Little fires everywhere

The teens were very engaging but the book slowed down for me whenever it spent time on the Truly Aggravating Adults. The depiction of perfect suburban Shaker Heights seems like a fantastic caricature, so I was surprised to read in the author interview at the end that she grew up there, which is maybe why the younger characters are more interesting. There are broad themes on motherhood and the difficult issues similar to the David E. Kelley episodes, but frankly the adults are dull with weekend trips into self-centeredness, The 90210 angst of the kids seems more real and their characters, even the supposedly shallow ones, stand out.

It's hard to describe what this book is about. At the beginning you're dropped in dramatically, a family mansion is burning down, and we don't know what happened. But in flashbacks, we learn. It's a family drama story about a poor single mom, Mia, and her teenage daughter, living as tenants of the wealthy Richardson family in 'perfect' suburbia. But Mia has secrets from her past, and she soon clashes with Elena Richardson. It's predominantly a book about women. About growing up as a woman, motherhood, tough stuff like abortion, and the mean things women do to each other. Male characters play side-roles, but this book is really not about them. The writing is quite excellent, once it grabs you, there's no letting go. I enjoyed myself quite a bit.

Ng does it again! I LOVED Everything I Never Told You because of the writing style, and this is no different. I feel like she stepped up her game as well. This story is not just about one family, but about a different set of families whose lives are intertwined, sometimes literally and sometimes thematically. One thing I love about her books is that she always manages to make me empathize with everyone in the story. She treats very complex issues with a lot of respect and nuance. There are no bad guys in her novels, simply people making choices, which sometimes might be questionable, but as a reader you always understand where they come from. This woman is a genius.