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rsagarin's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
emotional
informative
mysterious
reflective
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? No
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Ableism, Death of parent, and Death
Moderate: Kidnapping, Misogyny, Cancer, Bullying, Grief, Hate crime, Racism, Terminal illness, Toxic relationship, Violence, Infidelity, Medical content, Cursing, and Sexism
minniepauline's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
informative
mysterious
sad
tense
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
The story gets bogged down in all of Mia’s/the author’s research, musings and sidetracks.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Bullying, Death of parent, Forced institutionalization, and Racism
Moderate: Pandemic/Epidemic
Minor: Police brutality
mochiheart's review against another edition
inspiring
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
This book has a lot of interesting things to say about ableism and discrimination, but it unfortunately falls flat for me in two ways: 1) I don't find the narrator to be very likeable. Characters (and especially female characters) don't owe readers likeability, but since this story is already very heavy and emotionally taxing, I would have liked to be able to retreat into a narrator that wasn't so angsty; 2) The story was maybe ~75 pages too long. I feel that a good mystery will make you care more about the journey than the solution, but I found myself getting bored and just wanting to know that happened. Maybe if some parts had been pared down it wouldn't have felt like such a slog to get to the end. But overall it was an enjoyable enough book.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Death of parent
evoniere's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
reflective
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
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Forced institutionalization, Ableism, Chronic illness, Confinement, and Pandemic/Epidemic
Moderate: Grief, Death of parent, and Police brutality
Minor: Rape, Deportation, War, and Racism
jackiejackiejackiee's review against another edition
emotional
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
I saw this book on TikTok and I found the premise to be interesting. I think Angie Kim wrote a really cool book underscoring how little we really understand about communicating with one another, or rather how much stock we put into certain forms. I was a little dissatisfied with the ending, the whole book as an undertone of a thriller but ends in such a way that makes me a tad annoyed. Overall a really great read and I would recommend it to others, just not as a true thriller.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death of parent and Ableism
maddielle's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
informative
inspiring
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
fast-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
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death of parent, Grief, Pandemic/Epidemic, Ableism, Death, and Bullying
bhanson24's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Ableism and Death of parent
sassyykassie's review against another edition
challenging
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- 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
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death of parent, Racial slurs, Grief, Pandemic/Epidemic, Ableism, and Bullying
Minor: Cancer and Injury/Injury detail
bella_cavicchi's review against another edition
emotional
informative
reflective
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? Yes
4.0
I really enjoyed this. It took me a fair bit to settle into the narrative voice -- Mia sure does love a footnote -- but I came to love how her tangents and (sometimes contradictory) rambles mirror our thinking in everyday life. And Eugene! The sheer love and research that went into crafting his character is a true highlight.
In short: another Angie Kim winner. I'm pleased.
In short: another Angie Kim winner. I'm pleased.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Death of parent, Ableism, Grief, and Pandemic/Epidemic
Moderate: Murder, Racism, Suicide attempt, Infidelity, Medical content, Xenophobia, Bullying, Cancer, and Kidnapping
Minor: Violence, War, Rape, and Colonisation
isabellamarg's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
informative
inspiring
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
fast-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
It is 2020, COVID is rampant, and the father of the Korean-American Park family goes missing on a Tuesday morning. The family's lives are upended in the wake of their fathers disappearance, including Mia who initially dismissed her fathers disappearance, and Eugene her younger brother who returns from the park he and his dad frequented bloodied and alone, without his father.
Happiness Falls follows the ensuing investigation into the disappearance of Adam Parson and how the family and their secrets may have played a role in why he went missing. Eugene, the youngest son, is autistic and has Angelman syndrome which prevents him from being able to communicate verbally. This complicates the investigation as Eugene was the last person to see his father, and also makes the authorities suspicious of him as well as the Park family.
This book combined two of my favorite genres: mystery and family drama. There were plenty of shocking twists and the book posed many deep, philosophical questions about the assumptions we make about language, race, disabilities, immigrants, our family, and ourselves. I love that one of the reasons Angie Kim wrote this book was to highlight that "just because you can't speak doesn't mean you can't think or understand." Eugene and his disabilities play a large role in the treatment of the Park family throughout the investigation into the disappearance of their father. Eugene is labelled as "non-verbal" and the novel explores the implications of this title and how harmful it can be when thinking about how people express themselves and the limitations we place on others. This novel also focused on the aspect of happiness: what it means to be happy and how we can make ourselves and our family happier. As a family deeply affected by a child with a disability, how does this create guilt and resentment with the other siblings Mia and John as well as within their parents themselves?
Overall, I went into this novel expecting a really intriguing and dark mystery and I was not disappointed. I did not expect the novel to focus so much on the aspect of language and verbalization, but I thought it was unique and allowed me to learn more about different speech therapy methods and hopefully un-train any biases I have regarding oral fluency being equated with intelligence. Happiness Falls beautifully captured the complexity and love of a family that is still learning to communicate with each other.
Happiness Falls follows the ensuing investigation into the disappearance of Adam Parson and how the family and their secrets may have played a role in why he went missing. Eugene, the youngest son, is autistic and has Angelman syndrome which prevents him from being able to communicate verbally. This complicates the investigation as Eugene was the last person to see his father, and also makes the authorities suspicious of him as well as the Park family.
This book combined two of my favorite genres: mystery and family drama. There were plenty of shocking twists and the book posed many deep, philosophical questions about the assumptions we make about language, race, disabilities, immigrants, our family, and ourselves. I love that one of the reasons Angie Kim wrote this book was to highlight that "just because you can't speak doesn't mean you can't think or understand." Eugene and his disabilities play a large role in the treatment of the Park family throughout the investigation into the disappearance of their father. Eugene is labelled as "non-verbal" and the novel explores the implications of this title and how harmful it can be when thinking about how people express themselves and the limitations we place on others. This novel also focused on the aspect of happiness: what it means to be happy and how we can make ourselves and our family happier. As a family deeply affected by a child with a disability, how does this create guilt and resentment with the other siblings Mia and John as well as within their parents themselves?
Overall, I went into this novel expecting a really intriguing and dark mystery and I was not disappointed. I did not expect the novel to focus so much on the aspect of language and verbalization, but I thought it was unique and allowed me to learn more about different speech therapy methods and hopefully un-train any biases I have regarding oral fluency being equated with intelligence. Happiness Falls beautifully captured the complexity and love of a family that is still learning to communicate with each other.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Death of parent, Pandemic/Epidemic, Racism, Ableism, and Violence