kelly_e's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.75
Author: Celeste Ng
Genre: Dystopian
Rating: 3.75
Pub Date: October 4, 2022
T H R E E • W O R D S
Contemplative • Forceful • Moving
📖 S Y N O P S I S
Twelve-year-old Bird Gardner lives a quiet existence with his loving but broken father, a former linguist who now shelves books in Harvard University's library. Bird knows to not ask too many questions, stand out too much, or stray too far. For a decade, their lives have been governed by laws written to preserve "American culture" in the wake of years of economic instability and violence. To keep the peace and restore prosperity, the authorities are now allowed to relocate children of dissidents, especially those of Asian origin, and libraries have been forced to remove books seen as unpatriotic-including the work of Bird's mother, Margaret, a Chinese American poet who left the family when he was nine years old.
Bird has grown up disavowing his mother and her poems; he doesn't know her work or what happened to her, and he knows he shouldn't wonder. But when he receives a mysterious letter containing only a cryptic drawing, he is drawn into a quest to find her. His journey will take him back to the many folktales she poured into his head as a child, through the ranks of an underground network of librarians, into the lives of the children who have been taken, and finally to New York City, where a new act of defiance may be the beginning of much-needed change.
💭 T H O U G H T S
I had been hesitating on picking up Our Missing Hearts since it's release last fall, mostly because dystopian novels aren't ones I typically gravitate towards. And while, I don't regret reading it, it is certainly my least favourite of Celeste Ng's books.
I must start off by saying, as always, Celeste's writing is absolutely beautiful! It's complex, layered and deeply evocative. And while, this book tackles a lot - including themes of family and sacrifice, as well as library resistance, racially motivated injustice, and the removal of children as a means of political powers - this dystopian novel tis an ode to motherhood.
When it comes to the characters, I'd have liked significantly more character development. Each of the characters felt very one dimensional, verging on young adult. Additionally, I didn't necessarily connect with the mother at all, even though I found her sacrifice to be selfless. I did have a soft spot for Bird as he'd gone through so much at such a young age.
When it comes to style, one of my biggest pet peeves is when no quotation marks are used, which was the case here. I know this is a stylistic tool used by authors, but it's just one I cannot get behind as I find it disrupts the flow of my reading. For this reason, I had to switch to mainly the audio (where you don't notice this fact), and the audio is very well done.
At the end of the day, Our Missing Hearts verged on being a little too political for me at this point in time. It is a beautiful reflection on motherhood, and a book to spark discussion and shift perspectives. Overall, the premise was certainly intriguing, but the execution was lacking. And yet, I'll continue to read everything Celeste Ng writes simply because her writing is a gift.
📚 R E C O M M E N D • T O
• readers who enjoy stories of motherhood
• Celeste Ng fans
• bookclubs
🔖 F A V O U R I T E • Q U O T E S
"If we fear something, it is all the more imperative we study it thoroughly."
"Who ever thinks, recalling the face of the one they loved who is gone: yes, I looked at you enough, I loved you enough, we had enough time, any of this was enough?"
Graphic: Xenophobia, Bullying, Violence, Police brutality, Racial slurs, Racism, and Hate crime
Moderate: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Abandonment, Classism, Child abuse, and Kidnapping
Minor: Death, Death of parent, Grief, and Sexual assault
bambooboy's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
4.75
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Classism, Racism, Grief, Xenophobia, Animal death, Hate crime, Violence, and Kidnapping
Moderate: Police brutality, Abandonment, Sexual assault, and Racial slurs
dionnesims's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
2.5
Graphic: Classism, Kidnapping, Racism, Abandonment, Sexual assault, Xenophobia, and Hate crime
whatwentsent's review
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.5
Graphic: Kidnapping, Racial slurs, Gore, Death of parent, Police brutality, Racism, Xenophobia, Deportation, Physical abuse, Hate crime, Injury/injury detail, Child abuse, Classism, Violence, Death, Rape, and Forced institutionalization
vedpears's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
This should be considered an instant classic and to me is on par with 1984 and Animal Farm. Cautionary tales warning us all of the potential consequences if politics and media, and thus culture, continues on a certain trajectory.
It is incredible how many parts of Ng's book became reality while she was writing it. So many moments in this book have clear parallels in reality now, unfortunately. I hope we can turn American culture around and stop accepting the blind hate being paraded as patriotism.
I do have a favorite quote from this book - ""...unity required a common enemy. One box in which to collect all their anger. One strawman to wear the hats of everything they feared." This has been a worry of mine for a long time. Growing up here, it seemed really obvious to me that Americans need an enemy outside of us to focus on in order to come together and see one another as neighbors, or else we turn on each other. That is how our nation was born, so I suppose it makes sense that it is really hard for us to break away from that and learn healthier relationship skills, as a nation.
I feel this should be required reading.
Celeste Ng has solidified herself as my favorite modern day author.
Graphic: Trafficking, Xenophobia, Violence, Gaslighting, Grief, Hate crime, Racism, Racial slurs, Abandonment, Kidnapping, and Pregnancy
Moderate: Police brutality, Injury/injury detail, Death, Stalking, Bullying, Classism, and Forced institutionalization
Minor: Confinement, Gun violence, and Sexual assault
kshertz's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.5
Moderate: Abandonment, Child abuse, Violence, Classism, Death, Deportation, Grief, Racism, Racial slurs, Xenophobia, Bullying, Emotional abuse, Gaslighting, and Sexual assault
kimveach's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Graphic: Death of parent, Fire/Fire injury, Medical trauma, Blood, Death, Grief, Hate crime, Kidnapping, Suicidal thoughts, Violence, Injury/injury detail, Murder, Racial slurs, Racism, Sexual assault, Abandonment, Police brutality, Bullying, and Classism
sarasreading's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
I didn't connect as strongly to the characters in this one, and for a dystopian book, it's very slow and quiet. But I also couldn't put it down.
I think the visuals this book created in my head, cats on postcards, quiet dusty places, warm backyards in summertime with a loving mother, will linger for a good long while.
Graphic: Racism, Abandonment, Classism, and Racial slurs
Moderate: Sexual assault
There's not a specific warning for this, but a big theme is state sponsored kidnapping/child relocation.internationalreads's review
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Graphic: Racial slurs, Sexual assault, War, Xenophobia, Abandonment, Classism, Death of parent, Hate crime, Kidnapping, Child abuse, Death, Grief, Injury/injury detail, Medical content, Murder, Physical abuse, Police brutality, Racism, Sexual violence, Violence, and Trafficking
laurenkimoto's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
4.5
Why did you have to emotionally destroy me?
Regards,
A distraught reader
Only complaint is the lack of quotation marks but in this book I can understand stylistically why it was done
Graphic: Police brutality, Hate crime, Racial slurs, Racism, and Xenophobia
Moderate: Classism, Cultural appropriation, Antisemitism, Bullying, Gaslighting, Murder, Cursing, Death, Religious bigotry, Sexual assault, Trafficking, War, Blood, Confinement, Deportation, Forced institutionalization, Colonisation, and Gun violence