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That's Not How It Happened

by Craig Thomas

A family’s life becomes a Hollywood story

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AlbakiReads Editorial

A family’s life becomes a Hollywood story

Paige’s memoir about raising Emmett, who has Down syndrome, brings a film crew—and a new set of pressures—into a family already negotiating what comes next. The proposed adaptation ties together several different stakes: Rob sees a chance to revive his screenwriting career, Emmett resists being defined by his diagnosis, and Darcy feels overlooked in a story that barely includes her. The novel’s central tension lies in who gets to shape the family’s public image, and what happens when an “inspiring” account fails to reflect the people whose lives it represents. Hollywood’s interest turns private family history into contested material, touching on marriage, sibling dynamics, disability, and recognition.

Good fit for readers who enjoy

  • Readers interested in family stories centered on marriage, parenthood, and sibling relationships.
  • Readers drawn to fiction about disability and the way public narratives can shape personal identity.
  • Readers interested in stories involving memoir, screen adaptation, and Hollywood’s influence on family life.

Themes

Family relationshipsDisability and identityRepresentation and public narrativesMarriage and careerRecognition and belonging

Based on publisher information and book metadata.

Book overview

"Funny and poignant... Craig Thomas is a big-hearted, empathetic writer who knows his characters inside and out." --Tom Perrotta, New York Times and USA Today bestselling author of Mrs. Fletcher and The Leftovers

"Funny, real and moving all at once...[A] wonderful, heartfelt debut." -Lin-Manuel Miranda, Tony-Award Winning creator of Broadway's Hamilton

From the Emmy-nominated co-creator and Executive Producer of How I Met Your Mother, this smart, funny, bighearted novel for fans of Kevin Wilson and Monica Heisey, follows a family turned upside down after Hollywood decides to make a movie version of their lives.

With Audiobook narration by Cobie Smulders and Josh Radnor


Paige didn't set out to be a stay-at-home mom, but when her husband's screenwriting career took off right before they had a son with Down syndrome, the decision was made for her. Now, with their children nearly grown and unsure what's next, Paige writes a memoir about the challenges of raising a child with a disability. When a major actress-turned-producer shows up at her door eager to make her "inspiring" story into a movie, she's shocked, excited, and a little terrified.

This movie just might be the comeback opportunity her husband, Rob, desperately needs. His career has fizzled in recent years. But the movie is going to need a screenwriter, and who better to adapt his wife's memoir than him?... Meanwhile, their son, Emmett, doesn't understand why people think his Down syndrome is the most important thing in his life (that's definitely his girlfriend, Amy)--but he hopes his newfound fame might somehow get him closer to meeting his idol, Eddie Vedder. Their daughter, Darcy, couldn't care less about the whole thing because she's hardly even in their mom's book. The "normal" child who nobody ever worries about is feeling more forgotten than ever as her love life implodes and college decisions loom.

As their lives are chewed up and spit out by the Hollywood machine, triggering old resentments and launching new betrayals, will any of them even recognize the "inspiring" family in this film? Or will this "feel-good" movie be the end of them?
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