Reviews

Little Fires Everywhere by Celeste Ng

erkane's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious reflective medium-paced

• 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

3.0

jaclyncrupi's review against another edition

5.0

I loved so many things about this brilliant novel but what I loved most is how perfectly plotted it is. A truly stunning follow-up to Everything I Never Told You. Read it!

hazeyjane_2's review against another edition

hopeful inspiring sad slow-paced

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

3.0

anpan's review against another edition

5.0

“All her life, she had learned that passion, like fire, was a dangerous thing. It so easily went out of control. It scaled walls and jumped over trenches. Sparks leapt like fleas and spread as rapidly; a breeze could carry embers for miles. better to control that spark and pass it carefully from one generation to the next, like an Olympics torch. Or, perhaps, to tend it carefully like an eternal flame: a reminder of light and goodness that would never could never - set anything ablaze. Carefully controlled. Domesticated. Happy in captivity. The key, she thought, was to avoid conflagration. (189)


such an incredible read, delving into the subjects of motherhood (what makes someone a mother?) and racism (white generosity/white saviour complex, power differences, white people who "don't see/look past race"). it focuses on characters w/ a colour-blind mindset that they use to justify their words and actions, or lack thereof. The inherent problem with not "seeing race" is that it ignores longstanding problems and history, as well as ignoring important aspects of a person’s identity.

i appreciate how the book didn’t reach definitive conclusions and really let the reader reflect and try to understand which side of the line they stood on. also loved ng's final message of kindling those tiny, passing flames/sparks into a bigger fire.

“In the future we’ll all be able to look past race.” (178)

“To pretend that this baby is just a baby - to pretend like there’s no race issue here - is disingenuous” (178)

“It was like training yourself to live on the smell of an apple alone, when what you really wanted was to devour it all, to sink your teeth into it and consume it, seeds, core, and all.” (294)

“A lifetime of practical and comfortable considerations settled atop the spark inside her like a thick, heavy blanket.” (188)

“For her it was simple: Bebe Chow had been a poor mother; Linda McCullough had been a good one. One had followed the rules, and one had not. But the problem with rules, he reflected, was that they implied a right way and wrong way to do things. When, in fact, most of the times there were simply ways, none of them quite wrong or right, and nothing to tell you for sure which side of the line you stood on."

tsumommy's review against another edition

4.0

3.5 rounded up to 4 because Izzy got away from her family.

lilbanne's review against another edition

5.0

Before watching the mini-series, I read Celeste Ng's Little Fires Everywhere. While I enjoyed the show, and the cast is perfect, I loved the book much more! The narrative and plot are perfectly paced. The characters are textured and relatable. There are surprises in the book, but don't expect a mystery or suspense type of novel, but it is real-life surprises that come up and kick you in the butt.

What a setting! It takes place in a suburb of Cleveland called Shaker Heights, which gives us Pleasantville vibes. The community is pristine, with white picket fences and properly manicured lawns.

The story is ultimately about motherhood from different perspectives. Elena Richardson is a local Shaker Heights resident whose parenting is overbearing. Elena is uptight, watches everything she does, and cares about how she and her family come off. Mia is an artist who strolls into town one day to rent a house from Elena for her and her daughter. Mia is attracted to Shaker Heights because her daughter is brilliant and wants to provide a stable environment with a good education system for her. These two mothers could not be more different.

Additionally, a subplot of the book has to do with a birth mother who initially leaves her baby on the doorstep of the fire station because she cannot care for her newborn child. A couple who have been eagerly trying to start a family for a long time, with no success, warmly welcome a baby into their lives, only to have the birth mother come looking for her daughter a year later—an emotionally complex plot to delve into.

The book is full of many rich characters that I want to learn more about, so I was glad to have had the opportunity to watch the mini series after reading the book. Although it explores the same material, it felt like a bonus to the book!

Activating material: infertility

mvaughnrn's review against another edition

dark tense fast-paced

4.0

ms_jo's review against another edition

4.0

I can see why this was picked up the way it was! Absolutely gripping read, I got through it far faster than anticipated! Lots of different characters and sub plots woven together so... neatly... it never feels convoluted or disjointed. It manages to be full of twists and turns and intrigue but at the same time seem to flow so naturally and appropriately. Neat but never so neat that it crosses to dull.

careycarpenter's review against another edition

4.0

A good story about life and relationships and honesty. Daughter Pearl and her artist mother Mia lead a nomadic life but think they are finally ready to settle down in a perfect seeming town in Ohio. They meet the Richardson family and the story unfolds revealing that things in a white picket fenced-house aren’t always what it seems to Mrs. Richardson, whom has her head in the perfect fluffy white clouds. I liked the characters, all varied and well written for the story. The author did a good job leaving future gold nuggets along the story telling way to help drive the story forward and make the reader feel like they want to find out why those gold nuggets happened.

aannabananaa's review against another edition

challenging emotional reflective tense medium-paced

• 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

4.5