Going Home

'A spirit-lifting debut'

DAVID MITCHELL

'I will never forget these characters: so pained and funny, so brilliantly drawn, wrestled with and forgiven'

HELEN GARNER

'Meltingly warm'

OBSERVER

Local boy Teo Erskine is back in the north London suburb of his youth, visiting his father - stubborn, selfish, complicated Vic. Things have changed for Teo: he's got a steady job, a brand-new car and a London flat all concrete and glass, with a sliver of a river view.

Except, underneath the surface, not much has changed at all. He's still the boy seeking his father's approval; the young man playing late-night poker with his best friend, unreliable, infuriating Ben Mossam; the one still desperately in love with the enigmatic Lia Woods.

Lia's life, on the other hand, has been transformed: now a single mum to two-year-old Joel, she doesn't have time for anyone - not even herself.

When the unthinkable happens, Joel finds himself at the centre of an odd constellation of men - Teo, Vic, Ben - none of whom is fully equipped to look after him, but whose strange, tentative attempts at love might just be enough to offer him a new place to call home.

Exceptionally touching . . . Lamont shows his talent for revealing the depth of the characters' feelings through their small, quotidian joys and tragedies . . . funny and poignant, bittersweet and moving - yet never maudlin . . . Going Home made me cry on more than one occasion, and laugh out loud many more times. It's a terrific reminder that what binds us to our loved ones isn't blood but the care we take to keep them close, and our ability to show up for them when we screw it up on the first go-round. -- Isaac Fitzgerald New York Times
Gently comic, bittersweet -- The best fiction of 2024 Guardian
Three men become responsible for a motherless toddler. In an unsentimental evocation of fatherhood and male friendship, this novel explores the glory and sacrifice involved in learning to love -- Best books of 2024 The Economist
I've read Going Home twice now and I still don't feel as if I've tapped its power. Children seem to be more alive than adults, keener, less jaded, and this novel feels the same, pepped up and gorgeous, just bristling with life -- Olivia Laing Guardian
Someone put Tom Lamont's Going Home in my hand the other day and I was soon involved in his lovely, exact sentences and perceptions, building a poignant and generous story about some men looking after a baby -- Books of the year, picked by Tessa Hadley Daily Express
Lamont's debut is shrewd, heartfelt and witty, and his cast of Londoners feel intensely real -- The 75 hottest books of the year so far Daily Telegraph
A different kind of love story, beautifully told . . . An obvious parallel might be the work of Jon McGregor . . . [it] restored my faith in wholesome novelistic pleasures that work well in good hands but have failed to excite me in recent novels. Several point-of-view narrators are inhabited dutifully, and equally; there's a concentrated locality, many corners of which are shown love and illuminated; a culture; a strong social element, played without manipulative cynicism. There are rolling banks of nice sentences and dialogue that sounds like real speech without sacrificing shape or dynamism. Going Home has the lot. It's been a while since I've read a piece of straightforward British realism and been this impressed. Financial Times
Charm is an underrated quality in fiction . . . It comes from an alchemical blend of elements including narrative voice and character, and Tom Lamont's debut novel, Going Home, set in the Jewish community in Enfield, north London, has charm to burn . . . a book that succeeds so strongly through its charm and its heart -- John Self Observer
A meltingly warm comedy centred on two old school pals recently turned 30 . . . While the testy male bonds at the book's heart supply plenty of laughter, the book owes its generous humour not to gags, but tone, which gives it an equally light hand with any number of unfunny subjects -- 10 best new novelists for 2024 Observer
A beautiful, funny tale of London and lives new and old -- Jonathan Dean Sunday Times
A spirited, shrewd debut -- The best 38 novels of 2024 so far Daily Telegraph
Brilliantly observed . . . Lamont's story of a make-do family revels in the often comically porous borders of faith, home, and adulthood New Yorker
At the centre of Lamont's book are the breathless, torrential outpourings of a child whose magnetism pulls all the adults around him together. In capturing the gradual and thorny journey of Joel and Téo towards becoming father and son, almost despite themselves, Lamont does something remarkable Literary Review
An affecting debut about fatherhood and male friendship i
Lamont mixes poignancy . . . with humour, capturing well the cadences of a toddler . . . Lamont conveys a strong sense of place . . . his characters, to me, felt intensely real -- Susie Mesure Daily Telegraph
There is so much to love about this book, foremost the poignantly, sometimes painfully detailed portrait of 30-something guys . . . Joel himself-his way of speaking, his tantrums, his predilections, his memory-is one of the most vivid fictional children since Jack in Room . . . Their synagogue has a new rabbi, a woman named Sibyl Challis, who is also the best rabbi character in recent memory . . . A great premise, a great story, but most of all, great characters -- Starred review Kirkus
This is the literary version of your favourite returning family drama . . . Going Home might feature one of the greatest iterations of the quintessentially British "forever-a-lad" archetype . . . I know so many guys like Benjamin Mossam, indeed most of my dearest friends remind me of him, but never found a novel that portrayed them quite the same way, definitely not so fondly and with such texture and complexity Something Curated
Well-drawn characters, believable dialogue and nuanced emotions cast new light on love in this bittersweet book Sunday Express
A bittersweet and moving debut that beautifully explores male friendship and what it means to be a father Good Housekeeping
Vividly rendered . . . with emphasis on character and its warm, witty dialogue, Going Home is splendidly old fashioned but also strikingly modern in its themes and set-ups, especially its broader exploration of home and family -- Jude Cook Times Literary Supplement
Delightfully idiosyncratic . . . a genuinely heart-warming story. Lamont's deft blending of humour and pathos marks him down as a writer to watch Mail on Sunday
In this touching exploration of male relationships, Lamont paints London as it is . . . The characters' flaws add vivacity and realism to the narrative, as well as providing constant ups and downs. From the imperfections of life, Lamont has fashioned a poignant work of fiction New Statesman
Lamont explores the trade-offs of parenthood, the tidal pull of long-held bonds and the dissonance of joy amid heartbreak in this witty, poignant debut -- Book of the week People
There's a lot of fun to be had in this excellent debut centred on friendships, filial bonds and the demands of childcare Daily Mail
An affecting tale about friendship, fatherhood, family ties, and finding the ability to love unconditionally . . . Infused with a steady supply of warmth, pathos, and sardonic wit . . . The novel's standout feature is its expertly drawn characters. Lamont rotates their perspectives for each chapter and in doing so brings us closer to them Boston Globe
Lam­ont writes with an affa­ble style that is wise to vary­ing notions of mas­culin­i­ty . . . We are deliv­ered real, vivid char­ac­ters in all their messy glo­ry, craft­ed with such sen­si­tiv­i­ty that read­ers will care about them long after closing the book Jewish Book Council
The shifts in perspective and the rich characterization are similar to those of Jonathan Franzen . . . Lamont superbly depicts neurodegenerative decline and complex family dynamics . . . Brilliantly capturing mundane and surprising aspects of raising a child, this is a fascinating portrait of parenting, the British Jewish community, and the struggle to break ties that may be holding you back Booklist
A journey into rarely explored territory Sainsbury's Magazine
Going Home overflows with heart, and its characters feel real with their multitude of dreams, fears, serious self-doubts and fierce loyalties . . . Lamont paces events with precision and humour, asking life's big questions regarding family and friendship, duty and devotion . . . The debut of a gifted writer whose readers will find themselves feeling better, somehow, about the world BookPage
Touching . . . well-drawn characters, believable dialogue and nuanced emotions cast new light on life in this bittersweet book Press Association
What most impresses about Going Home is the brilliant portrait of Joel . . . this is a 'sharp', refreshing debut The Week
A spirit-lifting debut novel of friendship, fatherhood, growth and forgiveness. A bluff song of praise to north London, peopled by engaging, fallible characters, and rich in glinting turns of phrase -- David Mitchell, author of CLOUD ATLAS
I will never forget these characters: so pained and funny, so brilliantly drawn, wrestled with and forgiven -- Helen Garner, author of THE SPARE ROOM
A tender, original, finely paced debut . . . Lamont captures the familiarity and claustrophobia of suburban London and the feeling that nothing and everything has changed -- Pandora Sykes, author of HOW DO WE KNOW WE'RE DOING IT RIGHT?
A poignant yet very funny novel about three men taking turns at shouldering responsibility and shrugging it off, at worrying and causing worry, at giving care and needing it. Tom Lamont writes in clear, swift prose about the power struggles that exist in even the most loving of families and the longest of friendships. A lyrical, hypnotic delight -- Katherine Heiny, author of GAMES AND RITUALS
Bittersweet, funny and moving, Going Home is all this but also has a bright ring of truth which chimes on every page -- Claire Fuller, author of UNSETTLED GROUND
A debut which skilfully and tenderly explores male relationships, belonging and what we leave behind. I adored every moment. The characters have stayed with me ever since -- Bella Mackie, author of HOW TO KILL YOUR FAMILY
I enjoyed this sharp, tender novel of love and loss set in a scrupulously observed London suburb. From tragic beginnings it builds a slow fire of hope as its characters learn new ways to live and care for each other -- Adam Foulds, author of THE QUICKENING MAZE
Deftly written, Going Home is one of the best debuts I've read in a long time. Joel and Téo crept into my heart and I did not want to let them go. Lamont's impressive skill as a writer spills out of every page -- Anne Griffin, author of THE ISLAND OF LONGING
A remarkably assured, moving, melancholy and funny debut -- John Banville, author of THE SINGULARITIES
Explores parenthood, responsibility, freedom and faith . . . Immersive and finely observed -- Editor's Choice Bookseller
Very funny in places and deeply poignant in others - I loved it . . . word-perfect -- India Knight, author of DARLING
I loved this story and these people. I see them wherever I go. I couldn't wait to walk through those streets alongside those characters again. London itself is a wonderful backdrop - as vivid, complicated and brutal as the character's lives. There are big themes - family, fatherhood, friendship, loss and love - but they're all handled sympathetically, truthfully and with great humour. There's such generosity to Tom Lamont's writing, a rare and treasurable thing -- Janet Ellis, author of HOW IT WAS

Tom Lamont is an award-winning journalist. In 2015, he became one of the founding writers on the Guardian's Long Read desk and since 2017 he has been a regular correspondent for American GQ. He lives in north London with his wife and two children. Going Home is his first novel.

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