Friendkeeping
From the beloved and bestselling memoirist comes a funny and affecting look at making the most of our friendships in an age of isolation. With her inimitable wit and disarming warmth, Julie Klam shares with us her experiences, advice, and insight in Friendkeeping, a candid, hilarious look at some of the most meaningful and enjoyable relationships in our lives: our friendships.
After her bestselling You Had Me at Woof, about relationships with dogs, Klam now turns her attention to human relationships to great effect. She examines everything—from the curious world of online friendship to the intersection of friendship and motherhood. She even explores how to hang on to our friendships in the toughest circumstances: when schadenfreude rears its ugly head or when we don't like our friend's mate.
Klam relays a mix of brand-new and time-tested wisdom—she finds that longtime friends really can grow up without growing apart; that communication is key; that friendship is one of life's great, free sources of happiness; that you're not a friend, just a doormat, if you don't get back what you give—and her discoveries range from amusing to deeply important.
Charming, bracingly honest, and compulsively readable, Friendkeeping is an irresistible book, a treat that you'll want to share with your best friends right away. Brimming with keen observations and laugh-out-loud moments, it's delivered in the lively, accessible voice that Julie Klam's readers have come to know and love.
“[Klam’s] smartest book yet…amusing, poignant…a rollicking must-read.”
—People
“The book you will want to give all your best friends, not as a nudge-nudge, hint-hint reminder of what it takes to be a good friend, but rather as a celebration of just how great friends can be. And if they (or you) pick up a few hints on how to be a good friend, so much the better for everyone. We all need reminding once in awhile that connection takes more than just showing up for drinks or a walk -- and Klam offers the reminders with her usual big heart, goofy humor, and open admissions.”
— The Huffington Post
“[Klam is] taking seriously something, namely adult friendships, that often turns into the wallpaper of cultural life: something that's there, and that's lovely, and that ideally you don't have to think about, but not something that you would delve into deeply.”
—NPR.org
“A smart read… with incisive one-liners and self-deprecating humor… Klam's warmth and wit is enough to keep this book light and engaging.”
—USA Today
“Klam addresses real relationships and the raw problems of human life... [and] shares her personal, honest, funny, and poignant friend experiences”
—The Atlantic Wire
“A jolly, largehearted book…Julie Klam makes no claim to being a fancy expert. She has lived her expertise. Her own life is her source of knowledge… charming, nostalgic, informative.”
—The Washington Post
“These pages are strewn with nuggets of wisdom and witticism…[a] warm hearted book.”
—Dayton Daily News
“Klam's voice is often flat-out hilarious… [she] never fails to come up with terrific comic vignettes and sharp one-liners… highly entertaining.”
—Kirkus Reviews
“Klam is funny. Not cute or amusing, but laugh-out-loud, borderline too-much-information funny… With Friendkeeping, Klam proves that she is no one-trick pony.”
—BookPage
“Julie Klam is one funny writer.”
—David Rakoff, author of Don’t Get Too Comfortable and Fraud
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