Women and Children First, Alina Grabowski
Women and Children First, Alina Grabowski
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Women and Children First

Author: Alina Grabowski

Narrator: Abigail Reno, EJ Lavery, Maria McCann, Veronica Giguere, Jordan Claire McCraw

Unabridged: 10 hr 46 min

Format: Digital Audiobook Download

Publisher: Zando

Published: 05/07/2024

Synopsis

“I am a big fan of Women and Children First . . . Alina Grabowski is an astute and limber narrative artist and I could read her prose all day long and never grow weary.”?Lorrie Moore, author of A Gate at the Stairs A gripping literary puzzle that unwinds the private lives of ten women as they confront tragedy in a small Massachusetts town. Nashquitten, MA, is a decaying coastal enclave that not even tourist season can revive, full of locals who have run the town’s industries for generations. When a young woman dies at a house party, the circumstances around her death suspiciously unclear, the tight-knit community is shaken. As a mother grieves her daughter, a teacher her student, a best friend her confidante, the events around the tragedy become a lightning rod: blame is cast, secrets are buried deeper. Some are left to pick up the pieces, while others turn their backs, and all the while, a truth about that dreadful night begins to emerge. Told through the eyes of ten local women, Grabowski’s Women and Children First is an exquisite portrait of grief and a powerful reminder of life’s interconnectedness. Touching on womanhood, class, and sexuality, ambition, disappointment, and tragedy, this novel is a stunning rendering of love and loss, and a bracing lesson from a phenomenal new literary talent that no one walks this earth alone.

About Alina Grabowski

Alina Grabowski grew up in coastal Massachusetts and holds degrees from the University of Pennsylvania and Vanderbilt University. Her writing has appeared in Story, The Masters Review, Joyland, The Adroit Journal, and Day One. She has received scholarships from Aspen Summer Words, the Sewanee Writers’ Conference, the Squaw Valley Community of Writers, and the Juniper Summer Writing Institute. She lives in Austin, Texas.

About Abigail Reno

Abigail Reno is an experienced actor, voiceover artist, and audiobook narrator who has recorded over sixty titles. She enjoys narrating all genres but especially loves how historical fiction, fantasy, and retellings of classic mythology and folklore transport listeners to another place and time. A native of Northern California, she currently lives in the Pacific Northwest.

About EJ Lavery

EJ Lavery is an audiobook narrator who records titles in a broad range of genres, including thriller, romcom, and middle-grade fiction. A former disc jockey for a mid-Michigan Top 40 radio station, her fifteen-year career in theater has given her the opportunity to inhabit many lives. She has also sung at several prestigious venues, including The Kennedy Center, Disney World, Carnegie Hall, and the Vienna Music Hall.

About Maria McCann

Maria McCann is an audiobook narrator who graduated from the UCLA School of Theater, Film & Television. She has appeared in over forty films and television shows, including Lucifer, Shameless, and Grey’s Anatomy, and works as an acting coach. A Los Angeles native who is proud of her Mexican heritage, she is a busy wife and mother who serves on the board of directors for Colorado’s Wild Animal Sanctuary.

About Veronica Giguere

Veronica Giguere (V.) is a storyteller of the spoken and written word who became an audiobook narrator through the strange intersection of higher education, fanfiction, and MMORPGs. She narrates across genres, but her favorites are science fiction and fantasy.

Reviews

Goodreads review by Spens on August 01, 2024

I received an ARC of this book via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. I am inclined to think that this book just wasn't for me, because while I was genuinely interested all throughout about how the different narratives weave together, I couldn't help but feel that it was way too disjointed f......more

Goodreads review by Rosh ~catching up slowly~ on April 28, 2025

In a Nutshell:A literary mystery surrounding the death of a young girl in a small town. Presented as a series of vignettes from the perspective of ten local women. Great idea, but too disjointed in execution. Might work better if you read it as a small-town drama and like slower-paced narratives wi......more

Goodreads review by The Bibliophile Doctor on December 22, 2023

Thank you Netgalley and Zando, SJP lit for the ARC in exchange of an honest review. Here’s what happened: I was there. So was she. I came home. She didn’t. To start with, this was completely confusing story. I had to try very hard to understand who is who. Maybe it would have been helpful if there had......more

Goodreads review by BookOfCinz on June 25, 2024

The book goes between POV and timelines but I really did not enjoy this one. Maybe it was the subject matter but it took a lot for me to finish it.......more

Goodreads review by Tammy on May 07, 2024

When the sudden death of a young teen girl at a house party affects a small coastal Massachusetts town, WOMEN AND CHILDREN FIRST tells the impact it has on ten different women/girls (that knew her-or-of her) in that community. The story deals with grief, coping, sexuality, family and relationships.......more

Quotes

Magnetic . . . The ennui of small-town life is perfectly captured in the slice-of-life vignettes, which coalesce into a riveting set of Rashomon-style retellings. Grabowski shows immense promise.

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