Reviews with content warning for Racism - Happiness Falls

Reviews tagging 'Racism'

Happiness Falls by Angie Kim

47 reviews

serendipitysbooks's review against another edition

emotional informative mysterious reflective 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

Happiness Falls was one of my most anticipated books of the year and it did not disappoint.

Adam is the father of a Korean-American family. One day he doesn’t return home after an outing with his 14 year old son Eugene. Eugene is clearly very agitated and upset, but has autism and Angelman syndrome and is unable to communicate via speech or writing.

As a mystery I found it to be propulsive. The pacing was perfect with foreshadowing and unexpected surprises at the end of many chapters compelling me to read just one more.

But what I loved most was the depth of this novel particularly in terms of the characters. They were all distinct individuals, richly realised. Adam was not just a missing father but a stay-at-home Dad totally engrossed in the science of happiness and conducting experiments on his family members. Much of this was folded into the novel adding an extra layer to the story. Twenty year old Mia narrates the novel. She is also neurodivergent which adds a unique tone to the novel, one of almost detached logic. This won’t be to everyone’s taste but I found it effective.

I thought the character of Eugene and his disabilities were handled with nuance, care, and compassion. The ableism of his family was highlighted and the impact this had on him showcased in a very powerful way. His story was a salutary reminder that just because someone struggles to communicate it does not indicate that their intellect is impaired. I also respected Kim for acknowledging that raising a child with a disability can place extra pressure on a family and that sibling feelings may be complicated, none of which detracts from the love they feel for the person with the disability.

Lots of other threads to this novel as well including family and relationship issues, and the benefits and struggles of being bicultural. Kim’s writing kept me engaged throughout and I especially appreciated her use of footnotes as a vehicle for Mia to share just a little bit more. The use of charts added another textual element, something I tend to enjoy. There was lots of science and philosophy folded into the story. I was educated and entertained, made to think as well as feel which I loved.

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lilawsahar's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional informative mysterious reflective sad tense slow-paced

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

3.75

God I learned so much from this book. I am destroyed that Eugene lived for 14 years without being able to communicate because he doesn’t have fine motor skills and his disability enables him to speak. How did he wake up each day knowing that he was going to be treated like an idiot and he had to continue on? The realization that people live like this in real life is gut wrenching. And how I contributed to this idea. Not treating people with disabilities as equals. Makes me sick. Everyone needs to read this book. It blew me away with that insight alone.

I am also utterly sick that we will never know what happened to their dad. Did Eugene kill him? We will never know especially since she put the wrong passcode in the cell phone. I wouldn’t have done that. They don’t know who Eugene is because he wasn’t able to communicate with them. But Eugene knows them. That’s gut wrenching to me. What happened to him??

Tbh I think the happiness quotient part was unneeded in the story. That’s just my take.

He just wanted his daughter to have a good life. But the story isn’t able her. It’s able Eugene and him.

Also ACAB.

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liamliayaum's review against another edition

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adventurous emotional funny informative reflective medium-paced

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

4.5

Content Warnings

caseythereader's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional mysterious sad 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

3.75

Thanks to Hogarth Books for the free copy of this book.

- With HAPPINESS FALLS, Angie Kim once again gives us a page turner, this one a legal drama, missing person case and possible murder mystery all wrapped up together.
- I was so intrigued by Mia as the narrator of this story. She's bratty and bitter and thinks she knows everything (at first, at least). Her unique voice and the frequent detours to tell us important backstory made the book feel like a friend was relaying the story to the reader personally.
- There are some aspects of the book I wish were different - the pacing slowed way down in the second half, the footnotes felt mostly extraneous, etc. - but overall I was invested in the mystery.
- A through line of Kim's work is to make clear that disabled people are people, not childlike burdens to be pitied, which is sadly often rare in novels, especially mysteries and thrillers. I will be interested to see what disabled and neurodivergent readers have to say about this book, since I am neither of those things and neither is Kim, though she is the parent of a disabled child.

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