Light-hearted yet poignant, Good Riddance is a surprising coming-of-age for the MC being in her 30's...

When Daphne Maritch decides to throw away her mom's 1968 yearbook, she can't possibly see the storm that's coming... Enter "filmmaker" documentarian Geneva Wisencorn, Daphne's apartment building neighbor and a first-class snoop. Geneva finds the yearbook in the building's recycling and takes it upon herself to investigate why Daphne's mom would meticulously annotate a yearbook from her first year of teaching and yearbook advising. And I mean, who wouldn't be interested? Mrs. Maritch attended every reunion for the class of 1968 up until her recent passing, leaving notes by each person's picture with lifetime milestones -- well, except for one person. And why does he only have pencil marks??? Geneva is on the case, and Daphne is definitely not happy about it. What goes from a minor annoyance for Daphne turns into a life-changing journey in which she'll have to say "good riddance" to everything she thought she knew about her life, her mom, and herself.

Thoughts: Despite the drama that fuels the plot, this wasn't exactly a page-turner. But I don't mean that in a bad way. Good Riddance fits comfortably in the realistic fiction genre and has just enough drama to keep readers interested while also being able to enjoy the story with a cozy cup of tea on a relaxing morning. Daphne can be a bit annoying at times and definitely mishandles pretty much every situation she's in, but thankfully she has a lot of patient people who love her. Jeremy was a nice surprise as a love interest, and her father and Kathi are just adorable. Geneva, though -- Geneva was so annoying that I almost wanted to skip every scene with her (which is impossible b/c she is pivotal to the plot) so I took to using my imagination to punch her in the head. There were a few plot holes not closed, it was a bit predictable, and a couple of characters acting out of character towards the end, but I thought this was an enjoyable story with plot hills instead of plot cliffs, perfect for a comfort read for any true realistic fiction fan.

**Thank you, NetGalley and publishers, for a DRC in exchange for an honest review.**

Such a good read! I very much enjoyed this book.

* I did review this book on my Goodreads account after reading the eARC, but did not complete the feedback form in NetGalley. *

This story had potential but unfortunately didn't deliver. There were too many threads, too many different stories, that none of them ended up being satisfactory and left me feeling confused as I couldn't figure out what I was supposed to focus on or care about. Also, aside from Daphne's dad and Kathi, the characters were all horrible people and I kind of wanted all of them to get their comeuppance.

I had enjoyed Lipman's previous book, but found this one to be somewhat disappointing. Plus there were some weird discrepancies in the ages of the characters.

I enjoyed this read but had hoped this book would be more witty. I think it may be better suited for an empty nester reader.

The concept of this book is intriguing! Daphne discards her mother's yearbook in a bit of spring cleaning that results in an unexpected series of events. While the adventure captures the reader's interest, Daphne is a difficult character to like and invest in. The plot is more of a draw than the characters.

This book is an interesting examination about a woman who discovers the value in something she thought was worthless. That one moment starts her on a journey into a new life she didn't see coming, and while I had a lot of trouble liking the main character, it was good to see her find some growth and resolution along her way, even if I couldn't relate to her as much as I'd hoped to. This book would be great for readers who enjoy characters that make some off the wall decisions, and who follow their creativity while being open to whatever shows up.

Elinor Lipman’s novel Good Riddance tells the story of a daughter who inherits her deceased mother’s effects, including a signed yearbook from Mom's days as a yearbook advisor. She tosses the yearbook out, and her neighbor rescues it and decides to made a documentary out it, which causes all kinds of trouble. You’ll be careful what you toss out after you read this.

Elinor Lipman writes about the human condition, about what it is to be a woman and how we relate to the world. I love how she writes people and adds them to wonderful story lines.

Unlike many of the other reviewers that read this book I had never read any of Lipman's other books. She has such a large and faithful following that I feel as though I should after this.

Unfortunately, many of those same faithful readers did not appreciate this title--stating that characters were dry and unlikable. Generally, I try not to read what others have written until after I have written how i felt about the title--I don't know why I didn't do that with this one... but I can say that I disagree. While Daphne wasn't my favorite protagonist she did fit well into her role in this story and Geneva was an excellent antagonist, slightly batty with a hint of malicious self-intent.

After Daphne's mother passed away she left Daphne her prized yearbook (not from her schooling but from the year that she taught and advised the year book team) filled with the coded markings from years of observing her former students. When Daphne goes through a cleaning streak she recycles the yearbook only to have one of her batty neighbors from down the hall, Geneva, rescue it and determine it a gold mine for a documentary. As Geneva does this she begins to unravel family history that wold be better kept off the record for everyone involved. Can Daphne get the yearbook back before Geneva ruins everything?

Hijinks to follow.

I received a copy of this title in exchange for my unbiased review.

I'm sorry this is a late review but I have tried on more than one occasion to finish this book but I could not connect to the characters and didn’t find the story compelling or interesting. I do love the author’s wiring style and loved her previous book, On Turpentine Lane, so I will definitely read the author’s next book in the hopes it has the magic of her previous work.

I did not quite finish it so I will not be reviewing it elsewhere on social media sites.

This was my first time reading a book by Lipman. I had high hopes this would be a cute rom-com, but it missed the mark for me. There seemed to be a lot of unnecessary filler in the plot, and this might just be me but it wasn’t funny. I don’t think the categorization of rom-com is accurate at all. I didn’t feel connected to the characters at all, Daphne really frustrated me at times.

An old yearbook brings up a past no one expected.in ther hands of a would-be documentarian. Now with old secrets in the open, Daphne Maritch must face the truth. Does it really change the present? Should it?

I don't like that my last two reviews have been on the negative side, but once again , I had a difficult time with this book. I started to read it several times, and never once could it hold my attention. The times I was able to read more than a few pages at once- which were few and far between - I was annoyed with the emphasis on an old, discarded yearbook. Initially, I found the premise very promising, but I don't think the plot quit lived up to the expectations I had. I didn't finish, to be honest, so to be fair I will not be reviewing this elsewhere or hand-selling it at my store.

Elinor Lipman can always be counted on for a good solid romp of a read that usually includes a few romps in the bedroom, as well! Good Riddance doesn't disappoint. Daphne, a divorcee living in a NYC apartment building, goes on a cleaning binge and throws away the high school yearbook that her mother willed to her. Seemingly a benign act, yet this being her mother's prized possession, of course there was deeper meaning to this marked up old yearbook. Geneva, a filmmaker and fellow resident of the building, digs the book out of the trash and decides to investigate because she thinks the Pinkerton High School students within are fodder for her next documentary. This was the school where Daphne’s mother was yearbook advisor, not a student, but she had affinity for her students, documented their achievements and progression in life within its pages, and attended their high school reunions. Geneva convinces Daphne to attend the reunion where secrets are indeed revealed, the sort that one doesn’t want made into a documentary film. Other characters include Daphne’s father, who relocates to NYC after his wife’s death to start a new life alongside his daughter, as well as love interests for both of them (did I mention romps in bed?), and an alumnus from Pinkerton High School that is the reason behind why the yearbook was willed to Daphne. Not the best book you’ll ever read, but it was thoroughly entertaining and definitely had an unusual premise – a solid 3.5 stars.

#GoodRiddance #NetGalley

i found it really difficult to read - it had an interesting storyline but it had poor execution. Most of the characters were great - my favorite being Tom but this book didn't captivate me at all. There were so many unnecessary parts to the story and I just feel like it could've had a quarter of it removed. The ending was lovely and my favorite part of the entire book was definitely the last line. As I mentioned, it was a great plot - I just feel like it needed another revision or two to make it a great book.

This is my first Elinor Lipman book, and I found the writing to be high quality, but the main character and plot to be lacking.

The book centers on Daphne, a divorcee and internet chocolate candy making student, who throws away her mother's annotated yearbook after inheriting it. The book is found by her "documentary filmmaker" neighbor, who decides it's time to make Daphne's mother the focus of her latest project.

This leads to many secrets being unearthed as Daphne struggles to reconcile her mom with the woman she was, and keep her family intact.

In addition, the book deals with the relocation and love interest of Daphne's dad, her budding interest in a neighbor and actor, and upheavals with her ex-husband.

There is a lot going on, yet for much of the book, I was disinterested in the plot. I would like to try another book by this author, as I did enjoy her writing style.

Thanks to the author, publisher, and NetGalley.com for my advanced reader copy.

Good Riddance is a fun, light-hearted, quick read. It is a little outdated but altogether funny with laughter, secrets, and a lot of fun.
Daphne is a great character, actually all the characters are great. I loved her interactions with all of them, including the yearbook thief Geneva.
It really is a delightfully fun read. I was laughing throughout.

Good Riddance is how I can sum up this book - I started, then put it down several times before I finally read it just to get rid of it.
The narrative is just not that funny to make reading it seem anything but pointless. I couldn't figure out what it was really about for the longest time - there was no reason to care either way about what happened to the high school yearbook she threw out, so why try to force a story out of it?

This was light and sweet, but ultimately not for me. I couldn't relate or get into the main protagonist (Daphne) or why she was doing what she was doing (bumbling through life?). The plot never really progressed but the writing has some great wry humor and some actual laugh out loud moments. The best parts of the book are Daphne's interactions with her newly widowed father.