Friends and Family: A Novel by Natalie BaszilePublication Date: October 6, 2026
Pages: 384
Add the Book on:Goodreads
Rating: ★★★
Source: From the Publisher
Genre: Fiction / Literary
Publisher: Pamela Dorman Books / Penguin Random House
Synopsis:
From the author of Queen Sugar, a piercing examination of friendship and loyalty as two best friends find themselves at odds over their beliefs on race, identity and allyship, especially when it comes to their teenage children
Babs and Nora became friends thanks to their kids. Now, the desire to protect their children might tear them apart.
Babs and Nora have spent a decade’s worth of morning walks sharing family secrets, local drama, and advice—everything from tips on lingerie choices to Babs’s suggestions to Nora, a white woman, on how to raise Nathan, her adopted Black son.
But their worlds are turned upside down when the cops are called on their kids while they’re home alone, leading to a traumatic police encounter for Nathan. In the aftermath, Babs and Nora find themselves divided as never before, and Nathan looks for refuge with Babs and her family, where, unlike in his own home, race, identity, and culture are always up for discussion. Babs can see that Nathan is a young Black man without community trying to find himself. Torn between respecting Nora’s boundaries and embodying the values so important to her own family, Babs will make a choice that will shape their lives forever.
Set in a tight-knit enclave in the Bay Area, Friends and Family is an eye-opening exploration of friendship and privilege, race and community, and what it means to truly be a good friend and ally.
REVIEW
Babs and Nora have spent a decade building a friendship out of morning walks, shared secrets, and raising their kids side by side in their tight-knit Bay Area enclave. Babs, who is Black, has even become a sounding board for Nora, a white mother, on how to raise her adopted Black son, Nathan. Natalie Baszile sets up this intimacy beautifully, making their bond feel lived-in and real. When the police are called on their teenagers while home alone, and Nathan endures a traumatic encounter, that foundation begins to crack in ways neither woman expected.
This is exactly the kind of book that will fuel a long book club debrief. Baszile, author of Queen Sugar, writes with compassion and clarity about race, privilege, motherhood, and what true allyship actually requires when it costs you something. The most compelling moments come when Nathan seeks refuge with Babs’s family, where questions of Black identity and culture are not whispered around but openly explored. Baszile treats all of her characters with empathy, even when they are making deeply flawed, frustrating choices.
Where it lost me a bit was in the execution. The novel is so intent on raising important questions that the narrative sometimes feels more like a series of conversations than a fully propulsive story. Some of the dialogue, especially around the fallout of the police incident, felt didactic, and I wanted more interiority from Nathan himself rather than seeing him largely through the mothers’ perspectives. It’s resonant and timely, but it tells more than it shows in the second half.
Still, Baszile’s central insight lingers. As Babs reflects, “It’s one thing to be loved, another to feel seen.” Friends and Family is an earnest, thought-provoking examination of the limits of interracial friendship and the messy work of showing up for each other. I admired it more than I loved it, but it left me with a lot to chew on.
Disclaimer: Links on this page may contain affiliate links, and purchasing a copy through them may generate a small commission for the site owner. A free copy of this book was provided by Pamela Dorman Books via NetGalley, in exchange for an honest review.
