From the adored, bestselling, Pulitzer Prize-winning author: an unforgettable brother and sister learn to help each other navigate life's surprises, big and small.

Ben Sullivan wants to be left in peace. After his beloved wife's death, he is living alone for the first time in over thirty years. His two bossy older sisters have been trying to coax him past his grief but, weary of the intrusions, he simply stopped answering their calls.

Then, one morning, who should he find on his doorstep but his youngest sister, Cecily. The baby of the family, born when Ben was already away at college, they barely even know each other. But Cecily has broken up with her latest boyfriend and needs a place to stay. Chatty, forgetful, clumsy, and altogether too attached to frozen dinners, she proves hard to get rid of--not for Ben's lack of trying.

As Cecily makes herself at home, Ben is thrust back into a kind of family life he thought had passed him by. And when Cecily’s future takes an unexpected turn, he must step up in ways he didn't realize he was capable of.

The Return Trip Is Shorter is a joy to read—funny and sincere, compassionate and buoyant, delightfully Anne Tyler.