. I liked reading about each characters and their individual struggles.

Grown ups is a really interesting examination of the complexity of sibling relationships (especially sisterly bonds) and the idea that you never really stop wanting what the other has.

I really enjoy the fact that despite being told through Ida’s perspective, we’re never presented with the typical bad sister vs good sister - there are no sides to pick. We are just simply presented the story from all sides. I liked the nuances of sisters that were sprinkled throughout the book - the snide comments, the sly looks and the cruelties all felt very familiar and actually made me smile remembering similar conversations with my own sister.

I’m not usually a fan of the stream of consciousness style of writing but I think it worked really well in Grown Ups. It allowed every word in this book to be written with purpose - the book is small but no word feels wasted here.

Whilst there’s no tidy finish to the book, it was left in a place where I felt hopeful for both sisters. This book weirdly felt like a coming-of-age story despite the main narrator being 40 but I think that adds to the uniqueness of this book and adds to the room for hopefulness at the end.

I really enjoyed this book and would definitely recommend this to a friend. I can definitely see this sparking a debate amongst friends, family and book clubs alike.

This book is actually really life affirming, I felt that it was true to life as you really learn to like the main character Ida but you do also at many points along the way exasperatedly shake your head at her as she makes some very questionable choices. But isn't that what life is about as each and everyone of us at times does things that when we look back at it wish we hadn't done. It also expertly shows all the ups and downs in life, the exhilarating turns that we all navigate, the fun time and the devestating times that life has to bring you. It also shows how hard sibling rivalry can be we've all been there questioning why your life has taken you on a very different journey than your siblings and at times questioning what on earth the universe has in store for you and why it's so different to everyone else's. Who seem to have things really easy. But one thing I have learnt is that life is unexpected for all of us and we should never compare your life against someone else's. Because theirs is probably not as rosy as it seems.

In this book we meet Ida who is a 40 year old architect. Ida is single and starting to panic that she is never going to find the love of her life and have a family like everyone seems to have had come to them so easily. Ida is desperately trying to navigate a depressing Tinder. Contemplating if the best thing for her to do would be to freeze her eggs because time is passing her by without her getting the things she desperately desires.

All Ida keeps seeing in the world around her is other people who have exactly what she wants and children absolutely everywhere.

As covid comes knocking her desire just heightens and she finds herself stuck in the Norwegian countryside at a gathering of the family to mark her mother's sixty fifth birthday. She is faced with spending the time with her younger sister Marthe and her husband who seem to have everything that she desperately wants. As time moves on Ida is forced to mark out new milestones in her own life and to question the things that are really the most important to her.

Meet Ida, a forty year old woman that has the maturity level of a middle schooler. She’s the kind of woman treats other women like garbage and gives herself a pass because she’s got self esteem issues.

The book was so annoying that I thought maybe something got lost in translation. But no, the cringe continues to the very end— There’s no language barrier here… There’s just nothing enjoyable about the selfish manipulative character this book revolves around.

To the Vogue editor that claims this is fabulously bitchy (as if that’s a cute trait for a forty year old woman) I suggest she get a self esteem too.

To those that praise the literary style: Sigh, women treating women badly is so overplayed and boring. Next!