ajohnston13's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
Content Warnings
Minor: Miscarriage, Infertility, Abortion, Sexual content, Kidnapping, Fire/Fire injury, and Pregnancy
katsusho_'s review against another edition
challenging
emotional
reflective
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
- This was quite a rollercoaster. I enjoyed the plot, and liked how the end was carried out. However, I was quite tense the entire time, and think that the start was slow. Or maybe that was simply my anticipation on how it was carried out.
I really liked the themes of this novel. About motherhood, culture and righteousness.
Regarding the characters:
The author was really talented in making me, the reader, feel for these characters, whether it be anger or pity. Because at one moment I could feel entirely for the family, and another moment I could not careless about them, and actively wish them ill.
"She had never seen an adult cry like that, with such an animal sound. Recklessly. As if there were nothing more to be lost. For years afterward, she would sometimes wake in the night, heart thumping, thinking she'd heard that agonized cry again."
"'Is she--dying?" Izzy whispered. It was a ridiculous question, but in that moment she was honestly terrified this might be true. If a soul could leave a body, she thought, this is the sound it would make: like the screech of a nail being pulled from old wood.'
Those are by far my favourite quotes from this novel.
And let me go off on a silly little rant, starting off with the custody fight, defending the McCulloughs first:
Objectively speaking, having adopted an abandoned child in the streets means you have entire rights to them. If you give up a baby, you should have to commit to that decision, because that decision is not to be unmade. You shouldn't have to give up that child just because the birth mother wants them back, regardless of how desperate they are.
Now, for Bebe's argument:
It's ignorant how the parents are. Just because Bebe does not have a large house for the child does not mean she loves May Ling any less. Money should not be the qualifier for the love someone has for their child. Of course, it would be better for a child to live with a family with stable income, but now that Bebe has that, shouldn't she have the opportunity to have back her child. The parents don't recognise the privilege they have, inheriting land from generational inheritance, being safe from debt. And do they know how much Bebe loves her child? And how hard Bebe had tried? And in a last ditch attempt to keep her child safe, that she gave her child up for better opportunities? Although her child meant everything to her?
Also, I have grown irritated over the McCullough's insistance that race is not part of the matter during the trial, and believing that we should all be race-blind. When adopting a child of different culture, it is important to take in consideration of their roots and how they are supposed to implement it into their daily lives. I'm sure they might be trying hard, making the child try out Chinese food and placing traditional mural art on the walls. But "later when she's older" does not seem like a good defence when asked about how they planned to go about other heritage issues. Why later? Why not now?
Now as we get that out of the way, I want to start on Izzy, because I love Izzy. She is outcasted by her own family, because what? She does not follow through with the set of rules her self-righteous and strict mom asks of her? She isn't like the rest of her siblings, going out to parties and being social when she wants to sit her room and practise her violin? Before Mia's advice to go further beyond, all she was was a moody teenager that simply keeps to her and it a bit reckless at times. But everyone wants to act like she's a crazy lunatic that's about to rebel at any second simply because her mother treats her like a ticking time bomb. Izzy is passionate and kind, that's what she is. When she defended the girl in violin, it was an act of heroism, nothing of villainy like her mother would speak of. And even through her last act: "little fires everywhere", it came from a place of kindness, where she saw herself serving punishment to those who've mistreated Mia and Pearl and have taken advantage of their kindness. Izzy had a deeper connection to them than the rest of the Richardson family could hope for.
I really liked the themes of this novel. About motherhood, culture and righteousness.
Regarding the characters:
The author was really talented in making me, the reader, feel for these characters, whether it be anger or pity. Because at one moment I could feel entirely for the family, and another moment I could not careless about them, and actively wish them ill.
Spoiler
"She had never seen an adult cry like that, with such an animal sound. Recklessly. As if there were nothing more to be lost. For years afterward, she would sometimes wake in the night, heart thumping, thinking she'd heard that agonized cry again."
"'Is she--dying?" Izzy whispered. It was a ridiculous question, but in that moment she was honestly terrified this might be true. If a soul could leave a body, she thought, this is the sound it would make: like the screech of a nail being pulled from old wood.'
Those are by far my favourite quotes from this novel.
And let me go off on a silly little rant, starting off with the custody fight, defending the McCulloughs first:
Objectively speaking, having adopted an abandoned child in the streets means you have entire rights to them. If you give up a baby, you should have to commit to that decision, because that decision is not to be unmade. You shouldn't have to give up that child just because the birth mother wants them back, regardless of how desperate they are.
Now, for Bebe's argument:
It's ignorant how the parents are. Just because Bebe does not have a large house for the child does not mean she loves May Ling any less. Money should not be the qualifier for the love someone has for their child. Of course, it would be better for a child to live with a family with stable income, but now that Bebe has that, shouldn't she have the opportunity to have back her child. The parents don't recognise the privilege they have, inheriting land from generational inheritance, being safe from debt. And do they know how much Bebe loves her child? And how hard Bebe had tried? And in a last ditch attempt to keep her child safe, that she gave her child up for better opportunities? Although her child meant everything to her?
Also, I have grown irritated over the McCullough's insistance that race is not part of the matter during the trial, and believing that we should all be race-blind. When adopting a child of different culture, it is important to take in consideration of their roots and how they are supposed to implement it into their daily lives. I'm sure they might be trying hard, making the child try out Chinese food and placing traditional mural art on the walls. But "later when she's older" does not seem like a good defence when asked about how they planned to go about other heritage issues. Why later? Why not now?
Now as we get that out of the way, I want to start on Izzy, because I love Izzy. She is outcasted by her own family, because what? She does not follow through with the set of rules her self-righteous and strict mom asks of her? She isn't like the rest of her siblings, going out to parties and being social when she wants to sit her room and practise her violin? Before Mia's advice to go further beyond, all she was was a moody teenager that simply keeps to her and it a bit reckless at times. But everyone wants to act like she's a crazy lunatic that's about to rebel at any second simply because her mother treats her like a ticking time bomb. Izzy is passionate and kind, that's what she is. When she defended the girl in violin, it was an act of heroism, nothing of villainy like her mother would speak of. And even through her last act: "little fires everywhere", it came from a place of kindness, where she saw herself serving punishment to those who've mistreated Mia and Pearl and have taken advantage of their kindness. Izzy had a deeper connection to them than the rest of the Richardson family could hope for.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Abandonment, Miscarriage, Pregnancy, Grief, and Infertility
Moderate: Kidnapping
Minor: Classism
hkantola11's review against another edition
emotional
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Content Warnings
Moderate: Abortion, Cursing, Kidnapping, Miscarriage, and Infertility
themirrorball's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
the characters and beautiful writing were definitely the best part of this book. each character felt very real and raw, and ng’s writing portrays that in an amazing way. however it was hard for me to get super invested in any of the storylines because there were so many at once. this book touches on a lot of important topics, and i felt that it went too deep in less interesting/relevant ones and not deep enough in others. still a really good book though, a very enjoyable read and almost brought me to tears at one point.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Pregnancy, Abortion, Infertility, and Miscarriage
Moderate: Fire/Fire injury and Racism
Minor: Classism
kbpfaulkner's review
emotional
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
Content Warnings
Moderate: Abandonment, Kidnapping, Miscarriage, and Infertility
jfb0622's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Abandonment
Moderate: Abortion and Racism
Minor: Pregnancy and Miscarriage
taymallen's review against another edition
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
I enjoyed the themes of motherhood/class/race that plainly interacted in all the characters lives, whether they were aware or not. Felt like the fire didn’t tie into the story as much as I would have thought.
Content Warnings
Minor: Infertility, Abortion, Xenophobia, Fire/Fire injury, Miscarriage, Pregnancy, Racism, and Kidnapping
oatmilkie's review against another edition
emotional
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
- 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
3.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Abortion, Abandonment, Fire/Fire injury, Racism, and Pregnancy
Moderate: Vomit, Cultural appropriation, Medical content, Classism, Infertility, Grief, and Miscarriage
cassellwrites's review against another edition
emotional
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Abandonment, Miscarriage, and Abortion
Minor: Death
nicolesorial's review against another edition
3.5
Interesting, but it felt like Ng created a complex conflict and then couldn't really figure out a good way to solve it. The scattered focus on each character took a while to get used to, but ultimately worked in my opinion. The themes of motherhood interlaced in so many different ways throughout is what saved the book from its own ending, which was very dissatisfying.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Miscarriage, Abortion, Infertility, Cultural appropriation, and Abandonment
Minor: Cancer and Death