The Splendid Things We Planned - A Family Portrait

By Blake Bailey,

Book cover of The Splendid Things We Planned - A Family Portrait

Book description

Meet the Baileys: Burck, a prosperous lawyer once voted the American Legion's "Citizen of the Year" in his tiny hometown of Vinita, Oklahoma; his wife Marlies, who longs to recapture her festive life in Greenwich Village as a pretty young German immigrant, fresh off the boat; their addled son Scott,…

When you buy books, we may earn a commission that helps keep our lights on (or join the rebellion as a member).

Why read it?

1 author picked The Splendid Things We Planned - A Family Portrait as one of their favorite books. Why do they recommend it?

No one wants to know a troubled, addicted family member isn't going to beat their demons. But knowing the ending at the beginning makes reading this difficult story possible. Bailey tells a relatable story that breaks down his brother's struggles and their effect upon the family in a way that those of us who share similar stories can relate to. The reader can see how and where things went wrong with Blake's brother Scott, while recognizing that there wasn't anything anyone could have done to prevent the ending.

From Marlayna's list on surviving traumatic childhoods.

If you love The Splendid Things We Planned - A Family Portrait...

Ad

Book cover of Tap Dancing on Everest: A Young Doctor's Unlikely Adventure

Tap Dancing on Everest By Mimi Zieman,

Tap Dancing on Everest, part coming-of-age memoir, part true-survival adventure story, is about a young medical student, the daughter of a Holocaust survivor raised in N.Y.C., who battles self-doubt to serve as the doctor—and only woman—on a remote Everest climb in Tibet.

The team attempts a new route up…

Want books like The Splendid Things We Planned - A Family Portrait?

Our community of 12,000+ authors has personally recommended 100 books like The Splendid Things We Planned - A Family Portrait.

Browse books like The Splendid Things We Planned - A Family Portrait

Book cover of The Glass Castle
Book cover of Angela's Ashes
Book cover of Another Hill and Sometimes a Mountain

Share your top 3 reads of 2024!

And get a beautiful page showing off your 3 favorite reads.

1,609

readers submitted
so far, will you?

Ad

📚 If you like The Splendid Things We Planned - A Family Portrait, you might also like...

Book cover of The Pianist's Only Daughter: A Memoir

The Pianist's Only Daughter By Kathryn Betts Adams,

The Pianist's Only Daughter is a frank, humorous, and heartbreaking exploration of aging in an aging expert's own family.

Social worker and gerontologist Kathryn Betts Adams spent decades negotiating evolving family dynamics with her colorful and talented parents: her mother, an English scholar and poet, and her father, a pianist…

Book cover of The Twenty: One Woman's Trek Across Corsica on the GR20 Trail

The Twenty By Marianne C. Bohr,

Marianne Bohr and her husband, about to turn sixty, are restless for adventure. They decide on an extended, desolate trek across the French island of Corsica — the GR20, Europe’s toughest long-distance footpath — to challenge what it means to grow old. Part travelogue, part buddy story, part memoir, The…

5 book lists we think you will like!

Interested in childhood, family, and reenwich Village?

Childhood 200 books
Family 4,180 books
Reenwich Village 29 books