Introduction

The small town of Barrington, with its picturesque cottages, breathtaking gardens and friendly neighbors, is very appealing. Things are going swimmingly for Lang Eldridge, an unlikely cancer survivor who is marking the one-year anniversary of her “death sentence.” She spent her supposed final year of life making sure her beloved husband, Jack, could survive without her. A caramel cake is in the freezer for his first birthday without her and love letters for every occasion are carefully written and tied with a pink ribbon. But just as she is packing for their celebratory trip, Jack drops dead on the tennis court. Devastated and reeling from shock, Lang realizes all of her perfect arrangements are in utter disarray. A mute stray dog posts itself on her front porch and a grammar-butchering fashion plate, A.J. Cole, practically takes up residence, regularly revealing too much information to loner Lang. Her son, Teddy, a tennis has-been, has his own ideas of how she should manage her life, and they don’t include cavorting about with a veterinarian who resembles Wimpy. Lillian, Lang’s long-lost mother, reappears and is as obnoxious as ever, waving to the pews at Jack’s funeral like she is Miss America. Lang’s granddaughter, Katie D, is a consistent bright spot, and Lang can’t imagine her life without her. As she realizes Jack wasn’t exactly the person she thought he was, she discovers a secret he carried to his grave could ruin her life. If she lets it. Compared to the Mitford Years by Jan Karon and Good Grief by Lolly Winston, Making Arrangements features “rich sassy writing with characters you’ll want to slap.” It is a story of family life and friendship, about mothers of both grown and young children, and how strangers (even the most irritating) can evolve into sisters. Relationships of all sorts can bloom into love (at any age) and the love between family, between mothers and children, grandparents and grandchildren, and sisters, is worth sustaining.

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Excerpt

Chapter One
Lang leaned on the shovel and tried to slow her breath.
She should be packing for their celebratory trip for her one-year remission, not trying to divide a wayward clump of Lenten roses. Jack could easily dig up the stubborn plant when he got home. But he’d been doing her bidding all year, and she was tired of asking. ... view entire excerpt...

Discussion Questions

Are there any similarities between Lang's blind trust with her finances and her trust in general?

Were you enraged at Lang’s lack of involvement in her own finances? Why? Do you think this is more generational? Did you notice this same level of financial one-sidedness with your own parents, or your grandparents?

Teddy is not a beloved character, but Lang still loves him deeply. Do you think the fact that Jack insisted his son leave the flowers and take up tennis made Lang more forgiving of Teddy’s shortcomings?

Do you think she felt guilty over not standing up to her husband when he shamed Teddy over playing with flowers?

AJ is a flawed and laughable character. Would you want her for a friend? Why or why not?

If your learned your grandchild/niece/nephew/cousin was not related by blood, would it make a difference? At what point in the relationship could you walk away? Could you forgive the unforgivable in order to preserve a relationship with that child?

What do you think about Teddy walking away from Katie D? Do you think Sarah should have told him he was not the father earlier?

At what point could you walk away from Katie D if you were in the same situation as Lang? As Teddy?

Would you tell Katie D who her biological father really is? Why? Why not?

If you could change something about this book, what would it be and why?

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