The #1 New York Times bestseller!Now a Hulu original series starring Reese Witherspoon and Kerry Washington.“I read Little Fires Everywhere in a single, breathless sitting.” —Jodi Picoult“To say I love this book is an understatement. It’s a deep psychological mystery about the power of motherhood, the intensity of teenage love, and the danger of perfection. It moved me to tears.” —Reese … danger of perfection. It moved me to tears.” —Reese Witherspoon
“Extraordinary . . . books like Little Fires Everywhere don’t come along often.” —John Green
From the bestselling author of Everything I Never Told You, a riveting novel that traces the intertwined fates of the picture-perfect Richardson family and the enigmatic mother and daughter who upend their lives.
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.
Little Fires Everywhere explores the weight of secrets, the nature of art and identity, and the ferocious pull of motherhood—and the danger of believing that following the rules can avert disaster.
Named a Best Book of the Year by: People, The Washington Post, Bustle, Esquire, Southern Living, The Daily Beast, GQ, Entertainment Weekly, NPR, Amazon, Barnes & Noble, iBooks, Audible, Goodreads, Library Reads, Book of the Month, Paste, Kirkus Reviews, St. Louis Post-Dispatch, and many more…
Perfect for book clubs! Visit celesteng.com for discussion guides and more.
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I thinks it is very well written and the characters are very much independent individuals.
I was so disappointed in this book. The book’s setting is in Shaker Heights, Ohio, a wealthy suburb of Cleveland, where I grew up. I thought It would hold my interest, but not so. Reviews of this book are from one star to five stars, so it obviously a controversial read. Ng tries to develop her characters as distinct individuals and to a certain degree she does that; however the clashing of characters over the adoption of a Chinese baby left at a firehouse, becomes cumbersome reading. The time is 1997, and I can’t imagine that the “rich vs the middle class” perspective that she used were REALLY true to the times.
Just read it. It’s amazing. *drops microphone dramatically* BOOM
A beautiful and well-crafted story about 2 families and how they intertwine and blow apart. The characters are so finely drawn, and the story is compelling. You will live in this world as you read, and be happier for having had the experience!
Best book I’ve read in a while! The author knows her territory, and delivers a well written story about a ‘perfect?’ wealthy family. She has several important themes that are explored, but she’s never preachy. I can’t recommend it highly enough.
So many complex characters, some of which I could relate to and recognized
This is a well written, original and unpredictable story. The characters are well developed, have depth and some are likable, others not. Ng manages to have compassion for all the characters, seeing their flaws, but also their strengths. It grabbed my attention immediately, and kept my interest throughout. I highly recommend this book.
Mystery, domestic suspense and flowing prose combine in this memorial book for both teens and adults.
Author leaves you wanting to know everything about each character. Very involved families and children and adults keep you guessing. It is one of the books you don’t want to see end, When it does, you hope the author will write a squeal.
This book is outstanding. The characterization is interesting and compelling. It is a book in the Oliver Twist tradition of the story not really being about the main character but about all the people around her.
Rather strange setting in Shaker Heights Ohio. The main characters teenagers seem to have no substance. I think the author tried too hard to make a case for a disaffected younger family member as being too self absorbed.
The wonderful way in which the author writes about the main character’s art, made me want to see the finished product.
Highly recommend as there is something for everyone! One of my favorite reads of the year!
Good look at motherhood and the mother-daughter bond.
I listened to this book on Audible. I truly enjoyed the multitude of characters. I struggled initially because the point of view of the story could change from sentence to sentence, so you definitely have to pay close attention. But the author does an excellent job of weaving the lives of the people of Shaker Heights into an entangled web. Will definitely read other books by this author. 🙂
This book was a breath of fresh air . I enjoyed the structure of the novel and I could truly see the characters.
A story of family dynamics and dysfunction. Very poignant and sometimes disturbing. A page turner.
Great read with an unexpected twist.
The Richardsons’ house is burning down. It wasn’t an accident.
Wealthy (four cars in the drive), comfortable (doyenne of Shaker Heights) and happy (three and a half high-achieving children), Elena Richardson knows life is good. She’s generous and charitable and good with people. So why would her youngest daughter set their house on fire?
Celeste Ng takes on a ‘perfect’ society and peers around the façade. Shaker Heights, a small town outside Cleveland, Ohio, is a model community, where everyone toes the line. There are rules here and everyone obeys.
When Mia Warren and daughter Pearl blow into town to rent an apartment, Elena sees a chance to do some good. An itinerant artist with a young daughter – similar age to hers – why not help the woman out. After all, she likes to patronise the arts.
The families’ lives become increasingly intertwined to the extent they almost swap daughters, but there are other familial questions threatening to bust through the neat backyards. Whose child is the abandoned baby? The parents who adopted her and lavished her with love or the biological mother who wants her back? Whose is the child made with surrogate sperm? Who gets to choose whether or not to terminate a teenage pregnancy?
Ng weaves this omniscient perspective with huge skill, making the reader change sides almost every chapter. Her depiction of character is economical, wrong-footing assumptions and avoiding cliché. Finally, the fuses that lead to the fire are far more complex than the fire service or even Elena can understand.
Wholly absorbing and thoughtful, this book kept me thinking.
I read this book for a discussion group I will be attending in a few days. The Group is focused on what it means to live as a woman in today’s world. How do we grow and maintain our sense of self when the world is telling you that you don’t measure up. The book explores the orderly, regimented life in Shaker Heights, Ohio, and contrasts it with the life of an itinerant artist and her daughter who rent from one of the well-established families there, The Robinsons. Themes examined are the toils in coming of age, the self-involvement of being an artist, how we fool ourselves into thinking we can change each other, the actions and intimidation of the self satisfied and the excruciating divisions that can lead to violence. The characters are well developed for the most part. I wish that more emphasis had been placed on the daughter Lexie and her relationship with her mother.The mother is full of repressed dreams of her own which she manages to suppress by do-good-ism throughout her married life. But all that she thinks is right and good explodes in her face…she had not done good but has created the violence that extends to everyone she has touched.