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Some Bright Nowhere
- Author
- Ann Packer
- Narrator
- Will Damron
- Publisher
- HarperCollins Publishers
- Publish Date
- 11 November 2025
- Run Time
- 7 hours 14 minutes
- Format
- Audiobook
- Genre
- Family life fiction / Stories about family, Narrative theme: health and illness, Narrative theme: death, grief, loss, Narrative theme: love / relationships, Modern and contemporary fiction: literary and general, Contemporary lifestyle fiction
- Rating
- 5.0 (1 review)
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What to expect
AN OPRAH'S BOOK CLUB PICK
‘One of those rare books that once you’ve finished, comes with you for life’ RACHEL JOYCE
‘A moving book … I was enraptured by it’ PHILIPPA PERRY
‘Readers, you will shed tears and talk long into the night about this book’ ANDREW SEAN GREER
‘A heartbreaking novel that actually made me happy’ MEG WOLITZER
An extraordinarily beautiful and life-affirming new novel from one of America's greatest chroniclers of the human heart, Ann Packer.
Eliot and his wife Claire have been happily married for nearly four decades. They’ve raised two children in their sleepy Connecticut town and have weathered the inevitable ups and downs that come with a long marriage. Now, eight years into Claire’s cancer diagnosis it’s time to gather their loved ones and prepare for what comes next.
Through Claire’s illness, Eliot has willingly and lovingly shifted into the role of caregiver, coming to appreciate the new intimacy this creates. But as he focuses on settling into what will be their last weeks together, Claire makes an unexpected request that leaves him reeling.
Ann Packer makes a triumphant return with this beautifully powerful and life-affirming novel. Some Bright Nowhere explores the profound gifts and costs of truly loving someone, and the unexpected feelings we experience as the end of life draws near.
‘As devastating as it is life-affirming’ iPAPER
‘This beautifully written story is going to get you thinking about some things that really matter’ OPRAH WINFREY
‘Intimate and devastating;I felt winded, while reading, and unable to look away’ CLAIRE DAVERLEY, author of Talking at Night
‘Extraordinary. Books like this are why I love reading’ ELIN HILDERBRAND, author of The Perfect Couple
‘I read it in awe and haven't stopped thinking about it since’ CLAIRE POWELL, author of At the Table
‘A moving meditation on love's many forms’ PEOPLE
‘Packer’s gorgeous, deeply involving novel is a suspenseful and radiant reckoning with love, sorrow, and the everlasting mystery of death’ BOOKLIST
‘One of those rare books that leaves you feeling altered somehow, like the light has shifted’ HUMA QURESHI, author of Playing Games
‘Prose beautiful enough to get you drunk … A triumph’ RUFI THORPE, author of Margo's Got Money Troubles
‘I read it feverishly; I lived and mourned with its characters’ AYŞEGÜL SAVAŞ, author of The Anthropologists
‘Exquisite … you've never read a novel about marriage quite like this one’ TANIA JAMES, author of Loot
Critics Review
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Praise for Some Bright Nowhere:
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‘Her writing is firmly in Elizabeth Strout territory – in the New England setting of Some Bright Nowhere, and in the compassionate realism of her work overall … Packer conveys that dying well is also about living' Financial Times
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‘As devastating as it is life-affirming’ iPaper
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‘Packer explores Claire’s decision with delicate precision … There are no monsters here, just messy, loving humans doing the best they can. And it is both all the more beautiful and all the more tragic for that’ Marie-Claire
See more reviews See fewer reviews
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‘A moving meditation on love’s many forms and how a marriage can surprise you – right to the end’ People
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‘One of the most emotionally truthful novels I’ve read in years. Penetrating, humane, funny and wise’ Rachel Joyce, author of The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry
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‘Intimate and devastating; I felt winded, while reading, and unable to look away’ Claire Daverley, author of Talking at Night
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‘Extraordinary. Books like this are why I love reading. This novel about marriage and friendship and life and dying is a marvel’ Elin Hilderbrand, author of The Perfect Couple
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‘A moving book, realistic about how messy relationships can be around death. I was enraptured by it’ Philippa Perry, author of How To Stay Sane
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‘An extraordinarily powerful novel. Compassionate and absorbing, I read it in awe and haven't stopped thinking about it since’ Claire Powell, author of At the Table
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‘Packer sketches the nuances of [Claire and Eliot's] love with a devastating sharpness, poignantly exploring the challenges of facing death with grace’ Washington Post
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‘An exquisite gem of a novel, shot through with luminous prose and profound insight into the human heart … I loved it’ Tania James, author of Loot
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‘A heartbreaking novel that actually made me happy’ Meg Wolitzer, author of The Female Persuasion
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‘Readers, you will shed tears and talk long into the night about this book … Profound and moving and real’ Andrew Sean Greer, author of Less
User Reviews
Book 5.0
Narration 5.0
-
5.0 5.0
Interesting, thought provoking read. An in- depth exploration of relationships while supporting a loved one at end of life.
I found it moving but not sad, and unputdownable.GardensofPaper 2026-04-09
Details
- Author
- Ann Packer
- Narrator
- Will Damron
- Duration
- 7 hours 14 minutes
- Release Date
- 11 November 2025
- ISBN
- 9780008735111
- Format
- Audiobook
- Publisher
- HarperCollins Publishers
- Genre
- Family life fiction / Stories about family, Narrative theme: health and illness, Narrative theme: death, grief, loss, Narrative theme: love / relationships, Modern and contemporary fiction: literary and general, Contemporary lifestyle fiction
- Rating
- 5.0(1 review)
- Narration
- 5.0(1 review)
Synopsis
AN OPRAH'S BOOK CLUB PICK ‘One of those rare books that once you’ve finished, comes with you for life’ RACHEL JOYCE ‘A moving book … I was enraptured by it’ PHILIPPA PERRY ‘Readers, you will shed tears and talk long into the night about this book’ ANDREW SEAN GREER ‘A heartbreaking novel that actually made me happy’ MEG WOLITZER An extraordinarily beautiful and life-affirming new novel from one of America's greatest chroniclers of the human heart, Ann Packer. Eliot and his wife Claire have been happily married for nearly four decades. They’ve raised two children in their sleepy Connecticut town and have weathered the inevitable ups and downs that come with a long marriage. Now, eight years into Claire’s cancer diagnosis it’s time to gather their loved ones and prepare for what comes next. Through Claire’s illness, Eliot has willingly and lovingly shifted into the role of caregiver, coming to appreciate the new intimacy this creates. But as he focuses on settling into what will be their last weeks together, Claire makes an unexpected request that leaves him reeling. Ann Packer makes a triumphant return with this beautifully powerful and life-affirming novel. Some Bright Nowhere explores the profound gifts and costs of truly loving someone, and the unexpected feelings we experience as the end of life draws near. ‘As devastating as it is life-affirming’ iPAPER ‘This beautifully written story is going to get you thinking about some things that really matter’ OPRAH WINFREY ‘Intimate and devastating;I felt winded, while reading, and unable to look away’ CLAIRE DAVERLEY, author of Talking at Night ‘Extraordinary. Books like this are why I love reading’ ELIN HILDERBRAND, author of The Perfect Couple ‘I read it in awe and haven't stopped thinking about it since’ CLAIRE POWELL, author of At the Table ‘A moving meditation on love's many forms’ PEOPLE ‘Packer’s gorgeous, deeply involving novel is a suspenseful and radiant reckoning with love, sorrow, and the everlasting mystery of death’ BOOKLIST ‘One of those rare books that leaves you feeling altered somehow, like the light has shifted’ HUMA QURESHI, author of Playing Games ‘Prose beautiful enough to get you drunk … A triumph’ RUFI THORPE, author of Margo's Got Money Troubles ‘I read it feverishly; I lived and mourned with its characters’ AYŞEGÜL SAVAŞ, author of The Anthropologists ‘Exquisite … you've never read a novel about marriage quite like this one’ TANIA JAMES, author of Loot
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