Review: Happiness Falls (by Angie Kim)

My Rating:  3 stars

I have such mixed feelings about this book.  On the one hand, I really liked the story and absolutely appreciated the way Angie Kim brought much-needed insight to a condition that's so misunderstood.  Not only did I learn a lot from the story, it also made me deeply reflect on my own preconceptions and biases and most importantly, it changed my perception on how I approach things that I may not understand.  On the other hand, I really really really did NOT like the way the entire story was executed. 

The story actually starts off fine — the first couple pages, the first chapter even, drew me in and I was invested.  I had read Angie Kim's debut Miracle Creek (which I loved), so I anticipated there would be some "science-y" stuff in this book as well (which I'm usually not keen on, but if the science stuff is incorporated well and it doesn't feel overwhelming, I'm fine with it) — seeing how perfectly Kim had integrated science into that book, I was expecting the same here as well. Unfortunately, this would not be the case, as it turns out this book was written very very differently from her previous one.  The science stuff in here wasn't just overwhelming, it was way over the top in my opinion, to the point that it bogged the story down. But that was a minor problem overall — the biggest problem I actually  had with this book was the narrative voice.  

The entire story is narrated from the first person (sometimes switching to second person) point of view of twenty-year-old Mia Parkson, who is mixed race (half Korean, half white), but she looks more Asian than her fraternal twin John Parkson, whom most people mistake for a white person (I say this because race does play a role in the story). They have a younger brother, Eugene, who has both autism and the genetic condition Angelman syndrome, so he is not able to speak.  Their mother Hannah is a linguistics professor and their father Adam is a stay-at-home dad who takes care of the household. The incident that sets the story in motion occurs pretty early on, when Eugene returns home by himself, bloody and disheveled, while his dad Adam, who had taken him for their usual morning walk to the park, didn't accompany him back.  Soon, the police are involved and an investigation is launched to figure out what happened to Adam. 

Mia narrates the story and pretty much gives us (the readers) a "play-by-play" of everything that happens, from the moment Eugene returns home and throughout the entire investigation. This normally wouldn't be a problem — except that, in this case, Mia is an INCREDIBLY annoying character.  The book's summary refers to Mia as "irreverent" and "over analytical" which are both true, but the problem I had is that Mia goes beyond that — she is also cynical, arrogant, self-absorbed, a bit narcissistic, and, like her father notes at one point, has a "sarcastic attitude and general disregard for others' feelings" (which Mia agrees is a perfect assessment of her but still can't help hating everyone who describes her as such).  For me, the most annoying part about having Mia narrate the story is that she kept "getting in the way" — in addition to repeatedly jumping to conclusions and making assumptions about EVERY SINGLE THING (even though she keeps telling herself that she's "learned her lesson" and won't do it again), much of the story consisted of Mia constantly justifying and re-justifying her behavior / thoughts / actions. Whenever anyone would say anything or anything would happen, it would be quickly followed by at least a paragraph (sometimes multiple paragraphs) of Mia's analyses and assumptions — to the point where it felt like the story would veer off into "Mia's justification tangents" every other page.  For me, this was not just annoying, but also extremely frustrating — after awhile, I actually found myself yelling at Mia to just shut the hell up and stop interrupting the story every 5 seconds to talk about herself.

I honestly wish this story had been told in third person rather than first person, as I felt it would've been much more impactful and powerful.  From reading the Author's Note, it sounded like one of the purposes for Kim writing this story in the first place was to call attention to our assumptions and biases as a society, especially toward people with special needs — while some of that did come through in the story (case in point: Eugene's struggles with communicating led me to read up on Angelman syndrome and the teaching methods described in the book), unfortunately, for me at least, the frustration with Mia's narration overshadowed majority of the story and made it hard for me to focus much on anything else.

Like I said earlier, I loved Miracle Creek, so I was really looking forward to reading this one (which makes me a little sad that this book didn't quite work out for me).  One thing I've figured out about my reading habits lately (this year especially) is that I'm very much a "character-driven" reader — meaning that the voice in which a story is told is more important to me than I realize and can have a huge impact on my reading experience.  I say this because I've read quite a few books this past year where the story was told from the first person perspective of an "unlikable to the point of annoying" character and each time, I ended up getting so frustrated with the character that it essentially turned me off to the rest of the story (even in the cases where the writing was brilliant and everything else about the story was awesome).  It makes me realize that, for me as a reader, these types of annoying characters are only tolerable if I'm able to read about them with a layer of remove — when I'm forced to listen to them go on and on (and on and on and on) about their own flaws (especially when the character is unapologetic about those flaws and there are little to no redeeming qualities), it negatively impacts my reading experience.  

With all that said, if I were to look past the narration issues, there was actually a lot to like about the story (which is one reason why I struggled so much with rating this).  I loved the character of Eugene and felt the mystery aspect was well done…also, there were some really important societal issues that were explored in here that were thought-provoking and necessary — I'm pretty sure if this had been told in a different narrative voice, I would've really taken to the story overall, as it's the type of story that's usually right up my alley.  Of course, this is just me — there are a lot of readers who loved this one, so it's probably best to check out those reviews as well before deciding whether to pick this one up.  

Received ARC from Hogarth via NetGalley.

Review: Home Remedies (by Xuan Juliana Wang)

My Rating:  4 stars

 

I’m usually not a huge fan of short story collections, mainly because I don’t like the “incomplete” nature of short stories and the feeling I always get that I’m being left hanging.  One of the things I detest most when I’m reading is to get deep into a story and its characters, only to have it end abruptly, with no logical conclusion to speak of – the ones that annoy me the most are those that feel like the author stopped in the middle of a thought and the writing all of a sudden drops off (these are also the ones that always make me think I am missing pages somewhere and perhaps I got a defective copy of the book).  I guess you can say that I like my stories with a beginning, a middle section, and an ending, with characters that I can watch grow and develop over time and maybe even become invested in, which is hard to do with short stories where the reader is often only offered a snippet of a character’s story – what’s worse is that we are usually thrown in somewhere in the middle of the story, which means that it will likely take more effort to read and understand the nuances and significance behind each story.

Given the above, I was really surprised that I enjoyed Xuan Juliana Wang’s debut short story collection Home Remedies as much as I did.  This collection is billed as centering on the Chinese millennial experience and while I’m not a millennial, I found that I was still able to relate to some aspect of each story.  Separated into 3 sections entitled “Family,” “Love,” and “Time and Space,” the 12 stories in this collection covered universally relatable themes, yet still managed to hone in perfectly on the cultural aspects of what it means to be Chinese in today’s society.  As a Chinese-American who has lived in the U.S. practically my entire life, I found the stories about the difficulties of Chinese immigrant youth having to straddle two worlds and never being fully accepted into either one especially relatable, as it reminded me of many of the same struggles I had encountered back in my youth.  This collection actually covered a lot of ground and each story managed to be deeply nuanced, despite the brevity that is usually expected with short stories.  I was surprised by the depth of the stories in this collection and the cultural as well as emotional resonance that they evoked in me – as I said earlier, it’s usually difficult for me to get into short stories, but I dove into this set full force and found myself completely immersed.  With that said though, I also found it frustrating that the journey with each character was so brief, with each story dropping off at what I felt was a significant moment.  I wanted each story to be more complete, wanted to know what would happen to these characters. 

One of the things that set this collection of short stories apart from others is the variety, as each story had a distinctive voice, not a single one the same, yet the feelings and emotions the stories explored were often commonly felt ones.  I also loved the writing, which was at times lyrical, at times straightforward, depending on the story, but was always completely engaging.  This is an exquisite collection, one that I absolutely recommend.  If you’re the type who generally only reads a limited number of short story collections (for me, it’s due to a preference for the fully fleshed-out stories and characters that are often only found in novels), this is definitely one that needs to be included on your list.  Personally, I can’t wait to see what Xuan Juliana Wang has in store for us next!

Lastly, here are a few of my favorites from this collection:

“Mott Street in July” – about the transformation a Chinese family undergoes after immigrating to the United States – the opportunities they gain but also the sacrifices they have to make.  As an immigrant myself, this was the story I was able to relate to the most.

“For Our Children and For Ourselves” – about a rich, successful business woman arranging a marriage for her special needs daughter and the implications of that decision for all involved.  This one was the most heartbreaking story for me, not necessarily because of how the story evolved, but the feelings evoked from what was not said – feelings that felt so familiar to me.

“Fuerdai to the Max” – about second generation Chinese rich kids who are used to not being held accountable for their actions and what happens when that day of reckoning finally arrives.  This was an interesting one and I loved the angle the author took in relaying the events as they unfolded.

“Home Remedies for Non-Life-Threatening Ailments” – presented as anecdotal advice for various ailments such as ‘boredom,’ ‘self-doubt,’ ‘bilingual heartache,’ ‘family pressure,’ etc., this one was both whimsical and original, which I absolutely loved!

“Vaulting the Sea” – a coming-of-age story about two synchronized divers on the verge of finding success at the Olympics.  This was a beautifully rendered story that I felt was the most real in the way it dealt with the characters’ emotions and relationships.

“Algorithmic Problem Solving for Father-Daughter Relationships” – about a father who uses equations and algorithms to explain his relationship with his daughter, this was a fun one that depicts what happens when cultures clash within a family.

“The Strawberry Years” – about a young man named Yang who is tasked with looking after a famous actress, only to have her refuse to leave and end up overtaking his life.  This one captured the ubiquitous influence of social media perfectly, which I found absolutely fascinating.

“Echo of the Moment” – about a Chinese-American girl living in Paris who finds herself in possession of an entire wardrobe of designer clothes belonging to a young model who had committed suicide a few days earlier.  The supernatural slant to this story made for some compelling reading!

Received ARC from Hogarth via Edelweiss.

Review: A Ladder to the Sky (by John Boyne)

My Rating: 4.5 stars

Last year, there was one book that I not only kept seeing repeatedly atop many “best of” lists, I also saw that nearly every one of my Goodreads friend who had read the book (and whose opinions I trust) raved about it.  Of course, I immediately put the book on my TBR and even bought a special annotated hardcover version with the goal of reading it as soon as my time allowed.  That book, as I’m sure most have guessed already, was John Boyne’s award-winning masterpiece The Heart’s Invisible Furies.  Unfortunately (and much to my disappointment), things didn’t turn out the way I wanted and I ended up not being able to read the book last year as planned (though with that said, in planning my 2019 reading goals, I have prioritized the book as a “must read” for next year).  When I saw that Boyne would have a new book out this year, a novel entitled A Ladder to the Sky, I just knew that I could not repeat the “missed opportunity” from last year, so I jumped on getting an advance copy and prioritized it for this month.  Now, having finished this brilliantly written novel, I’m so glad I was able to get to it and finally experience for myself Boyne’s masterful storytelling (not to mention I think I’ve found myself yet another author to add to my “favorites” list)! 

Truth be told, I felt conflicted the entire time I read this book.  On the one hand, I absolutely loved the writing (to say that the writing in here is “brilliant” is actually an understatement – it’s so good that I can’t think of a proper word to describe it that would give it justice) and the story was well-executed, powerful, and magnificently told (I was engrossed in the story from first page to the last).  In the area of character development, Boyne’s skill is beyond phenomenal, as the meticulous way he crafted the character of Maurice Swift – a “protagonist” so without morals and without a single redeeming quality about him that it was impossible not to hate him (I actually loathed him with every fiber of my being) – yet at the same time, the character is written in a way that is so realistic and utterly believable that there were many moments where I felt like I was reading about a real person instead of a fictional character.  Never have I read a book where I despised the main “protagonist” so much that I almost didn’t want to continue reading after part 2 because I was so overwhelmingly disgusted with Maurice’s actions up to that point that I didn’t think I could bear reading any more about his bad deeds without wanting to pull my hair out.  The only reason I persevered was because I absolutely HAD TO KNOW whether Maurice would get his comeuppance in the end (and in another first for me -- as I read every subsequent page after that middle section, I hoped that the ending would be satisfying, but more importantly, I actually “prayed” that the ending would involve the character’s demise).  Of course, I’m not going to spoil it for those who’ve yet had the chance to read this, so I’m not going to say anything further about the plot or my feelings about the ending.

Bottom line, this was a fantastic read, one that I can’t recommend highly enough!  Rating-wise, this was easily a 5 star read given how much I loved the magnificent writing and the engaging story (plus parts of the story and the dialogue between some characters did give me food for thought and made me ponder some previously-held beliefs), but I ended up giving 4.5 (rounded down) because I hated the character of Maurice so much (and disliked many of the other characters as well) that I just couldn’t bring myself to rate it higher.  With that said though, I will echo the sentiments of many of the other reviewers here in saying that if you haven’t read a John Boyne novel yet, rectify that by reading this one.  I personally intend to go a step further in that I plan to read as many of his previous novels as I can while I eagerly wait to see what Boyne has in store for us next!

Received ARC from Hogarth Press and Crown Publishing via Penguin First to Read program.

Review: A Place for Us (by Fatima Farheen Mirza)

My Rating:  5 stars

 

How could I not give 5 stars to a book that touched me so deeply and resonated with me in such a way that closing the cover after reaching the end of this poignant story made me feel like I was leaving a part of myself behind?   This is the third book I’ve read so far this year that broke my heart and moved me to the point of tears, but the first one where I experienced such a deep connection emotionally that, upon finishing the book, I felt utterly depleted, as though the wind had been knocked out of me.  Even now, as I attempt to put into words how I feel about this astoundingly beautiful debut novel, I am struggling because nothing I write will do justice to how good this book was and the profound impact it had on me.  It is not often that I am rendered essentially speechless after reading a book and have to fight hard to gather my thoughts as well as express them in a somewhat coherent manner – yes, THIS book had THAT type of effect on me.

Even though I do not share the same culture or religion as the family at the center of this story, I am blown away by how strongly I was still able to relate to each of the characters as well as how similar our experiences were on so many levels.  Indeed, this was one of the most unique aspects of this book and absolutely a reflection of the author Fatima Farheen Mirza’s immense literary talent – I was floored by the author’s ability to explore with such depth the complexities of family dynamics against the backdrop of one particular culture and religion, yet still make the story so universally resonant with those of us who may not share the same beliefs.  Mirza’s writing is exquisite, beautiful, emotionally nuanced to the point that it draws you in from the very first page, grabs a hold of your heart, and never lets go.  This is the kind of writing that is quiet and subtle, yet rich in its coverage of the topics that matter – family dynamics, culture and tradition, community, religion, identity and belonging.  Each character was so tenderly and gently drawn at the hands of this talented writer, yet the portrayal was so realistic and authentic that there were many moments where I felt I was reading about a real Indian-American Muslim family learning to exist in a world where the culture was so different from their own.

This was a family I grew to love – the parents Rafiq and Layla, their two daughters Hadia and Huda, and the youngest, their only son Amar whose path, even as early as birth, was already rocky and perhaps destined to “not fit in” with the norm.   I love how the story alternated between each character’s point of view -- the same events, life moments at times told from a different character’s perspective, the differences in interpretation of each other’s words, actions, facial expressions, body language, and how all these nuances in each character’s interactions with one another trigger a myriad of reactions and decisions that eventually altered the course of their lives, for better or for worse.  As the story progressed and I got to delve deep into the thoughts and feelings of each character, I began to see a little bit of myself in each of the siblings and it was at that point that I knew this book would affect me on personal level.  I resonated with eldest sister Hadia – the part of her that was studious, responsible, obedient, the rock in the family who can always be counted on to do the right thing, to follow the right path, to sacrifice her wants and desires in order to fulfill the obligations expected of her – I completely understood the inner conflict she had to go through in trying to reconcile her genuine love and affection for her family with the feelings of resentment and constant yearning for recognition and praise from her parents that, at times, got the better of her and influenced her decisions.  I connected with middle sister Huda – the sibling who was most self-assured and comfortable in her own shoes, who was the voice of reason, who wore her heart on her sleeve and was never afraid to tell things like it is, to be up front and direct, to admonish her siblings when they screw up, yet in times of need, stand loyally by their side and be that shoulder to cry on or that source of comfort during moments of despair.  And yes, I absolutely resonated with Amar – the wayward son, the baby of the family, the sensitive soul who always felt everything so deeply, who was kind-hearted but rebellious, the apple of his mother’s eye and the sibling who received the most outward love and attention, well-liked by everyone in the community, yet he was the one who struggled the most with his “place” in the world and felt that he never truly “belonged,” a young man constantly striving for acceptance, self-worth, identity.

The last part of the story, told entirely from the father Rafiq’s point of view, very nearly broke me – from the first page of that section, the tears flowed non-stop and by the end, I was outright crying.  Hearing the narrative and many of the same defining moments from the earlier sections, this time told from the father’s first person perspective -- the one character who had remained silent for the most part throughout majority of the story finally giving his account – it was stirring and powerful, heartfelt and inspiring, yet at the same time tremendously heart-breaking.  It made me think about my own relationship with my parents, the many arguments we’ve had over the years, and reminded me how fragile family relationships can be, how a family can love each other deeply yet make decisions in each other’s best interests that end up hurting each other the most.  This last section brought the story full circle and was particularly thought-provoking, albeit emotionally draining.

Many reviews out there have sung the praises of this book and rightfully so!  There isn’t much I can add that hasn’t already been eloquently stated by others so I won’t attempt to put all my thoughts here but just know that even now, a day after finishing this book, I am still thinking about it, revisiting certain scenes and allowing Mirza’s beautifully written words to once again flow through my mind.  This one is highly recommended, without a doubt! 

Received ARC from SJP for Hogarth via Penguin First to Read program.