ALL THE WAYS WE LIED

Vaneh Assadourian delivers this novel about a dysfunctional Armenian American family in a knowing style and understanding tone. She adroitly captures the clipped angry tone of the indomitable harridan Takouhi, matriarch and mother of three daughters. Author Zilelian presents the three daughters' struggles. Kohar, the eldest, had trouble with fertility; Lucine's husband takes her money and disappears; and Azad, the youngest, seems lost and incapable of relationships. Their stories create a tapestry of family life and loss. The audiobook is redolent of Armenian dishes and folkways, and bits of the language are sprinkled throughout. The characters are indelibly written, and even the often harsh mother has a detailed backstory that explains how she evolved in the Old World and the new. A.D.M. © AudioFile 2024, Portland, Maine [Published: FEBRUARY 2024]