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good_names_dont_exist's review against another edition
reflective
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Racism and Child death
Moderate: Suicide, Infidelity, and Racial slurs
katharina90's review against another edition
dark
emotional
sad
slow-paced
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
2.0
The characters are unlikeable with zero redeeming qualities, there's so much abuse and trauma being inflicted that was triggering for me, and in the end it feels like there's no real resolution and no accountability for what these people did to one another.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Infidelity, Sexism, Racism, and Child abuse
Moderate: Violence, Child death, and Racial slurs
Minor: Suicide and Homophobia
adriennegg's review against another edition
emotional
reflective
sad
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
4.0
Beautiful storytelling by Celeste Ng that takes you inside the world of each of the Lee family members as their story unfolds. Her writing included accurate depictions of racism, relationships, hidden desires, finding one’s place, love and self-loathing. I loved that the book shared each member’s perspective on the events that unfolded and allowed you to see the family’s unraveling from different views. It’s a great study on the pressures parents put on children and the sometimes unrealistic expectations we groom them to live up to. It’s tough to love due to the themes but hard not to in Ng’s portrayal of them. It’s a well-written piece that I’d recommend.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Child death, Death, Grief, Racial slurs, Racism, Sexism, Suicide, Bullying, and Infidelity
ada_elisabeth's review
dark
emotional
hopeful
reflective
sad
tense
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
5.0
Celeste Ng's Everything I Never Told You has been nominated for (and won) countless awards since its publication in 2014. I would like to honor it with my own personal award: the first piece of assigned reading to ever make me cry.
I'm not sure if I'm just in a really emotional mental state these days, but it seems like everything I read now makes me cry. At least that means that ✨sad book season✨ is turning out to be a smashing success. My tears over the final pages of this book can't be entirely chalked up by my incredibly emotional reading habits: Celeste Ng's writing is some of the most layered, tense, and deeply emotional I've ever read. Her control of language impressed me in Little Fires Everywhere, but it really shone here. Another thing Ng does incredibly well is control of plot: I feel as though a storyline as complex as the one featured in EINTY could very quickly spiral out of control, but it was perfectly executed here in a way that allowed it to spiral into a hurricane of chaos when the moment was right but still be reigned in later. I really appreciated the multiple perspectives and eras; they led to a complexly layered history that made the actions of characters feel real and the tension palpable. The final thing that made this book so special was the incredible character writing. Each character felt like a real person, especially Jack, Nath, and Hannah, and the deeply personal way in which Ng told each of their stories made it that much more heartbreaking. My only critique of the entire novel is Lydia: something about her five-year-old self just did not seem plausible to me. Everything else was perfect, but I had a difficult time believing that a five-year-old child who could barely read and hadn't yet started school would do the things Lydia did, but perhaps that is simply because I have never experienced what Lydia did.
We've had countless discussions about this book in English, and our refrain has come to be "everyone in this family needs therapy!" I could not agree more with my peers; the Lees need some serious help. The scene in chapter six wherein Lydia basically promises her life away to Marilyn is painful and jarring, the scene where James hits Nath is traumatizing, and nearly every scene involving Hannah made me want to cry. Lydia never got the therapy she so desperately needed, and I (and the rest of Honors English 10) urge the other members of the Lee family to seek help immediately.
I teared up twice while reading the final chapter; once for Hannah, and once for the whole situation. Hannah deserved so, so much better. Poor baby. She, unlike Nath, is young enough to build some sort of relationship with her parents, but the poor little thing is desperate for any scrap of love and it shows. I rarely wish that books would go on longer than they do, but I wish there was an epilogue in this where readers could see Hannah being happy. :(
I read the last five chapters of this book sitting outside in the backyard while the chickens ran around, which definitely set a mood, but I'm not sure if it was the mood. Oftentimes I find that I cry more to books when I'm in the right place, but I was tearing up over this even as the rooster crowed three feet away from me. The ending was painful in the best (and worst) way. I loved the openness the ending had while still maintaining a sense of closure. I loved the whole Nath/Jack resolution. I loved the James/Marilyn moment. I loved it all. It was perfect. 5/5 stars.
"They will think of her often... When, a long, long time later, [Nath] stares down at the silent blue marble of the earth and thinks of his sister, as he will at every important moment in his life. He doesn't know this yet, but he senses it deep down in his core. So much will happen, he thinks, that I would want to tell you."
I'm not sure if I'm just in a really emotional mental state these days, but it seems like everything I read now makes me cry. At least that means that ✨sad book season✨ is turning out to be a smashing success. My tears over the final pages of this book can't be entirely chalked up by my incredibly emotional reading habits: Celeste Ng's writing is some of the most layered, tense, and deeply emotional I've ever read. Her control of language impressed me in Little Fires Everywhere, but it really shone here. Another thing Ng does incredibly well is control of plot: I feel as though a storyline as complex as the one featured in EINTY could very quickly spiral out of control, but it was perfectly executed here in a way that allowed it to spiral into a hurricane of chaos when the moment was right but still be reigned in later. I really appreciated the multiple perspectives and eras; they led to a complexly layered history that made the actions of characters feel real and the tension palpable. The final thing that made this book so special was the incredible character writing. Each character felt like a real person, especially Jack, Nath, and Hannah, and the deeply personal way in which Ng told each of their stories made it that much more heartbreaking. My only critique of the entire novel is Lydia: something about her five-year-old self just did not seem plausible to me. Everything else was perfect, but I had a difficult time believing that a five-year-old child who could barely read and hadn't yet started school would do the things Lydia did, but perhaps that is simply because I have never experienced what Lydia did.
We've had countless discussions about this book in English, and our refrain has come to be "everyone in this family needs therapy!" I could not agree more with my peers; the Lees need some serious help. The scene in chapter six wherein Lydia basically promises her life away to Marilyn is painful and jarring, the scene where
I teared up twice while reading the final chapter; once for Hannah, and once for the whole situation. Hannah deserved so, so much better. Poor baby. She, unlike Nath, is young enough to build some sort of relationship with her parents, but the poor little thing is desperate for any scrap of love and it shows. I rarely wish that books would go on longer than they do, but I wish there was an epilogue in this where readers could see Hannah being happy. :(
I read the last five chapters of this book sitting outside in the backyard while the chickens ran around, which definitely set a mood, but I'm not sure if it was the mood. Oftentimes I find that I cry more to books when I'm in the right place, but I was tearing up over this even as the rooster crowed three feet away from me. The ending was painful in the best (and worst) way. I loved the openness the ending had while still maintaining a sense of closure. I loved the whole Nath/Jack resolution. I loved the James/Marilyn moment. I loved it all. It was perfect. 5/5 stars.
"They will think of her often... When, a long, long time later, [Nath] stares down at the silent blue marble of the earth and thinks of his sister, as he will at every important moment in his life. He doesn't know this yet, but he senses it deep down in his core. So much will happen, he thinks, that I would want to tell you."
Content Warnings
Moderate: Child death
Minor: Child abuse
heidipretzel's review against another edition
emotional
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- 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: Grief, Cultural appropriation, Abandonment, Death, Infidelity, Racial slurs, Racism, Child death, and Suicide
ks_'s review
emotional
reflective
sad
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? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Minor: Death and Child death
hannah1604xx's review
emotional
reflective
sad
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
3.75
Content Warnings
Moderate: Racial slurs, Child death, and Suicide
frey's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
inspiring
mysterious
reflective
sad
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
5.0
Absolutely devastating read, in the best way possible. Not the genre i usually read but by the quarter-way point i was unable to put it down for long. Even as a non-American it was such a beautiful read with beautifully believable characters. The way of telling the story was so well done and my heart hurt so much for Hannah the longer I read. Not to mention, finding out at the very end that Lydia didn't actually mean to kill herself broke my heart. The last chapter of the book was so beautifully sorrowful that it nearly broke me. The line from Nath's point of view at the very end of the book: "When, a long, long time later, he stares down at the silent blue marble of the earth and thinks of his sister, as he will at every important moment in his life." I still think about this line weeks later. Nothing encapsulates grief better I think in the book than this line. I will never get over it: "I will always think of you in the most important moments of my life" is grief in its most beautiful form.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Suicide, Racism, Sexism, Infidelity, Grief, and Child death
Moderate: Racial slurs and Pregnancy
Minor: Body horror, Sexual content, and Alcohol
elenats's review
challenging
emotional
sad
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
4.25
I loved “Little Fires Everywhere” and have been meaning to read more books by Celeste Ng for a while. Her writing style was very familiar from LFE and I enjoyed the way the story flashed back and forth in time.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child death and Racism
sloan_emmi92's review against another edition
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
Wow. This book was one of the most heartbreaking stories I’ve ever read. The way everything was portrayed made me feel like I understood perfectly, and the issues discussed and represented were put into perspective. I loved this story, and it’s so so sad but makes you reflect on life. This is so lighthearted read- that’s for sure. It would’ve been a 4 star, but just wasn’t QUITE there but such a great story. (I come back to the review and change someday- I haven’t decided yet:))
Content Warnings
Graphic: Grief, Abandonment, and Child death
Moderate: Racism, Suicide, Mental illness, Toxic relationship, Racial slurs, Medical content, Death of parent, and Panic attacks/disorders
Minor: Alcohol and Alcoholism