Play Book Tag discussion

Little Fires Everywhere by Celeste Ng - 2 stars - My Review

PBT Comments: I was on the library waiting this for a very long time, so I had high expectations. I realize lots of people love this one, but it definitely is not my personal taste. Content warning for: (view spoiler)[abandoning an infant shortly after birth, abortion, child abduction, arson, underage sex. (hide spoiler)]

A two-family drama set in Cleveland, Ohio. Elena and Paul Richardson are a married couple with four children, one year apart, living in a wealthy suburban planned community. They own another property, occupied by Mia Warren. She is a single mother of Pearl. She takes multiple jobs to supplement her income from sales of her art. Pearl becomes friends with the Richardson siblings. The majority of the plot is set in the mid-1990s, when the kids are in high school. The story opens with a house on fire, and the plot goes backward and forward in time to provide the backstories of the characters and the reasons for the fire.

Positives: It is nicely written. I felt engaged enough to finish it even though I did not care much for the plot (see drawbacks). I enjoyed the artistic sections about photography and other creative projects. The audio book is brilliantly performed by Jennifer Lim (5 stars for the audio).

Drawbacks: The plot is too outlandish for me, especially one particular plotline in Mia’s background (which I will not mention since it would be a spoiler). Much of the narrative is spent on teenage melodrama. There are many unrealistic episodes. Suffice it to say I rolled my eyes a number of times.

The narrative attempts to address socially relevant issues – teenage pregnancy, adoption, abortion, child abandonment, surrogacy, and overprotection. Unfortunately, the treatment of these issues leaves something to be desired. I realize I am in the minority, but this book just did not work well for me. I much preferred and recommend Everything I Never Told You.

Joy, I felt similarly about the book. I did not care for it either and thought it was unrealistic in many ways. This was the first review I ever wrote for GR, at the time when the book was widely acclaimed and praised.

Holly R W wrote: "Joy, I felt similarly about the book. I did not care for it either and thought it was unrealistic in many ways. This was the first review I ever wrote for GR, at the time when the book was widely a..."
Well, it's always nice to have company, especially when there are so many rave reviews. (view spoiler)[The entire storyline of Mia getting impregnated with a turkey baster was ludicrous, IMO. (hide spoiler)]

This book yo yo'ed so crazily for me. The reviews were never three's. It was on and off my TBR so often, that I considered it the ultimate yo yo! I thought to myself I would never like a book this split. But you know what? I loved it! Surprised myself. Ended up reading with Jason and like 10 others from PBT during the 10 year PBT anniversary challenge.

I didn't like it at all the first time I read it, but I was persuaded to reread it with my local bookclub. I appreciated it more after our discussion.

I think the author tried too hard to make us like Mia (despite the things she's done), and dislike Elena, who was nearly always referred to as Mrs. Richardson. That made it harder for us to connect with her, and easier for us to blame her for what her daughter did. I enjoy Ng's writing otherwise, but I feel like her books are a throwback to times when mothers were blamed for everything that went wrong with their kids. Especially mothers with careers. Or maybe mothers are still blamed. idk.

Amy wrote: "This book yo yo'ed so crazily for me. The reviews were never three's. It was on and off my TBR so often, that I considered it the ultimate yo yo! I thought to myself I would never like a book this ..."
Glad you loved it, Amy. You have lots of company.

NancyJ wrote: "I didn't like it at all the first time I read it, but I was persuaded to reread it with my local bookclub. I appreciated it more after our discussion. ..."

Nancy, I am glad you liked it more the second time. I find I sometimes like a book more just from seeing how others respond to it. They often open my eyes to another way of interpreting events.

My take on it is that the author had a perspective and was trying to "convince" the reader to agree. (view spoiler)[...that children belong with birth parents no matter what (hide spoiler)] I tend not to like books that feel like they are telling me what to feel or think. I can see how others would enjoy it more than I did if they do not feel that pressure.

I also did not buy (view spoiler)[ that the daughter would light all those fires while not making sure there was no one home. I know she was supposed to have "mother issues" but even she would not, surely, have wanted to destroy her mother. (hide spoiler)]

I do wonder about books that blame the mother. I think most mothers are just trying to do the best they can in the circumstances they are in. These two mothers seemed to be almost polar opposites - one seemed too "good" and the other too "evil."

Now that I am writing all this, perhaps it should be 1 star. I really did not like this book, lol.

Joy D wrote: "NancyJ wrote: "I didn't like it at all the first time I read it, but I was persuaded to reread it with my local bookclub. I appreciated it more after our discussion. ..."

Nancy, I am glad you like..."

Yes, I think she also wanted to make a point that (view spoiler)[ babies should not be raised by people from other cultural backgrounds, not matter how rich they are. I definitely understand that perspective, but I think the other dramas weakened that point. (hide spoiler)]

I agree about the polar opposites, though other reviews show that some readers hated Mia more than Elena. I'll be curious to see how the movie handles this good v evil mother issue. It's easy for movies to make rich people the villains. The movie cast a black actress (rather than an Asian actress) in the role of Mia. I wonder if they'll portray Elena as rich and privileged, or as someone who is privileged simply because she's white.

I doubt I will watch the movie based on how little I liked the book, but if you see it I would be interested in hearing about it.

I do agree that (view spoiler)[the author is trying to make a point about babies being raised outside their cultural background; however, I have seen instances where this has worked very well, with special effort to ensure it happens. I also do not believe every infant is better off with birth parents, especially in situations of abuse or neglect. (hide spoiler)]

Oh wow, I had a way different experience with this than you did!
But I find that so much better conversation comes out of book discussions when readers don't agree!

I did not interpret this as Ng trying to convince readers that (view spoiler)[babies need to be with their birth mother, or be in their own culture (hide spoiler)] but forcing us to ask that question of ourselves and what we believe. I think the reader's reaction to it is a projection of their own belief. I didn't come away from the book with a definitive answer on where I was. I sympathized with both sides at the end.

There is definitely some classism at play in this story as well. McCullough's (view spoiler)[automatically assume they are better for the baby not only because the mom abandoned her but because they are affluent. And that is certainly Elena's take as well. Losing Isaiah is a good movie that addresses this as well. (hide spoiler)]

I found the classism of Elena and The McCullough's irksome, but there was a pivotal moment where Ng really humanizes Mrs. McCullough (I forget her name) by (view spoiler)[showing how traumatic it was for her in the past trying to conceive and having multiple miscarriages. I could finally understand why she wanted this baby so bad and I wanted her to be a mother. (hide spoiler)] That was really sad and made her actions more relatable. And turned me on where I was with the issue.

On the other hand, I started out really liking Mia but when more is revealed was rather shocked and disappointed. My like of her didn't make me feel any more in support of her actions.

Elena was pretty overall unlikable for me. She was a snob, which I hate, and the more she meddled in Mia's lifestyle the more unlikable she was. Overly concerned for the sake of decorum. I felt like there was less for the reader on Elena to justify why she was overly obsessed with decorum and outward appearances.

It appreciate your perspective, Meli.

Now that you remind me of Mrs. McCullough - I thought that was the multiple miscarriage situation is very well done. I would have liked the book more if this had been the main thrust of the narrative, (view spoiler)[ along with the possible adoption of a child of a different culture. (hide spoiler)]

Regarding Elena, I feel she was supposed to be the villain of the piece. She certainly went to extremes to find dirt on Mia (view spoiler)[ although a legal office would not have disclosed info about a client to a random phone caller. (hide spoiler)] I think she was a snob solely because she is wealthy, and used to getting what she wants, but you are right, there was not much exploration of the reasons (other than wealth - which does not automatically make someone a snob, obviously).

As an intentionally childless woman, I started out really struggling to relate to Mrs. McCullough so when I felt such pain for her it kinda caught me off guard. I love Ng for that.

Have you read Everything I Never Told You?
I would recommend that one as well even thought you didn't like this one. But, definitely doesn't need to be pushed up your tbr.

I loved loved loved this book and the mini series

Meli wrote: "As an intentionally childless woman, I started out really struggling to relate to Mrs. McCullough so when I felt such pain for her it kinda caught me off guard. I love Ng for that.

Have you read ..."

Yes, I very much enjoyed Everything I Never Told You and it is part of the reason I picked this one up. I like her style overall, just had a few content issues. I never rule out an author based on not liking one specific book.

Sallys wrote: "I loved loved loved this book and the mini series"

So glad to hear it Sallys. I was not aware of the mini series. Does it follow the storyline of the novel closely?

I am sorry that you didn't enjoy this. I rated this 4 stars but I agree with parts of your review.

I did feel like I was being told how I should feel. I also feel the story was told to me, not that I was watching it unfold. I like to see the characters make decisions, not told what decision they made when it comes to literary fiction. If that makes sense.

That said, I also agree with Meli. I came away from the story not clear on what I thought was "right". This is something that has effected me personally from the parent perspective and the mental struggle if taking a child away from their parents a net positive or net negative. I loved the subject matter and the way Ng presented both sides.

Also (view spoiler)[the turkey baster or like instrument, seems to be a popular home method. (hide spoiler)]

Yes, I totally get what you mean. I got a much less "literary" feel from this book than her first. I do think it is a good topic to explore and there are no easy answers.

I wish it had not gone so deep into the teenage drama. Regarding your spoiler, (view spoiler)[it was more than just using a turkey baster. I did not buy that a wealthy couple would just walk up to a complete stranger (an 18 year old at that) and ask her to have their baby - just very unlikely. There were fertility clinics even back then, and an entire process to select a surrogate. (hide spoiler)]