Abbi Waxman's warm, quippy novels explore familial dynamics with sarcastic wit and plenty of heart. Even the title of her fourth novel, I Was Told It Would Get Easier, will make some readers snort-laugh in recognition. The book follows single-mom lawyer Jessica Burnstein and her teenage daughter, Emily, as they embark on a weeklong bus tour of East Coast colleges. Jessica is hoping to reconnect with Emily, maybe even restore their once-tight bond. Emily isn't even sure she wants to go to college, and alternates between being grateful for her mom's care and annoyed at her interference.
Waxman (The Bookish Life of Nina Hill) whisks readers through the tour at breakneck speed, introducing entertaining secondary characters: the perky tour guide, the snarky queen bee, the grade- and status-obsessed parents. Less expected are several old friends of Jessica, who give Emily a new perspective on her mother as a person. The dual narration, often commenting on the same incidents from both Jessica's and Emily's points of view, serves to highlight the many missed connections (and a few special moments) between mother and daughter. Adding to the tension are a work crisis for Jessica and a brewing scandal at Emily's school, which each of them attempt to manage alone.
Being a teenager--or parenting one--is tricky territory, but Waxman steers her characters through it with compassion, snappy dialogue and the right dose of zany humor. Things may (or may not) get easier for the Burnstein women, but the ride, literal and otherwise, is highly enjoyable. --Katie Noah Gibson, blogger at Cakes, Tea and Dreams