Same As It Ever Was by Claire Lombardo

This is the story of Julia who feels unfulfilled- she has a lovely husband and two grown children but is constantly wondering where her life would have taken her and her past history. When she sees a woman who befriended her when she was a struggling young mom before dropping her, the discontent begins all over again. The first half of this book I just wanted to slap Julia and tell her to get her act together or get some help. The other characters were not much better. I really didn't like how mean her youngest was to her, how her oldest tried to shield her and how horrible her mom was to her as well as her lack of connection. Only her overly patient husband gave me a glimmer of hope. The second half of the book turned the corner as we see Julia try to navigate rough waters of her life and dog paddle to the other shore. It is deeply character driven and a look at how we cope with our own frailty and midlife disappointments or mask it in regret. I didn't feel like it was a glass half full kind of family but there was a glimmer of hope that it could become one. ​  3 1/2 stars