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Little Fires Everywhere

Celeste Ng

Start date: May 1, 2018

Finish date: May 29, 2018

Discussion: Monthly Bonus Reads

Why we're reading this: May Bonus Read- Mother's Day

Little Fires Everywhere by Celeste Ng …more
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Little Fires Everywhere by Celeste Ng

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What Members Thought

Mar 08, 2018 Suzy rated it really liked it

Shelves: secrets, family-dynamics, coming-of-age

I finished this book a while ago and have had a hard time figuring out what to say. I will start with “it was a page-turner!”. I felt like I raced through the book, heart pounding, to find out what happened to everyone.

This is a story of families, especially mothers and children, maternity and parenting. It takes place in Shaker Heights, Ohio, a planned community. And not the modern-era gated community those words might conjure, but one that was built on a vision of the perfect community back i I finished this book a while ago and have had a hard time figuring out what to say. I will start with “it was a page-turner!”. I felt like I raced through the book, heart pounding, to find out what happened to everyone.

This is a story of families, especially mothers and children, maternity and parenting. It takes place in Shaker Heights, Ohio, a planned community. And not the modern-era gated community those words might conjure, but one that was built on a vision of the perfect community back in the early 1900’s.

This is also a story of a clash of beliefs about the right way to live. Mrs. Richardson lives with her four children and husband as have generations of her family who were original “settlers” in Shaker Heights. She has bought the white, upper middle-class way of Shaker Heights lock, stock and barrel. They live in the perfect house, she married the perfect man (a lawyer), she does everything to perfection, including in her career as a reporter for a community newspaper, and her children (mainly) reflect her values and dreams for them. At least that's how she sees things.

One of her most treasured principles is helping those in need. She owns a duplex rental property and decides to rent it to a single mom, Mia, and daughter, Pearl, who clearly need her help. Little does she know the chain of events that this decision will set off. Mia is an artist/photographer and she and Pearl have been on the move their entire lives, never staying anywhere more than a few months. They don’t have much but somehow make things work.

The lives of the Richardsons and Mia and Pearl become intertwined in wonderful and in devastating ways. Mrs. Richardson can’t believe how Mia and Pearl live and finds more ways to help, until the “help” doesn’t have the effect Mrs. Richardson wants. Therein lies the clash.

In the very first pages, we meet most everyone who populates this book as the Richardsons are standing by the curb watching their house burn to the ground. The story is then told from the beginning of what led up to this event. This device hooked me, but when all was said and done, I felt a little manipulated into racing through the book to find out what happened! I have to say that I loved this book while reading it, but in retrospect, it feels a little contrived. Hence the 4 instead of 5 stars.

I learned recently that Reese Witherspoon and Kerry Washington have plans to make this into a tv series. If done well like Big Little Lies, I’m on board! ...more

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May 17, 2018 Maya B rated it liked it

Shelves: 1st-time-reading-this-author

Finally sat down to read this after putting it off for months. I really felt like this story was too wordy. I needed less description and more narrative. Overall the story was interesting enough to get me excited for the mini series that was picked up by reese witherspoon and kerry washington.

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