This Is a Love Story: A Read with Jenna Pick

“Just in time for Valentine’s Day, Soffer’s unapologetically romantic novel includes many tales that tug at the heartstrings. First and foremost is the long marriage of Abe and Jane, a writer and an artist whose complicated, colorful life together is winding down as she lays dying. While he runs through a litany of their memories together . . . we catch glimpses of other great loves: their son’s connection with his grandmother, Jane’s mind meld with an old friend, Abe’s affinity for the march of words on a page and New Yorkers’ devotion to Central Park. Soffer’s saga goes down like bittersweet chocolate, with a hint of sugar to soften the sharp edge of loss.”
—Elisabeth Egan, The New York Times (Book of the Week)

“[An] undeniably effective love story. . . Ms. Soffer opens the novel to different perspectives to explore these crises, but, touchingly, she always returns to the couple’s resilient connection. Thinking of the craft of storytelling, Abe worries that too much happiness ‘writes white’ on the page. In this book, though, it’s the joyful moments that stand out.”
—The Wall Street Journal

“I can’t stop thinking about This is a Love Story by Jessica Soffer . . . In New York City, but perhaps in any place, there are moments between the hustle and bustle when you look up to the sky and breathe, grateful to just be for another day. Reading This is a Love Story feels a little like that. Love stories may be far from perfect, but how lucky are we?”
—USA Today

“The lyrical novel plays with perspective, most chapters include what the couple recalled from Abe’s perspective . . . but it also lends full and empathetic points of view to Jane, their son, the young student in love with Abe, and even—between each changed perspective— the voice of Central Park itself and the eclectic cast of other lovers who have called its brambling paths their own. A love letter to the panorama of life—and love—in New York City.”
—Oprah Daily

“A delightfully New York marriage… A touching romance that’s also an ode to the urban oasis where it began.”
—People

“Get ready to have your emotions rocked by this moving family saga about a couple’s enduring love and the son who feels left out of their story.”
—TODAY.com

“It’s an ode to a marriage, but also to Central Park itself.”
—Town & Country

“This Is A Love Sto­ry is a pro­found med­i­ta­tion on mar­riage, moth­er­hood, and artis­tic ambi­tion . . . An epic poem, a char­ac­ter study, and a sparkling ode to New York. There is no ques­tion that Sof­fer is a gift­ed writer with an ear for strik­ing lan­guage, but she also impress­es in her abil­i­ty to craft a nov­el that feels authen­tic. . . The mem­o­ries Jane and Abe share run the gamut from del­i­cate and roman­tic to mun­dane and painful — muse­um exhi­bi­tions and swanky cel­e­bra­tions merge with trips to the gro­cery store, bleed­ing, and bed­pans. In one sense, their life togeth­er feels almost enchant­ed, but ulti­mate­ly, it is as ordi­nary and finite as any­one else’s. In the end, Soffer’s nov­el reminds us of the beau­ty that accom­pa­nies life’s small­est — and some­times ugli­est — moments. Even bad mem­o­ries can be good ones in a love sto­ry as splen­did as this one.”
—Lyn­da Cohen Loigman, Jewish Book Council

“Powerful, heartfelt and heartwrenching…this story of true love has it all. . . . Told in various points of view, the radiant tale captures the depths of life, family and love.”
—Woman’s World

“There’s something about multi-character narratives that makes them wildly appealing. Feeling seen, being listened to, isn’t that what we all want? What better gift could an author give her beloved characters than the chance to state their case from their perspective? Jessica Soffer clearly loves her characters, showers each with empathy galore. . . . A love story told with . . . love.”
—The East Hampton Star

“Soffer’s writing is simple yet poetic. Most impressive is her ability to capture the depths of emotions of all her characters while rooting readers in such a strong sense of place…A New York love story at its finest.”
—Library Journal

“Written with delicate and beautiful brush strokes, this is a love story of a long marriage, a love story of Central Park, a story of how hard life can be, and how the hard leaves its mark, but the love does too. Every once in a while I read a novel and think, What a gift. This is one of those books.”
—Ann Napolitano, New York Times bestselling author of Hello Beautiful and Dear Edward

“This Is A Love Story is Jessica Soffer’s iridescent, kaleidoscopic, homerun of a novel. It’s a beautiful book of seasons, marking the cycles of a city, a family, the creative process, and a single and singular life.”
—Nathan Englander, New York Times bestselling author of Dinner at the Center of the Earth

“This Is A Love Story is a revelation—the kind of novel to read in one sitting. It performs the magic trick of being a highly specific story that feels universal and timeless. When you finish, you’ll find that your worldview has been gently and deftly altered by an author whose tenderness toward her characters—and toward language itself—is unparalleled.”
—Liz Moore, bestselling author of Long Bright River and The God of the Woods

“With her lyrical, graceful novel of love and art, Jessica Soffer has captured the glittering magic of New York City.”
—Jenny Jackson, New York Times bestselling author of Pineapple Street