Thanks to Netgalley and Dialogue Books for my free digital ARC of Memory Piece! I thoroughly, thoroughly enjoyed this expansive novel which manages to fit so much into just over 300 pages. It has a really interesting structure. It moves from the 1980s to the near future 2040 and follows three Asian-American women who are trying to make their lives matter.

I thought it was interesting in that their stories are not told at the same time - or rather, we don't get a picture of their lives in the same time. Giselle's story is told mainly in the late 90s/early 00s, Jackie's starts around the same time and then (I think) into the 2010s. But then Ellen's section jumps far into 2040. The women weave through each other's lives at various points, so we do get a sense of where they're all at at each stage, but I just thought that was such a unique way of telling the story!

Judging from other reviews, it seems like people either prefer the first two narratives or Ellen's, in the nigh-on dystopian world where gentrification has made New York unrecognisable, with checkpoints to get from various neighbourhoods. I'm in the first camp. While Ellen's section was still good, it was Giselle's art journey and Jackie's experience with the dot.com that really had me gripped. I wouldn't go so far as to say Ellen's section felt like a different book... But almost. 

Covering everything from class, sexuality, gentrification, policing, environmental activism, tech, the gig economy and art, this is an ambitious novel to say the least. I think it had the potential to be longer and better for it. 

The writing is stunning as well. I haven't read The Leavers yet, but you can bet I'll be making it a priority for 2024!