A review by amanda_reads13
Our Missing Hearts by Celeste Ng
challenging
emotional
sad
slow-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
3.0
Bird has never known a life without PACT (Preserving American Culture and Traditions Act). It is effects every part of his life. At 12, he lives with his white father, who works at the university's library. His mother, a Chinese American poet, disappeared 3 years ago. One day he receives a drawing from her in the mail. This drawing leads him to discover her whereabouts.
After reconnecting, Margaret shares her story with Bird and the reason why she had to leave. Margaret is faced with such a difficult choice, wanting to be with her son but also wanting to fight for all the stolen children. In the end she chose to fight for the children and sacrificed herself.
I am glad we eventually got Ethan's POV, because the whole time Bird was with his mom, I kept thinking about how frantic his father must have been.
This book dives into many social issues and there is a clear parallel between events in this book and many real world events.
-With PACT, anything deemed anti-american is destroyed (drawing a parallel to the Nazis)
-Children are removed from homes with parents who are deemed sympathizers or unamerican (ie. residential schools, migrants)
-Racism and prejudice of Chinese Americans (ie. Japanese during WW2)
-Margarets parents just wanting to blend with their white neighbours
-Riots, protests, police brutality
Though this book discussed some very pressing issues, it felt a little flat for me. The pacing was very slow and the characters felt a little one dimensional. I was hoping to be hit with this incredible dystopian world, but I never felt fully emersed into it. Everything felt very detached from our main character, all of these things were happening around him, but he was never really a part of anything, never really experiencing anything.
Spoiler
After reconnecting, Margaret shares her story with Bird and the reason why she had to leave. Margaret is faced with such a difficult choice, wanting to be with her son but also wanting to fight for all the stolen children. In the end she chose to fight for the children and sacrificed herself.
I am glad we eventually got Ethan's POV, because the whole time Bird was with his mom, I kept thinking about how frantic his father must have been.
This book dives into many social issues and there is a clear parallel between events in this book and many real world events.
-With PACT, anything deemed anti-american is destroyed (drawing a parallel to the Nazis)
-Children are removed from homes with parents who are deemed sympathizers or unamerican (ie. residential schools, migrants)
-Racism and prejudice of Chinese Americans (ie. Japanese during WW2)
-Margarets parents just wanting to blend with their white neighbours
-Riots, protests, police brutality
Though this book discussed some very pressing issues, it felt a little flat for me. The pacing was very slow and the characters felt a little one dimensional. I was hoping to be hit with this incredible dystopian world, but I never felt fully emersed into it. Everything felt very detached from our main character, all of these things were happening around him, but he was never really a part of anything, never really experiencing anything.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Abandonment, Grief, Gun violence, Police brutality, Racial slurs, Gaslighting, Hate crime, and Racism