Reunion: A Novel Read online

  Did other novels or authors influence the writing of Reunion? If so, which ones?

  The epigraph comes from an amazingly precise John Cheever story that I adore—one I teach every year, so it’s always in the back of my mind—but I’d be lying if I said his story directly influenced Reunion. One day, when I was writing this novel, my husband asked what I was working on. I told him. He said, “I know what you should call it.” I said, “What?” He said, “You have to give me credit, though.” He’s a writer and a teacher, also. I said, “Sure, but only if I use it.” He said, “Reunion, after the Cheever story.” It was perfect.

  More directly, though, I might say that Jess Walter’s The Financial Lives of Poets or Francine Prose’s My New American Life influenced Reunion. I read those books back to back. They’re both heartbreaking and hilarious. They filled me with an intense energy and giddiness. I knew I wanted to write something funny, fast, and fiscally oriented.

  Thank you for buying this ebook, published by Hachette Digital.

  To receive special offers, bonus content, and news about our latest ebooks and apps, sign up for our newsletters.

  Sign Up

  Or visit us at hachettebookgroup.com/newsletters

  For more about this book and author, visit Bookish.com.

  Contents

  Cover

  Title Page

  Welcome

  Dedication

  Epigraph

  1: on the airplane

  2: there are three of us

  3: arriving in Chicago

  4: Peter comes to the airport

  5: flight to Atlanta

  6: asleep on the plane

  7: concourse to concourse

  8: Nell and Elliot arrive

  9: taxi to Dad’s place

  10: inside Dad’s place

  11: the back porch

  12: going to bed at Dad’s place

  13: a bad dream

  14: Sasha comes to fetch us

  15: at the funeral home

  16: a momentary detour: finances explained

  17: picking up Mindy

  18: driving back to Sasha’s place

  19: the back porch, before dinner

  20: cooking dinner, getting drunk

  21: the ex-wives, explained

  22: Billy calls

  23: showering after dinner

  24: a proposal

  25: a memory!

  26: the back porch before bed

  27: morning, kitchen, eggs

  28: grocery shopping with Mindy

  29: Nell figures things out, sort of

  30: the party begins

  31: Dad’s favorite

  32: talking to Rita

  33: a partial list of the secrets I keep track of while I lie awake in bed most nights

  34: the speeches begin and end

  35: after the party, doing dishes

  36: things come to a head in the kitchen

  37: waking up in the middle of the night

  38: alone in the bathroom again

  39: Peter calls

  40: the silent treatment

  41: goodbye

  42: cooking dinner

  43: movie time

  44: a minor revelation

  45: in bed

  46: the end

  Acknowledgments

  About the Author

  Also by Hannah Pittard

  Reading Group Guide

  Newsletters

  Copyright

  This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events, locales, or persons, living or dead, is coincidental.

  Copyright © 2014 by Hannah Pittard

  Reading Group Guide copyright © 2014 by Hachette Book Group, Inc.

  Cover design by Catherine Casalino

  Cover photography © Patryce Bak / Photonica

  All rights reserved. In accordance with the U.S. Copyright Act of 1976, the scanning, uploading, and electronic sharing of any part of this book without the permission of the publisher constitute unlawful piracy and theft of the author’s intellectual property. If you would like to use material from the book (other than for review purposes), prior written permission must be obtained by contacting the publisher at [email protected]. Thank you for your support of the author’s rights.

  Grand Central Publishing

  Hachette Book Group

  1290 Avenue of the Americas

  New York, NY 10019

  hachettebookgroup.com

  twitter.com/grandcentralpub

  First ebook edition: October 2014

  Grand Central Publishing is a division of Hachette Book Group, Inc.

  The Grand Central Publishing name and logo is a trademark of Hachette Book Group, Inc.

  The Hachette Speakers Bureau provides a wide range of authors for speaking events. To find out more, go to www.hachettespeakersbureau.com or call (866) 376-6591. [REMOVE IF AUTHOR DOES NOT PARTICIPATE]

  The publisher is not responsible for websites (or their content) that are not owned by the publisher.

  ISBN 978-1-4555-5360-0

  E3