Within Arm's Reach is the debut novel by Ann Napolitano. I began reading this book with some trepidation, as I was an outlier and did not care for her book Hello Beautiful. However, I enjoyed this book about three generations of women of an Irish American family and those in their lives. There are a lot of characters in this book, and they all have a part to play.


Family can be messy, and this book shows the messiness of this family in all its glory. It also shows the complexities of the individual characters. Within Arm's Reach explores family dynamics, guilt, love, expectations, traditions, mental health, secrets, communication issues, and infidelity to name a few. I typically do not enjoy books which are on the slower side, but I enjoyed how this book meandered through the characters and their lives.

One thing that I appreciated about the book was the questions of what will bring the family together when the Matriarch of the family passes away. What will become of a family when the glue that holds them together is gone?

Many reviewers are mentioning the ending, and I must agree with them. When I read the last page, I thought "that's it?" and "this is how it ends?". The book ends leaving readers with bated breath. Was this on purpose to have readers wondering what was to come in the way that many of the characters were wondering what was to come next?

For me this was an enjoyable book. I enjoyed it, didn't love it, but found it a worthwhile read despite wanting more closure.

3.5 stars

While this was actually Napolitano's first novel, it is being reissued after the success of her two more recent books Dear Edward and Hello Beautiful. Based somewhat on Napolitano's family, Within Arm's Reach follows a large multigenerational Irish family living in NJ. There is a family tree included so you can keep track of who everyone is - helpful since the book is narrated by various family members. The author's writing has definitely improved over the year's and this lacks a bit of the richness of her more recent books, but overall I still liked this one and appreciated a tale of family issues that we can all relate to - love, loss, sibling rivalry, mental health, parental relationships, self identity, guilt, etc. Plenty to discuss if you want to make this a book club choice.

Note: thank you to netgalley and the publisher for a free advanced reader's copy in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you Netgalley and Dial Press Paperback for providing a copy of this book in return for an honest exchange.

I really liked this book. It dealt with a family and all the issues each one is facing. It is told through the perspective of grandma, mom, two sisters and the dad. I really enjoyed everyone’s point of view. The ending was a little sudden and I was heartbroken more over the questions I have. 3.5🌟

Today marks the re-release of this captivating and beautiful book centered around a big Irish family. Written two decades ago by Ann Napolitano, this book has resurfaced during her most recent success (she is also the author of Dear Edward, also a new Apple TV series). I wholeheartedly endorse this books, which unfolds through the perspectives of a traditional and vibrant Irish family.

Fans of Dear Edward and Hello Beautiful won’t want to miss the re-release of Ann Napolitano’s first book, Within Arm’s Reach. Lovers of complex family dramas like Mercury, The Connellys of County Down, and We are the Brennans are likely to enjoy this one too. Within Arm’s Reach tells the story of three generations of an Irish American family, told from the point of view of the matriarch Catherine, as well as several of her daughters and granddaughters and Catherine’s nurse Noreen.

I always enjoy seeing where authors “came from”, so it’s a treat to see the beginnings of Napolitano’s great talent and glimpses of her future brilliance. This is a poignant book with nuanced characters brought to life by lovely and evocative prose. I love the deft portrayal of “ordinary” characters… they are imperfect, flawed, and facing everyday problems and conflicting emotions. Themes of generational trauma, grief, loss, and second chances are handled with tenderness and care.

Many thanks to NetGalley, Random House, and The Dial Press for providing me an advance copy of this book.

This was such a beautifully written novel of family and difficulties and triumphs and love. I am so glad it was re-released today as I most likely would not have read such a beautiful story.

If you want to read something touching and beautifully depicted in words, this one’s for you.

I enjoyed a lot of things about this book. The depiction of an Irish Family was pretty spot on in my experience! Especially how the father leads the conversations and no one wants to talk about what makes them uncomfortable. I gave it 3.5 stars and I would've given more but I thought the ending was unfinished. It at least needed an epilogue or something. The readers are too invested in the characters to end that way.

I loved this author's book, Hello Beautiful so thought I would try this one. This one was also a story of a family also but was very dysfunctional and the one in the previous book was very loving despite their issues.
This one is based on the pregnancy of an unmarried woman and how her grandmother helped her through a hard time. There are many aunts, uncles cousins, etc. in the story as well. It is worth a read but I liked her other book much more.
Thanks to Netgalley for the Kindle copy of this book.I just reviewed Within Arm's Reach by Ann Napolitano. #WithinArmsReach #NetGalley
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Within Arm's Reach by Ann Napolitano is a re-release of her first novel.
I enjoyed reading this story about an Irish American Family as they find their individual and collective ways. The story is told from 5 or 6 different viewpoints but that technique largely works with the occasional check back to make sure I knew who was telling this chapter. This book is a leisurely read and I appreciated the flawed, multi-faceted, and very human characters.

In this book, you can see the early bonds and tensions of sisterhood that show up later in Hello Beautiful. I enjoyed the author's postscript about this being the book she was ready to write 20 years ago and in that spirit I"m glad I got to read it and to see how her writing has progressed in the intervening years.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an advance copy of Within Arm's Reach in exchange for an honest review. Today is publication day.

3.5 stars. Her writing is beautiful and she has command on the family saga novel. As in Hello, Beautiful, she draws from her own Irish Catholic heritage and passed down stories to create such an assembled lot of characters flawed and interesting and connected to each other even when they sometimes try not to be. This is her first novel that is being re-released after the wide success of Dear Edward (which I absolutely loved) and Hello, Beautiful. I think the story itself lacks a little, but it never feels too slow-paced or boring. I am still thinking about how much has changed in the last three generations and how difficult it is now for families to stay close were they to lose someone like Catharine, the grandmother matriarch who serves as the glue holding the younger generations together. Great title as well. If you like her writing, it’s definitely worth a read.
Many thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for the ARC. Within Arms Reach (rerelease) is available now.

WITHIN ARM'S REACH is brilliant Ann Napolitano at her best: highlighting the impact of an unexpected pregnancy on a tight knit and diverse Irish Catholic family. The keen insight and gentle compassion Napolitano offered in her earlier stories is in full bloom here in a story told by six different, compelling, and engaging characters. Throughout, the voice of the characters is pitch perfect through disagreements, silences, resolutions, and the drama of intense relationships. The story is also poetic, feeling lyrical and mythic in the scope of the tragedies endured and the triumphs celebrated. I deeply enjoyed this book and will recommend it for my book club. I received a copy of this book and these thoughts are my own, unbiased opinions.

Happy rerelease day to Within Arms Reach by Ann Napolitano!! Huge thank you to @netgalley and @thedialpress for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Within Arms Reach is Ann Napolitano’s first novel she wrote and after Hello Beautiful became one of my all time favorite books last year I was jumping for joy to get a chance to read this one!

While this novel is not as polished as Hello Beautiful, Napolitano’s beautiful way of writing families shines bright in this book. Within Arms Reach follows one family through perspectives of multiple generations as they struggle to understand and grow alongside one another. Once you nail down the characters (guided by the helpful family tree in the front) the changing perspectives make the book quirky and fun to read. The characters are imperfect and at times maddening but are extremely raw and realistic which makes the story so valuable. If you allow yourself to sit with these characters you will undoubtedly find a piece of yourself in them. I only wish we could have had more of the family towards the end of the book and seen some of their growth come to fruition.

If you are a fan of Ann Napolitano’s writing or enjoy slower books with a messy family dynamic I recommend picking this one up this spring. While it might not be for everyone, the ones who enjoy it will certainly treasure it!

3.5* a slice of life family saga that was enjoyable to experience. The authors note at the end made the story much more impactful.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for a copy of this novel. This is a republishing and it’s out now!

Within Arm's Reach by Ann Napolitano is a very well written story.
I just love her writing and I could get so lost in her words.
I absolutely loved this book - it gripped me from page one and never let me go.
Everything….. the story, the characters, the setting, the author's descriptions and her way with words.... all of it is phenomenal!

Thank You NetGalley and Random House | Dial Press Trade Paperback for your generosity and gifting me a copy of this amazing eARC!

I’ve always been a fan of novels that follow multigenerational family systems. Within Arms Reach follows grandmother and matriarch Catharine and her children and grandchildren. The story mainly follows granddaughter Grace’s pregnancy and the ripples it causes within the family system. I found it enjoyable to be woven into the complex issues in the family, but found the ending to be abrupt and I never really understood where the story was going. I still enjoyed reading about the family history!

Ann Napolitano is the author of one of my all time favorite books, Dear Edward. When I saw her debut novel was being re-released I jumped at the opportunity to read it.
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Her writing is simply stunning. She knows how to write a story and she can write a family saga like no other. This book was worth revisiting.
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Thank you #dialpress and #NetGalley for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review

“People don’t like to hear the truth, Mother says. It’s unkind. But they need to be strong, I say. Stronger than this, anyway. How will they ever find happiness, ever move forward in their lives, if they aren’t strong enough to hear that their mother is old?”

I really enjoyed this re-issue of @annnapolitanos debut book, originally published in 2004. Hello Beautiful and Dear Edward were both 5 stars for me so I was very excited to read the book that started it all.

And it was good! Within Arms Reach follows three generations of an Irish American family rocked by an unplanned pregnancy. I love books that deep dive into a family and lay it bare. Their quirks. Their secrets. And their demons. If you enjoyed We Are The Brennan’s then you will love this one too. The characters are well developed and their struggles are very relatable and very believable.

Thank you @PRHAudio for the complimentary audiobook and to Netgalley, Random House Publishing, and the author for the ebook.

In the early stages of this book I initially thought that I would enjoy this book more than Hello Beautiful and I was shocked to realize this was Ann's debut novel that had since gone out of print. After her success with HB, her publisher had decided to re-release the book with an updated cover.

Within Arms Reach follows three generations of an Irish American family with themes ranging from rebellion, sexuality, tradition & religion and, largely, loss of connectivity, especially within the familial structure, webbed between it all. This book was messy as real life is but I just wasn't engaged enough nor connected with the characters story developments.

The synopsis and description of the book states this family is "..jarred into crisis by an unexpected pregnancy" however; the majority of the family does not find out about the pregnancy until like 85% of the way through. AND because each character had such a dense sublot that wasn't touched on as much, I felt the reaction I was anticipating wasn't as strong either. The book just kind of ends with them accepting the pregnancy but never moves beyond that so we don't get to see any of the other characters grow or development beyond this "crisis".

Overall, I was left with too many questions left unanswered and found myself wanting more than the book gave me.

Ann Napolitano is a beautiful writer, it was the story that lost me. Overly verbose in some areas as well. I wish the connections between the generations were stronger, and that more thought was given to the ending. It felt incomplete. Thanks to NetGalley for an advanced copy in exchange for a review.

Napolitano's debut novel reprinted following her recent success, Within Arm's Reach is an early example of her incredible talent and potential as an author, even twenty years ago. Perhaps not quite as skilled or refined a story as Hello Beautiful or riveting as Dear Edward, still a worthwhile family drama that you may find relatable — 3.5 stars.

A large Irish American family full of secrets and grudges harbored over multiple generations, dispelled by an unplanned pregnancy out of wedlock. Six members narrate their own story in first person pov. While each chapter with subplot is interesting and well written, individually funny or sad or emotional, it can be hard to follow and required just enough mental energy to prevent it from being binge-able. There is a diagram included to help organize the characters and timeline.