Reviews tagging 'Death of parent'

Our Missing Hearts by Celeste Ng

33 reviews

bookedbymadeline's review against another edition

emotional hopeful reflective sad slow-paced

• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes

4.5

Immediately pulled in! I loved Ng’s two other books and she’s definitely an auto buy author now.

I did have to get used to the lack of quotation marks. I also found that  the chapters could be a little long for my personal taste, but sometimes the story held my focus that they went by quickly. The story itself is Heartbreaking and inspiring! I loved the complex characters and getting to know them throughout the novel. I also loved Ng’s prose as always; there were plenty of lines I was struck by, reread, and wanted to highlight (but couldn’t because I read a library copy)!

Although the events of the book are fiction, there were a lot of parallels to what we have seen both in the past and the present. I highly recommend Our Missing Hearts if you enjoy dystopian novels, literary prose, and/or complex characters! 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Racism, Hate crime, and Xenophobia

Moderate: Abandonment, Police brutality, Violence, Child death, Death of parent, and Grief

yuyine's review against another edition

emotional inspiring sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes

5.0

Formidable roman sur le racisme, les dérives autoritaires actuelles et la beauté du militantisme pacifique, Nos cœurs disparus est également un magnifique récit d’amour filial. Entre volonté pour lutter pour ses valeurs et nécessité de protéger les siens, le récit de Margaret est une histoire bouleversante qui porte en creux la volonté d’un monde plus juste, réenchanté par les histoires. Coup de cœur.

Critique complète sur yuyine.be (https://yuyine.be/review/book/nos-coeurs-disparus)!

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal cruelty, Racism, and Murder

Moderate: Death of parent

karmapen's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional inspiring sad tense 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? It's complicated

4.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual assault, Police brutality, Kidnapping, Xenophobia, Racism, Animal cruelty, Abandonment, Racial slurs, Hate crime, and Death of parent

maggiejean's review against another edition

adventurous challenging reflective slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Racism, Pregnancy, and Hate crime

Moderate: Classism

Minor: Death of parent

clalaure's review against another edition

dark emotional tense medium-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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Hate crime, Grief, Racial slurs, Racism, Xenophobia, Police brutality, and Kidnapping

Moderate: Death of parent and Sexual assault

alisonvh's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional inspiring sad medium-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

4.0

My favorite book by Celeste Ng so far.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Murder, Racial slurs, Xenophobia, Death of parent, Death, and Racism

amberjackonski's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional hopeful reflective sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Violence and Racism

Moderate: Hate crime and Death of parent

Minor: Animal cruelty

brdietz08's review against another edition

emotional sad slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Confinement, Death of parent, Hate crime, Racism, Abandonment, Grief, and Racial slurs

kappafrog's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious sad tense 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

3.5

How eerie reading this in between seeing headlines about book bans in Florida. This was a compelling dystopian novel. I agree with other reviewers that the second half struggled at times compared to the first half.

The conceit of Margaret narrating her whole life to Bird didn't always work when she was going into intimate details which were great for the reader but made less sense as dialogue with her son. I was also disappointed in the lack of information about the aftermath of Margaret's plan. We got a few flashforward glimpses but no information on the political fallout.

The writing was really beautiful. I liked seeing the world through Bird's eyes, a child's perspective in a novel aimed at adults. I enjoyed the use of folktales, etymology, and gardening through out. There were many horrifying bits in the book. I can tell it will stay with me for a long time.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Pregnancy, Racial slurs, Racism, Xenophobia, Animal cruelty, Blood, Hate crime, Injury/Injury detail, Kidnapping, Animal death, Classism, Death, Death of parent, Grief, Murder, Physical abuse, Police brutality, Violence, and Abandonment

Moderate: Bullying, Forced institutionalization, Genocide, Trafficking, Fire/Fire injury, Gun violence, Child abuse, Child death, Colonisation, Cursing, and Deportation

Minor: Alcohol, Chronic illness, Medical content, Rape, Sexual content, Panic attacks/disorders, Pedophilia, Sexual violence, Islamophobia, and Slavery

theblushbookworm's review against another edition

emotional reflective medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.5

Wow this book really struck me. I grew up on dystopian novels, and Ng pulls all the best parts of the genre to give a message on Asian American hate, children being taken as a means of control, and the dangers of bystander culture. This novel is powerful, well-written, and a worthy read for anyone.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Grief, Racism, and Xenophobia

Moderate: Bullying, Death of parent, and Racial slurs