Loyalty is incredibly excited to welcome Saumya Dave and Jamise Harper for What a Happy Family as part of the Diverse Spines Summer Reading Series! Snag your Diverse Spines subscription box, read with Diverse Spines and then join us for an intimate chat with Jamise Harper of Spines & Vines and the author as we "wine down" and dive into what makes these books great. This event will be held digitally via Crowdcast. You can order the the Diverse Spines x Loyalty subscription box (the July box or all 3 boxes) or snag a copy of the book below to be added to the event's registration list. You can also Click Here to register for the event with a donation amount of your choice, with donations going to BLM DC. Please email events@loyaltybookstores.com with any questions about the event and email orders@loyaltybookstores.com with any questions about your order.

ABOUT THE BOOK

"A full, big hearted novel.”—Taylor Jenkins Reid, New York Times bestselling author of Daisy Jones & the Six

Nestled in the suburbs of Atlanta, a family learns the funniest punchlines can hide the hardest truths in this evocative women’s fiction novel from the author of Well-Behaved Indian Women

From the outside, the Joshi family is the quintessential Indian-American family. Decades ago, Bina and Deepak immigrated to America, where she became a pillar of their local Indian community and he, a successful psychiatrist. Their eldest daughter, Suhani, is following the footsteps of her father’s career and happily married. Natasha, their middle daughter, is about to become engaged to the son of longtime family friends. And Anuj, their son—well he’s a son and what could be better than that?

But a family scandal shows that nothing is as it seems. Bina’s oldest friendship starts to unravel and she finds herself as an outsider in the community she helped build. Suhani discovers that her perfect marriage isn’t as solid as she thought. Natasha faces a series of rejections that send her into a downward spiral. 

As they encounter public humiliation, gossiping aunties, and self-doubt, the Joshi family must rely on each other like never before. But sometimes, family has to fall apart in order to come back stronger than before.

Saumya Dave is a psychiatrist and mental health advocate. Her essays, articles, and poetry have been featured in The New York Times, ABC News, Refinery29, and other publications. She is the co-founder of thisisforHER, a nonprofit at the nexus of art and women's mental health, and an adjunct professor at Mount Sinai, where she teaches a Narrative Medicine class. She recently completed her Psychiatry Residency at Mount Sinai Beth Israel, where she was a chief resident and an inductee into the AΩA Medical Honors Society. She currently resides in New York City with her husband and son. This is her first novel.

Jamise Harper is the creator of the #diversespines hashtag and the Diverse Spines book community on social media, which highlights literature by Black women and women of color. She is also the creator of Spines & Vines, a blog dedicated to book and wine pairings. She lives in the Washington, D.C., Metro Area.

Please note Loyalty has a zero tolerance policy for harassment or intimidation of any kind during this virtual event.

Diverse Spines Summer Reading Series: Saumya Dave and Jamise Harper