Little Fires Everywhere By Celeste Ng - Restarting July 31st 2020

[Abi]

In Shaker Heights, a placid, progressive suburb of Cleveland, everything is planned - from the layout of the winding roads, to the colors of the houses, to the successful lives its residents will go on to lead. And no one embodies this spirit more than Elena Richardson, whose guiding principle is playing by the rules.
Enter Mia Warren - an enigmatic artist and single mother - who arrives in this idyllic bubble with her teenaged daughter Pearl, and rents a house from the Richardsons. Soon Mia and Pearl become more than tenants: all four Richardson children are drawn to the mother-daughter pair. But Mia carries with her a mysterious past and a disregard for the status quo that threatens to upend this carefully ordered community.
When old family friends of the Richardsons attempt to adopt a Chinese-American baby, a custody battle erupts that dramatically divides the town--and puts Mia and Elena on opposing sides. Suspicious of Mia and her motives, Elena is determined to uncover the secrets in Mia's past. But her obsession will come at unexpected and devastating costs.

[Dannii]

Excited for this one. I've heard such good things and both editions are beautiful!

[Geri]

I've got the book, but haven't read it yet. So I'll definitely join!

[Dannii]

Geri wrote: "I've got the book, but haven't read it yet. So I'll definitely join!"

Yay. It sounds amazing!

[Geri]

I’ve got some free time. So I’ll start this early.

Little Fires Ch 1-7

(view spoiler)[ Book starts off running. House on fire. Set by Izzy.

Something will happen between Mia and Mrs. Richardson. Since they made a big point that Mrs. Richardson made sure to get a perfect tenant this time.

Both families very different. Interesting seeing this through the Richardson’s son, Moody.

I see possible problems with Pearl’s crush on Moody’s brother, Tripp.

Very naive of Lexi to not think race matters.

Pearl’s father’s identity is certainly mysterious.

Lessened learned hopefully about Lexi and Tripp, after the Halloween party.


Her family says Izzy is a troublemaker. But I definitely like the way she stands up for what she believes in. (hide spoiler)]

[Penny]

Oh! I'm starting this today or tomorrow so I'll join.

[Geri]

Little Fires Ch 8-13

(view spoiler)[ mysterious how nobody wants to talk about Mia being in the gallery photo.

Everyone is taking sides about who should have the baby.

Tripp is actually a better guy than I first thought. But the secret of their relationship will come out!

I wonder if Lexi using Pearl’s name will have repercussions.

Mia was a surrogate! It was a bit bizarre how the husband approached her. (hide spoiler)]

[Dannii]

Penny wrote: "Oh! I'm starting this today or tomorrow so I'll join."

Yay!

[Geri]

Oh, I really liked this book! I’ll be back for the official start to the discussion.

Little Fires Ch 14-End

(view spoiler)[ Sad Mia was unable to go to her brother’s funeral.

So Mia lied to the Ryan’s about the baby and said she miscarried.

Good discussion and debate about whether a White family can or should raise a Chinese baby.

Knew Moody would find out about Pearl and Tripp.

I knew there would be repercussions to Lexi using Pearl’s name. But I did not see Mrs. Richardson kicking Mia and Pearl out.

I wasn’t sure Mia would tell Pearl the truth. But I am glad she did!

I really liked this book. It was so much more than a book about whether a White family should raise a Chinese baby. It had a lot to say about race, privilege, what makes a family, wanted and unwanted children, and standing up for your beliefs. (hide spoiler)]

[Dannii]

1/4: (view spoiler)[I read nothing about this plot, before beginning this, so everything is a pleasant surprise. The structured and restrained community is an intriguing background. I can already sense the chaos that is about to descend on the organised lives of those who reside there. (hide spoiler)]

[Dannii]

2/4: (view spoiler)[There are so many topics this plot is managing to cover. Especially given its relatively short size.

Mia and Pearl's mysteries are going to be interesting to unearth. I love the splash of colour and vibrancy they are providing to the neatly packaged lives of their new community's inhabitants.

This novel has a habit of being very free with its chronology and character perspective, but it really works in this context. The flashbacks are adding context and the viewpoints are providing unreliable, incorrect, and immature insights. This is interesting for the reader to sort through and read around, to get to the truth and substance of the narrative. (hide spoiler)]

[Dannii]

3/4: (view spoiler)[This is taking me a little longer to get through than other books of its length, but it because I am enjoying absorbing all the stories from these interconnected lives. I adore each perspective equally but now, after reliving her past, I think Mia and her passion for photography might hold my heart a little more than the others. (hide spoiler)]

[Geri]

Dannii I knew the storyline from the beginning. But I liked that(view spoiler)[ it was about more than whether a Chinese baby should be raised by a White family. To me, the book also tackled the issues of race, privilege, wanted and unwanted children, what it means to be a family and standing up for what you believe in. The book made me think. (hide spoiler)]

[Penny]

Chapter 1-13 (view spoiler)[ I'm not sure about this book, I find the characters a bit flat, so far Moody is my favorite.

It so sad what Mrs Richardson and Izzy's relationship has come to be.

Mia was a surrogate, Was that Pearl? Did she steal the baby? :O, at the very least it's kidnapping. Ealier in the book she mentions that a baby should always be with their mother plus the picture, I'm concern. (hide spoiler)]

Geri (view spoiler)[The husband was so wierd,
It was creeping me out. (hide spoiler)]

[Dannii]

Geri wrote: "I’ve got some free time. So I’ll start this early.

Little Fires Ch 1-7

Book starts off running. House on fire. Set by Izzy.

Something will happen between Mia and Mrs. Richardson. Since they mad..."

I immediately loves Izzy, too!

[Dannii]

Geri wrote: "Dannii I knew the storyline from the beginning. But I liked that[spoilers removed]"

I completely agree. This was about so much more than it initially appeared and I loeved how it confronted so many topics and issues.

[Karen]

Ch1. Definitely sets us up for something intriguing. Raises lots of questions about the characters and their relationships.

[Sarah Elizabeth]

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Date changed. Restarting February 23rd 2019. Happy Reading ☺

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[✨Skye✨]

Up to chapter 5 (view spoiler)[ It's not the easiest writing style to get through, but I am intrigued. I can definitely see a love triangle forming, and I'm curious as to why Pearl and Mia had to leave, and how Izzy was involved. (hide spoiler)]

[✨Skye✨]

Up to chapter 10 (view spoiler)[ I am liking this, but it's very slow paced. I like the writing and the characters. It would be so easy to hate Mrs Richardson, but Ng still gives her complex motivations for the way she treats Izzy. Nothing is simple in this. (hide spoiler)]

[✨Skye✨]

Up to chapter 15 (view spoiler)[ I was actually so invested in the chapter exploring more of Mia's story! I almost want a whole book just on that. I don't like that this almost seems to be showing surrogacy in a negative light-I feel for the Ryans, I do also feel for Mia. I think Mia showed how amazing she is with how she looked after Lexie. (hide spoiler)]

[✨Skye✨]

Done (view spoiler)[ What a perfect but unsatisfying ending. I think there was more to Trip and even Lexie, and I don't believe they never would have encountered Pearl again. I understand why it ended the way it did, but it is a little frustrating. (hide spoiler)]

[Maddie]

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Date changed. Restarting September 16th 2019. Happy Reading ☺

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[Saar The Book owl]

Starting somewhere this evening :)

[Saar The Book owl]

I'm somewhere in chapter 2 and the overall felling for now is that not everything is how it seems. There's a lot of mystery around the Richardson family, but also about the former tenants.

[Saar The Book owl]

I'm somewhere chapter 6 and it goes slower then I thought of.
Some thoughts:
(view spoiler)[The story starts strong: there's a house on fire, but everyone is safe.
There's mystery about Izy. We don't know a lot of her. Only that there could be maybe something wrong with her.
Then we have Mia and Pearl. Are there running away from something/someone and Pearl doesn't know that? It seems strange to travel in name of art and take your child to so many weird places.
And then there's Lexie: that comment about Pearl's father was so unapropriate. She wants to change Pearl in someone she's not and she falls for that.
Now reading about the party and to me the writing now, it seems a bit shallow. (hide spoiler)]

[Katie]

Chapter 7- (view spoiler)[ After reading Where the Crawdads Sing, I realized that I like when a book starts in present tense, but then goes back in time and tells the story that leads up to present time. So when this book started in the same format, I got pretty excited!!! I have a feeling there will be some unexpected twists of what really happened, and I'm enjoying getting to know the characters so far. They are just getting to the party now! (hide spoiler)]

[Saar The Book owl]

Chapter 6 until 9:
(view spoiler)[It's weird how Pearl wants to become like Lexie. Lexie is shallow and I thought that Pearl was smarter than that. It's like Pearl and Izzy were born in the wrong family and they got switched at birth. Maybe Izzy finds in Mia the mother she always wanted. I can understand Elena on being so fussy about Izzy. Now I understand more why she's being like that with her youngest: thinking there's something off with her, all because she was born to early. I wonder why Mia doesn't want to talk about that picture and does it has something to do with the fact that there are no baby pictures at all of Pearl? I mean, if you're a photographer, you should have pictures of your own child? (hide spoiler)]

[Saar The Book owl]

Katie wrote: "Chapter 7- [spoilers removed]"
I need to read that one too, but I like that too. As long that it isn't to confusing. (view spoiler)[I think this story will slowly build up to a climax, with some less interesting parts in it. (hide spoiler)]

[Saar The Book owl]

I was wondering about what (view spoiler)[the mystery is of Pauline Hawthorne and why Anita Rees wouldn't talk anymore. Could Pauline 've been Mia's mother? Then that would explain the picture: a mother and now grandmother taking a picture of her daughter and grandchild. Maybe Mia was forced to give up Pearl as a young mom, but didn't, that's maybe why she reacted so strong about Bebe's story? (hide spoiler)]

[Katie]

Chapter 9- (view spoiler)[ I'm curious about the photograph and why nobody wants to answer questions about it!! I also like learning about Izzy...Things probably aren't what they seem with all the characters. Pearl wanting to fit in so much is a little slow of a read, but I understand why she wants friends so bad, but right now I'm more intrigued by Mia and Izzy. (hide spoiler)]

[Saar The Book owl]

Katie wrote: "Chapter 9- [spoilers removed]"
I share your thoughts on this one: they characters seems flat, but that's just a cover, I think.

Chapter 9 until chapter 13:
I don't know what it is: sometimes I get carried away with the book, but then it slumps again.
(view spoiler)[I wonder what Elena wil find out with Mia's parents. I think she has no business in sticking her nose into the family history. It feels like it's a payback for what Mia did, but I think that Mia did a good thing on telling Bebe where her child is. I wonder if Lexie will go through with the abortion. I have the feeling that everything is coming to a climax. Now I begin to understand the meaning of the title: everywhere are 'little fires starting', little events that trigger other things. (hide spoiler)]

[Saar The Book owl]

Chapter 14 until 16:
(view spoiler)[It was interesting reading Mia's story, but I wonder what the reason was in keeping Pearl. It seems that Warren's death had a big impact on her and she decided out of guilt and to keep Pearl in honor of him. Also, it was sad that Mia's parents didn't support her art school. She found in Pauline and Mal surrogate parents that supported her. As for leaving, I didn't think she thought it through, but acted on an impulse. I was suprised that she supported Lexie in her abortion. Mia can give someone the feeling that whatever choice you make, she supports it, but it's you who has to live with this choice. I wonder on what will happen to baby Chow and if Mrs. Richardson would reveal what she knows about Mia. (hide spoiler)]

[Katie]

@Saar - I like your thought about the title!! (view spoiler)[ That little fires are all creeping up everywhere and things are starting to ramp up... (hide spoiler)] I didn’t think of that before.

[Katie]

Chapter 14- (view spoiler)[ I really enjoyed this last chapter and hearing about Mia’s history. I had no idea that the book would go in this direction.... it almost seems so long ago that the book started with a house on fire. I wasn’t expecting this, but I like it, but there are parts that seem very slow. I think this could bring up some interesting conversations in a book club about adoption, abortion, and surrogacy. And whether or not a birth mom can change her mind about giving up her baby... (hide spoiler)]

[Saar The Book owl]

Katie wrote: "@Saar - I like your thought about the title!! [spoilers removed] I don’t think of that before."

I think that was the underlying thought of it, but also you can relate it to what Mia said to Izzy. (view spoiler)[But Izzy took that a bit literally. (hide spoiler)]

Chapter 16 untill the end:
(view spoiler)[As I expected, the story build really slow up to a bit of a climax. I didn't like mrs. Richardson at all: she did this because she wanted to follow her own rules, not asking on why this all had happened and I also found her manipulative. It does make you think on how people interact with each other, on how they think. The story about baby Chow felt like a side story, but it didn't bother me. One thing I wanted more was the story about Woody and Pearl: would she have told him that she didn't get an abortion? And the end was a bit fast: I liked the thinking about the underlying motive for the pictures for each family member. In the end mrs. Richardson pushed Izzy away in being so worried about her, since she was a baby. It felt like Izzy was a shadow in that family. She was there, but no one saw her. And for that reason it was a good choice that she took off. This story told us more about race, interactions, ethics... (hide spoiler)]

[Katie]

Finished- (view spoiler)[ I really enjoyed this book! I had no idea what this book was about when I went into it, but this is a book about motherhood and the different ways a family can become a family. I wasn't expecting there to be so many side plots in this book...In fact, I wouldn't even really consider them side plots at all. There were so many different MAIN stories going on, and I'm not sure how I feel about it...It felt like I was reading so many different short stories that just happened to take place in the same neighborhood... Every character had a main story going on, and all the characters seemed to have equal time in the book. It was a bit weird, but kind of satisfying in the end. There weren't really too many surprises with the characters in this book. They were pretty much in character or stayed the same throughout the entire book. I think the reason I'm confused is because the plot about the American family wanting to adopt a Chinese baby was probably the main part of the book, and it didn't come into play until around page 130, but I wanted to know more about Izzy and Mia. So, I don't know...Overall, I really liked it, and I enjoyed the ending. (hide spoiler)]

[Saar The Book owl]

Katie wrote: "Finished- [spoilers removed]"

I follow you on that:
(view spoiler)[I thought that the story of baby Chow was a side story, but in the end, that was wat all the other stories were about. In one way or another they were all connected to that or had something to do with it. It felt sometimes as being in a labyrinth, because you want to connect the different stories together, but yoou can't ifnd the way how. (hide spoiler)]

[Sarah Elizabeth]

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Date changed. Restarting January 18th 2020. Happy Reading ☺

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[Dannii]

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Date changed. Restarting March 20th 2020. Happy Reading ☺

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[Krystal]

I am soooo behind. Starting this today!

[Dannii]

Krystal wrote: "I am soooo behind. Starting this today!"

I'm crazy behind too but hoping to start this one tomorrow

[Krystal]

Dannii wrote: "Krystal wrote: "I am soooo behind. Starting this today!"

I'm crazy behind too but hoping to start this one tomorrow"

I just haven't been motivated to read. Something I love so much has been taken away with what's been going on. But I feel it coming back so I'm definitely catching up.

[Krystal]

Since this is restarting April 4th, I will join that one. I haven't read but a few pages so I'll restart it then!

[Dannii]

Hope you are doing okay, Krystal! I've not started this one yet either so will jump into next month with you :)

[Krystal]

Dannii wrote: "Hope you are doing okay, Krystal! I've not started this one yet either so will jump into next month with you :)"

I am, hope you are as well! And yay! Glad to be able to read it with you.

[Natalia]

2%
So when I was younger, I was often scared of falling asleep because I was thinking too much about what would happen if there was a fire while I'm asleep and I wouldn't have enough time to react. And now I'm thinking if that was a good idea to start this book before going to bed...

[Krystal]

Fire and suffocation are my fears! I’m definitely paranoid of fires. (view spoiler)[ the fact someone put all those fires on the beds... shivers. (hide spoiler)]

[Deidra]

Dying in a fire because I slept through it is a real fear I have, so this had me thinking some dark thoughts. (view spoiler)[I'm glad no one was in those beds where the fires were set! (hide spoiler)]

[Pragya]

Till chapter 4
(view spoiler)[ It's horrifying that the person who burned the house went to even room to light little fires everywhere.
(hide spoiler)]