My Review:

The Big Chill vibes are all over The Celebrants, and what’s not to love?  Author Steven Rowley of The Guncle is back with a sentimental story about middle-aged college friends and he has that magic touch when it comes to combining wit with grief and nostalgia.

College friends have a special bond (shout out to mine from Lehigh University) and these old pals have a meaningful pact they’ve upheld since graduation 28 years ago. Even though all the curveballs life has thrown them, divorce, deaths, possible jail time, and the uncertainty of the direction of their lives regardless of how old they are, these friends remain steadfast.

They agreed to have living “funeral” celebrations where they can share what they mean to each other while still alive, giving them an excuse to be together. The cast of characters is pleasingly diverse and the journey this tight group is on is exhilarating (like jumping out of a plane 😉).  Everyone’s emotions have their own spotlight and no matter which of the friends you enjoy most, you will be touched by all  and shed a tear by the end. 

Thanks to Steven Rowley, I predict the number of “living funerals” amongst friends will increase following the release of The Celebrants!  I recommend this heartwarming celebration of friendship (as well as the author’s previous novel, The Guncle)! Pre-order now… available May 30th!

About the Author

Steven Rowley is the bestselling author of Lily and the Octopus, a Washington Post Notable Book of 2016, The Editor, named by NPR and Esquire Magazine as one of the Best Books of 2019, and The Guncle, a Goodreads Choice Awards finalist for 2021 Novel of the Year and finalist for The Thurber Prize in American Humor. His fiction has been published in twenty languages.

Lily and the Octopus is in development as a feature film at Amazon Studios. The Editor was optioned by Twentieth Century for producer Greg Berlanti. Feature film rights for The Guncle have been picked up by Lionsgate. Rowley has worked as a freelance writer, newspaper columnist and screenwriter. Originally from Portland, Maine, he is a graduate of Emerson College and currently resides in Palm Springs with his husband, the writer Byron Lane.