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themoonwholistens 's review for:
Little Fires Everywhere
by Celeste Ng
My emotions are tired from the rollercoasters :>
— overall thoughts: 4.25 —
⇢ content warnings//
What I loved the most about this book was how it explored the different kinds of mother-daughter relationships through the plot (there were like at least 4-5 different mother-daughter pairs that I could write an essay breaking it down). I wish I could word this better but it showed, the different ways that a mother expresses her love, what she would do for her children, what she wants for her children, etc. It was so emotional and raw... getting to understand what these people have been through and then seeing how their children perceive it, while also living their lives with them... I am speechless.
I really thought the plot was just going to be about this baby that came into the town but it really dives into the histories of each of these characters and puts you into their headspaces.
The ethical discussions (THAT I LOVE), mother-daughter relationships, complex characters, slow build-up, the realities we have to face, weird plot/writing format that actually worked with the story… amazing.
It also ended on such a perfect place (for me!) because this felt like a story that exceeded the pages because the plot just went so far back and it felt to me that it's a story that could keep going on.
... but I also just had to pause my audiobook and say to myself (regarding how the plots closed): Celeste Ng really chose to do that.
The character developments make me want to cry because I want all character developments everywhere to evolve in this way huhu
It is definitely a character driven book that if we consider the pacing of the main plot, I would describe it as slow. BUT this is because the way the story is written is sort of backwards as it introduces most of the characters at the present time before going back into a very detailed history of how they got to where they are in this very posh neighborhood.
morally grey characters(?) + great writing. need i say more? especially in mrs. richardson and miya (at some point)… actually in all of them. It’s complicated.... but I was there. I was living for it. I need more of these in my books.
+ they all had such interesting backgrounds and mindspaces that I didn’t care that the timeline was jumpy as you do learn about the characters in detail. But in no way was it confusing and was just filled to the brim with substance that I could not put it down.
If you were wondering about the age range I would say this is a perfect New Adult read as it follows both adult and teen aged characters which really puts the differences (and similarities) in perspective. Speaking of the teens in this story, I enjoyed all their dramas more than I normally would because I was just invested in all of their families already. They also added a bit of lightheartedness to everything that was going on. Just the fact that Celeste Ng executed that so well was amazing.
In terms of that case with the baby: all the perspectives on the case were so well-written and substantial that I really had no idea whose side I was supposed to be on. But I understood where they were all coming from. And I think that was the point. There was no exact wrong or right way because someone will always end up getting hurt. That maybe we just had to love and understand one another. It's very broad I know... but the book does a lot better job explaining what that means.
What didn't I like?
Uhm... I loved it but it isn't a book that I would think so hard about and made me stare blankly at a wall pondering about my life. There really isn't anything that I found disagreeable with the book itself but it's more of in the way I received it, personally. It also just had a lot of hype to live up to hehe
Nevertheless, still a perfectly well-balanced story and I would seriously recommend this to all those looking for a perfect new adult read that will make you.... emote.
start your little fires everywhere people <3
I finally broke my contemporary curse but I think it's time for me to binge some fantasy again.
SIMILAR VIBES: [b:The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo|32620332|The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo|Taylor Jenkins Reid|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1498169036l/32620332._SY75_.jpg|46885151]
TRIGGER WARNINGS: child pregnancy
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“What made someone a mother? Was it biology alone, or was it love?”
— overall thoughts: 4.25 —
⇢ content warnings//
Spoiler
Abortion, Alcohol (mentioned), Alcoholism (mentioned), Animal abuse (mentioned), Arson, Bombs (mentioned), Bullying by authority figure, Car crash, Cigarettes (mentioned), Death, Domestic abuse (mentioned), Drugs, Earthquake (mentioned), Hospital scenes, Infertility, Kidnapping, Miscarriage, National socialism (mentioned), Pee, Periods (mentioned), Postpartale depression (mentioned), Poverty, Pregnancy, Psychiatry (mentioned), Racism, Rape (mentioned), Sexism, Sexual content, Spiders (mentioned), Stalking, Stripping (mentioned), Victim blaming (about the negative consequences of an abortion), War (mentioned)What I loved the most about this book was how it explored the different kinds of mother-daughter relationships through the plot (there were like at least 4-5 different mother-daughter pairs that I could write an essay breaking it down). I wish I could word this better but it showed, the different ways that a mother expresses her love, what she would do for her children, what she wants for her children, etc. It was so emotional and raw... getting to understand what these people have been through and then seeing how their children perceive it, while also living their lives with them... I am speechless.
I really thought the plot was just going to be about this baby that came into the town but it really dives into the histories of each of these characters and puts you into their headspaces.
The ethical discussions (THAT I LOVE), mother-daughter relationships, complex characters, slow build-up, the realities we have to face, weird plot/writing format that actually worked with the story… amazing.
It also ended on such a perfect place (for me!) because this felt like a story that exceeded the pages because the plot just went so far back and it felt to me that it's a story that could keep going on.
... but I also just had to pause my audiobook and say to myself (regarding how the plots closed): Celeste Ng really chose to do that.
“She was supposed to be an adult. When childish indulges were to be set aside, not dived into head first,”
The character developments make me want to cry because I want all character developments everywhere to evolve in this way huhu
It is definitely a character driven book that if we consider the pacing of the main plot, I would describe it as slow. BUT this is because the way the story is written is sort of backwards as it introduces most of the characters at the present time before going back into a very detailed history of how they got to where they are in this very posh neighborhood.
morally grey characters(?) + great writing. need i say more? especially in mrs. richardson and miya (at some point)… actually in all of them. It’s complicated.... but I was there. I was living for it. I need more of these in my books.
+ they all had such interesting backgrounds and mindspaces that I didn’t care that the timeline was jumpy as you do learn about the characters in detail. But in no way was it confusing and was just filled to the brim with substance that I could not put it down.
If you were wondering about the age range I would say this is a perfect New Adult read as it follows both adult and teen aged characters which really puts the differences (and similarities) in perspective. Speaking of the teens in this story, I enjoyed all their dramas more than I normally would because I was just invested in all of their families already. They also added a bit of lightheartedness to everything that was going on. Just the fact that Celeste Ng executed that so well was amazing.
"The problem with rules is that they implied a right way and a wrong way to do things. When in fact, most of the time, they were simply ways.
None of them quite wrong or right,”
In terms of that case with the baby: all the perspectives on the case were so well-written and substantial that I really had no idea whose side I was supposed to be on. But I understood where they were all coming from. And I think that was the point. There was no exact wrong or right way because someone will always end up getting hurt. That maybe we just had to love and understand one another. It's very broad I know... but the book does a lot better job explaining what that means.
What didn't I like?
Uhm... I loved it but it isn't a book that I would think so hard about and made me stare blankly at a wall pondering about my life. There really isn't anything that I found disagreeable with the book itself but it's more of in the way I received it, personally. It also just had a lot of hype to live up to hehe
Nevertheless, still a perfectly well-balanced story and I would seriously recommend this to all those looking for a perfect new adult read that will make you.... emote.
start your little fires everywhere people <3
I finally broke my contemporary curse but I think it's time for me to binge some fantasy again.
SIMILAR VIBES: [b:The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo|32620332|The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo|Taylor Jenkins Reid|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1498169036l/32620332._SY75_.jpg|46885151]
TRIGGER WARNINGS: child pregnancy
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