... keeps a lightness to the read while delving into often difficult situations that test its heroines. Yet, by the last page, the weight of women’s burdens in past and present America has been hammered home ... Condensing a woman’s lifetime into a relatable read, Connie Schultz’s effortless writing answers this and more ... While guys often cause the turmoil, women and their choices, or lack thereof, set the pace. Ms. Schultz refuses to stereotype her female characters. Even with those whose decisions cause harm, she delves into the circumstances that influenced those acts with a nonjudgmental understanding ... tackles the so-called class divide with compassion. Too often, novels feature the extravagant trials and tribulations of the wealthy while ignoring the working men and women who live paycheck to paycheck. Not Ms. Schultz ... The child of card-carrying union man, Ms. Schultz brings authenticity to her writing about working class families. From the canned peaches as an after-dinner dessert to long, tedious hours of overtime work, the McGinity family represents a childhood many of us in the Midwest understand and one we see disappearing. The Daughters of Erietown does not seek to deify union workers, but instead tells their tale with humanism and care ... More so, the stories of the women supporting these workers are being told by someone who understands their importance. In reality, The Daughters of Erietown could be the daughters of every town. And Ms. Schultz should be proud to be called its mother.

... absorbing ... At times, this closely observed family saga reads like comfort food, peppered with nostalgic references to products including Lawson’s French onion dip and Toni home perms, as well as occasional feel-good homilies, such as 'you should always be able to feel proud of the girl you see in that mirror.' But this quiet, Anne Tyler-esque novel is also a reminder that gentler times were not always gentle, that life is filled with hardship even without existential threats.

While Schultz’s compelling narrative and realistic characters will keep readers turning pages into the night, her eye and ear for real-life details set this novel apart from other domestic sagas. Part tragic love story, part powerful testament to shifting cultural norms and the evolution of the women’s movement, The Daughters of Erietown is an impressive first novel with a big heart.

Long known for her insightful and clever commentaries, Pulitzer Prize-winning author Connie Schultz has now joined the ranks of fiction writers. Her debut novel does not disappoint ... It is not necessary to have been born in a blue collar or middle-class family, or come from Northeast Ohio, to appreciate this story. The story reflects the tenacity of people who make the best of what they have and spare little time in maudlin remorse over what might have been ... The characters in this novel are not saints—they are flawed and redeemable, pathetic at times and honorable at others. In the end, they are everyone ... This book is a lazy summer day read, rocking on the porch with lemonade at hand and it is a book for cloudy, cold, winter afternoons with a cup of tea. Readers may recognize their own experiences or those of people they know ... Connie Schultz has a reputation for writing about everyday people and their lives. With this novel, she further cements her position as a writer of considerable talent and compassion.

... comfortably sprawling ... Though Schultz’s sympathies clearly lie with the women of the family, who are held back from achieving their goals and fulfilling their promise by societal expectations, her warmth and compassion also extend to the men, whose bad behavior is usually explained by a cycle of abuse. She anchors the domestic story in the wider one of a fully realized community in which religion plays a significant role. At its best, the novel has an old-fashioned charm and a keen eye for the details of Midwestern life in the fifties, sixties, and seventies.

Like Jennifer Weiner’s Mrs. Everything, except with Catholics instead of Jews, the novel sharply illuminates evolving social mores and tucks in plenty of womanly wisdom ... A masterful debut novel.

... sweeping, heartfelt ... Schultz enlivens the narrative with sharp cultural commentary and precise period details. This story of family secrets rises above—and is tougher than—the rest.