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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Loved it. If you enjoy a linguistic puzzle, This is the book for you. Enjoy !
Such a great read!!
This is a great book! I really enjoyed seeing the character development and reading about the ethnic and class struggles.
Little Fires Everywhere was fascinating from the first page to the last. The setting of Shaker Heights, OH becomes it own haunting character. The contrast between these two very different women and their families will make for some lively book club discussions. Be sure to read the book before watching the show!
I’ve been surprised by the mixed reviews this book has drawn. I thought it was a great read, filled with nuanced characters who face life-changing decisions with no perfect solutions. The setting (Shaker Heights) and the characters (both old and young, rich and poor) are painted with such details that I felt I knew every one of them. I disagree with those who failed to see that the characters changed. Without giving spoilers, I think no one will ever be the same.
This book explores white privileged, family secrets, and cultural differences. The story centers around two women whose lives are intertwined due to their children, but who have clear differences in how they see the world. Elena Richardson is a well to do suburban white woman who wants to protect the perfect family to outsiders. Elena has 4 children, and is married to her college sweetheart who is a local lawyer. Mia Warren is a free spirited artists who moves into town with her daughter Pearl. Mia and Pearl never stay in one town long, but Mia promises Pearl this move to Shaker Heights will a permanent one. Mia rents a duplex unit from the Richardson’s, and Pearl becomes fast friends with the Richardson children. Elena asks Mia to be the Richardson family housekeeper, which Mia reluctantly agrees to. The whole town becomes in an uproar when Elena’s close friend Linda takes in an abandoned Asian baby, who she plans to adopt. Tensions erupt when the baby’s mother wants her back and a major custody battle ensures. Elena and Mia find themselves on opposite ends when it comes to their feelings and opinion about what should happen to the baby. As the story unfolds you see just how imperfect Elena’s family is, and how she will manipulate and use people to get what she feels is deserved of her and her friends.
A little slow getting started, BUT then did not want to put the book down. In one way or another all characters were intertwined and interesting. Very up to date-could take place and probably is today. Really enjoyed.
I was upset until the ending!!
Hmmm. I’m at a loss for this one. I did not really like or care for any of the characters. If I had to pick any character to like it would probably me Mia and Izzy. The characters in this book are just so wrong and self-absorbed that everything they did made me want to slap the hell out of all of them. The two suburban families were the worse and had some serious blinders on when it came to their way of life compared to those who were not like them. I thoroughly abhorred the way Mrs. Richardson looked down on Mia and Bebe. She was so nosy in the way she got pleasure into finding out people’s secrets and the way she tried to justify her snooping. This book was messed up all around and I still finished it. I almost gave up in the end. I can’t even explain my rating.
Great plot and characters. I chose this book to present at my book club and it was well received. I felt that it could have been set in my suburban community although not entirely. A thinking book.
It was hard for me to initially get into this book. I had to restart it about three times before I really understood what was happening and was able to think about and imagine the book in my own eyes.
What is motherhood? What is family?
First book I have read by Celeste Ng and it won’t be the last. Of course, trying to read a book during the holidays is hard, with so much going on, but I finally finished it. Heavy issue discussed in this book. What makes a mom a mom? Is it biology or something else? I highly recommend this book.
This novel is adept, didactic, and brilliantly written. Ng’s prowess is in her ability to tell a thoughtful, complicated story in prose that is as enjoyable and as artful as the plot. This is in my top ten reads of all time.
I wanted more depth to the mothers, but perhaps they were busy enough. This was a book club read and the story has stayed with me for a couple of years. The test of a lingering tale, for sure. It had surprises, twists and some disappointing times for the interesting mix of characters to manage – or not.
I loved this book. At points it was slow and at others I would finish 100+ page sprints in one sitting.
Izzie is one of my favorite characters. Period. I loved this book.
What I loved about this book is the unexpectedness of it. She does a beautiful job of letting the reader see things from multiple perspectives.
I loved Little Fires Everywhere by Celeste Ng.
The tale is set in a middle-class suburb where playing by the rules guarantees success until unconventional Mia and her daughter Pearl arrive and disturb the status quo. Each character is so finely and delicately drawn and their actions interlace so effortlessly that the plot is woven together like a spider spinning a web. It draws the reader pressingly and deftly to the only possible outcome.
Celeste Ng succeeded in doing what many writers do not–writing a sophomore novel that (in my opinion) surpassed her debut bestseller, Everything I Never Told You.
Ng employs multiple shifting viewpoints in Little Fires Everywhere, a technique that runs the risk of readers not ever feeling firmly rooted in one character’s perspective and losing that intimate connection. However, in Ng’s skillful hands, this technique allows us the opportunity to inhabit the skin of each of her characters and understand their flaws, limitations, and worldview, much better than any of the characters are able to understand each other. It’s an amazing experience!
What a beautiful novel! I highly recommend it! (On a side note, I loved how this novel was set in the 90s and all the pop culture references.)