OUR BEST INTENTIONS by Vibhuti Jain is leading my list for best book of the year. This debut novel is full of suspense and some troubling introspection by its lead character, high school swimmer Angie Singh. She is motherless and deals with an overly organized, over-protective, immigrant father. That relationship comes under increasing strain when Angie witnesses an altercation involving Henry, a sort of crush who is also her best friend's brother. The police involvement and social dynamics, while unfortunately realistic, border on being "cringe worthy," with underlying commentary about entitlement, the American Dream, economic prejudice, and systemic racism. Adults who know the kids best are either shunted to the side or voluntarily relinquish responsibility. That leaves Angie struggling with some moral dilemmas and will have high school age and adult readers very emotionally involved. Jain adeptly offers multiple perspectives and ties in a missing person, potential drug dealing, and physical abuse.The uncertainty, confusion, and doubt are pervasive - I am purposefully avoiding more details here as OUR BEST INTENTIONS is an excellent book group choice with much to discuss. Jain's debut received starred reviews from Booklist ("a portrait of wealthy suburbia at its most toxic and insular ... fans of Celeste Ng should take note") and Publishers Weekly ("Jain excels at revealing each character's motivations and fears"). Grappling with numerous social issues and coming of age angst, OUR BEST INTENTIONS merits wide readership.

A book that has many moving parts to it.
What really happened that day on the football field that involved four people?
It takes the entire book to unravel, reading from several different perspectives. My sympathies were mostly with Babur since he had assumed full parental responsibility for many years. I understood his attitude toward his absent spouse.
There are many prevalent themes in the book: money, covering up, coercion, and intimidation.
There is much to ponder.

What happened on the football field before Angie found Henry with a knife in his stomach with Chris running off chasing someone? There's more to this than might appear on the surface. Babur has raised his daughter Angie as a single parent since his wife left the family; he has a ride share company, he has a routine, and it's all devoted to her. He put her in swimming class as a child because he didn't have after school care, a decision which led her to be the ace of her high school team, which is why, on a summer day, she's crossed the football field after leaving the pool. She's had a crush on Henry, the brother of her one time BFF but now, now she's his savior. Did Chiara, who has been living at the high school since she had to leave her cousin's house do it? And why? This is told from multiple perspectives, as Henry's parents circle the wagons and bring privilege into the equation. And make no mistake, this is also about race and class. Babur's voice is the strongest as he tries to navigate this upheaval in his daughter's life (with more out there to come). Thanks to the publisher for the ARC. Great read.

Our Best Intentions is an examination of a small wealthy town in NY, dealing with the aftermath of a violent crime, from the perspective of various townspeople, including Angie Singh, her father, and the high school principal, among others.

Angie is leaving her high school swimming pool one afternoon in late August, when she comes upon a classmate who has been stabbed by another student, Chiara Thompkins. The book revolves around how the town and school administration are dealing with the fall out between the stabbing victim's family and the school, and what truly happened to cause the stabbing to happen in the first place.

This book does not shy away from tough topics and observations on those in power and those on the sidelines, dealing with the consequences of two entitled teenagers' bad behavior. We don't truly find out what happened to cause Chiara to act as she did until the conclusion of the novel, when most of the threads of the story are neatly connected and concluded. I enjoyed the various narrators' distinctive voices, and felt the author portrayed teenagers specifically in an authentic manner. Overall, the book was well written, and I was able to read this book from start to finish in one day. My one minor complaint was that the beginning chapters of the novel felt slightly disjointed, and it took me a bit of reading to connect the threads and become immersed in the book.

Thank you to William Morrow Books, Book Club Girl, and NetGalley for the electronic ARC of this novel for review.

When Angie is walking home from swim practice she finds her best friend’s brother stabbed and hurt on the school’s football field. Now stuck in the middle of an investigation, Angie and her father start to reexamine their place in the community they always called home.

This was a strong debut with great character development and a timely plot. I loved the format as each chapter was written by a different person somewhat related to the incident that occurred at the school and while there were some POVs that I personally did not care much about, I appreciated how these chapters escalated the tension of the plot and added in suspense. I think this would make an excellent story to read with my High School students as the author dived into important themes such as the struggle with assimilation, class divide, acceptance, privilege and doing the right there when it’s not the easy option.

Read if you like:
-Stories about immigrant families
-A diverse cast of characters
-Alternating perspectives 
-Father/daughter relationships
-Everything I Never Told You

Thank you William Morrow for the ARC! Pub date 3/14/23

Thanks Netgalley for allowing me to read this book. Angi was living the American dream with her father. She calls police one day when she sees a man who was stabbed. This case will open up a pandera's box. Everyone is hiding secrets and you don't know who to trust.

I highly recommend Our Best Intentions by debut novelist Vibhuti Jain! This multilayered novel delves into issues of race, class, immigration, mental illness, and family dynamics. It felt very realistic to me. The incident at the center of the story isn't as sensational as something you'd see on international news and the characters aren't particularly remarkable. I can see it happening anywhere; making local or perhaps regional news for a few weeks and then forgotten - which is its own tragedy. Very thought provoking.

Thank you to NetGalley and William Morrow for an advanced copy of the book.

I received a free copy of, Our Best Intentions, by Vibhuti Jain, from the publisher and Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. While Angie is walking home she finds a classmate stabbed, and bleeding on the football field. The community is up in arms, her father, Bobby, does not know how to help her. This big has many layers, class, racial, immigrants, morals, and integrity. This was a hard read but a good one.

This riveting and heartbreaking drama benefits from Jain's skillful unwinding (and escalation) of the narrative. The threat of the encroaching storm reminded me of Chanel Cleeton's Last Train to Key West; the telling and themes hold obvious appeal for fans of Celeste Ng's Everything I Never Told You.

This is a quiet book with a lot of depth. It is the story of a father, an Indian immigrant, here for two decades, having been left by his wife, raising his daughter alone. It is the story of how a tragic incident incites a whole community, exposing the racism, class privilege, sexism and willingness to blame the victim. It tells the story of the boys involved, the sister, and the aunt of the girl involved. Very well written and easy to read. 4.5