rabbithole5 's review for:

The Book of Form and Emptiness by Ruth Ozeki

5.0

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The Book of Form and Emptiness is by one of my favorite authors, Ruth Ozeki. This book follows a mom and her son following the death of the father figure in the family. In his absence, his wife Anabelle becomes a hoarder and his son Benny develops schizophrenia. This is a long and touching story about community and about materialism. Ruth is a buddhist and uses this book to highlight how material items in our world have form but are very empty. Anabelle is consumed by collecting things because of their meaning to her. Benny hears items talk to him and consumes their emotions. This book is aimed at adults but I think would also be more than okay for a young adult audience. Content warnings for self harm, animal cruelty, and suicidal ideation. Ruth herself suffered a loss at a young age which led her to hear voices and be hospitalized. Ruth also worked with the Icarus Project when writing this book to have legit representation for the hearing voices community. As someone with a similar diagnosis, and who was raised by someone with a hoarding addiction, I found this book highly relatable. Like most Ozeki books it also led me to cry and think deeply about life.