7 Books to Read If You’re Obsessed with ‘This Is Us’

The Bird family seems perfect: A sweet father, free-spirited mother and three smart, adventurous children. Then one Easter weekend, tragedy strikes, beginning to tear the family apart. After years of near estrangement, something happens to bring the Birds back to the house they grew up in—and finally understand how their ideal life came crashing down. 

In 1970s Ohio, a Chinese-American family is rocked by the disappearance of its favorite daughter. When her body is found in the local lake, the Lees’ carefully crafted façade is destroyed. What follows is a moving and sensitive family portrait about the ways in which mothers and daughters, fathers and sons, and husbands and wives struggle to understand one another.

Nadia, Luke and Aubrey are three young people coming of age in a tight-knit African American community in Southern California. After moving across the country for college and law school, Nadia returns to her hometown, where she’s forced to confront unfinished business from her youth. Told partly by Nadia and partly by a judgmental chorus of women from church (the titular “Mothers”), Bennett’s novel is sad and wise, tackling themes of secrets, loyalty and the lasting impact of the decisions we make when we’re young.

Spanning 40 years and jumping between South Carolina’s Low Country and a gritty but shiny NYC, Conroy’s classic novel tells the story of Tom, his gifted and troubled twin, Savannah, and their struggle to triumph over the dark and tragic legacy of their family.

It’s 1969 on Manhattan’s Lower East Side, and the four Gold siblings—Varya, Daniel, Klara and Simon—hear about a psychic in their neighborhood who professes to know how long they have to live. Told in sections from each sibling’s perspective, it raises the question: Does knowing when you’ll die encourage you to live life to the fullest, or does it cause more harm than good? 

Enid Lambert has been a wife and mother for almost 50 years. Her husband is losing his sanity to Parkinson's disease, and their children—all of whom narrate parts of the novel—have long since left the nest. Despite the cards being stacked against her, Enid, desperate for something to look forward to, sets out to bring her family together for one last Christmas at home. 

The death of Judd’s father marks the first time that his whole family has been together in years. Mourning the loss of his father and his marriage (having recently uncovered his wife’s affair), Judd, his mother and his siblings reluctantly sit shiva and spend seven days and nights under the same roof.