Celeste Ng is the #1 New York Times bestselling author of Everything I Never Told You and Little Fires Everywhere. She is the recipient of fellowships from the National Endowment of the Arts and the Guggenheim Foundation, and her work has been published in over thirty languages.
"I read Little Fires Everywhere in a single, breathless sitting.
With brilliance and beauty, Celeste Ng dissects a microcosm of
American society just when we need to see it beneath the
microscope: how do questions of race stack up against the comfort
of privilege, and what role does that play in parenting? Is
motherhood a bond forged by blood, or by love? And perhaps most
importantly: do the faults of our past determine what we deserve in
the future? Be ready to be wowed by Ng's writing--and unsettled by
the mirror held up to one's own beliefs." --Jodi Picoult, New York
Times bestselling author of My Sister's Keeper and Wish You Were
Here "Witty, wise, and tender. It's a marvel." --Paula Hawkins,
author of The Girl on the Train and A Slow Fire Burning "Witnessing
these two families as they commingle and clash is an utterly
engrossing, often heartbreaking, deeply empathetic experience . . .
It's this vast and complex network of moral affiliations--and the
nuanced omniscient voice that Ng employs to navigate it--that make
this novel even more ambitious and accomplished than her debut . .
. Our trusty narrator is as powerful and persuasive and
delightfully clever as the narrator in a Victorian novel . . . It
is a thrillingly democratic use of omniscience, and, for a novel
about class, race, family and the dangers of the status quo,
brilliantly apt . . . The magic of this novel lies in its power to
implicate all of its characters--and likely many of its readers--in
that innocent delusion [of a post-racial America]. Who set the
littles fires everywhere? We keep reading to find out, even as we
suspect that it could be us with ash on our hands." --Eleanor
Henderson, The New York Times Book Review "[Ng] captures her
setting with an ethnologist's authority . . . And there are
time-capsule pleasures in her evocation of 1997 . . . The writing
is poised." --Wall Street Journal "Delectable and engrossing . . .
A complex and compulsively readable suburban saga that is deeply
invested in mothers and daughters . . . What Ng has written, in
this thoroughly entertaining novel, is a pointed and persuasive
social critique, teasing out the myriad forms of privilege and
predation that stand between so many people and their achievement
of the American dream. But there is a heartening optimism, too.
This is a book that believes in the transformative powers of art
and genuine kindness--and in the promise of new growth, even after
devastation, even after everything has turned to ash." --Boston
Globe "[Ng] widens her aperture to include a deeper, more diverse
cast of characters. Though the book's language is clean and
straightforward, almost conversational, Ng has an acute sense of
how real people (especially teenagers, the slang-slinging
kryptonite of many an aspiring novelist) think and feel and
communicate. Shaker Heights may be a place where "things were
peaceful, and riots and bombs and earthquakes were quiet thumps,
muffled by distance.' But the real world is never as far away as it
seems, of course. And if the scrim can't be broken, sometimes you
have to burn it down. Grade: A-" --Entertainment Weekly "Stellar .
. . The plot is tightly structured, full of echoes and convergence,
the characters bound together by a growing number of thick,
overlapping threads . . . . Ng is a confident, talented writer, and
it's a pleasure to inhabit the lives of her characters and
experience the rhythms of Shaker Heights through her clean,
observant prose. Before she became an author she was a
miniaturist--almost too perfect for a writer of suburban
fiction--and there's a lovely, balanced, dioramic quality to this
novel. She toggles between multiple points of view, creating a
narrative both broad in scope and fine in detail, all while keeping
the story moving at a thriller's pace." --LA Times "Riveting . . .
unearthing the ways that race, class, motherhood and belonging
intersect to shape each individual . . . Perhaps Ng's most
impressive feat is inviting the reader's forgiveness for Mrs.
Richardson--a woman whose own mission for perfection, and strict
adherence to rules ultimately become the catalyst for the maelstrom
that ensues." --Chicago Tribune "Like Sue Monk Kidd or Madeleine
Thien, Celeste Ng has a carpenter's sure touch in constructing
nested, interconnected plots . . . There are few novelists writing
today who are as wise, compassionate and unsparing as Ng, about the
choices you make, the ones you don't, and the price you might pay
for missed lives." --Financial Times "When you're in the mood for
family drama that's not your own, Little Fires Everywhere by
Celeste Ng will have you hooked." --The Skimm
"Sharp and entertaining--you can't look away even when things are
crashing and burning (literally)--and it possibly ranks up there
with all-time great suburbia fiction, like Jeffrey Eugenides's The
Virgin Suicides." --Goop "Opposites attract and also ignite in this
thoughtful novel." --People "Ng writes with the wisdom of a hundred
lives lived." --Harpers Bazaar "A riveting read and one of our
favorite new works of fiction this fall." --Refinery29 "[Ng] probes
privilege and the compromises it requires in a riveting novel."
--O, The Oprah Magazine "A meditation on rules, race, class,
insiders, outsiders, motherhood. There is no throwaway character.
And after you've raced to the end of the book, you'll want to read
it again, to take the ideas and hold them up to the harsh light of
2017. Ng's novel would be a great read in any time period--but if
you're struggling with the present moment and how we got here, this
novel will do what any good piece of fiction does: illuminate."
--Barrie Hardymon, NPR's Best Books of 2017 "Like Everything I
Never Told You, Ng's excellent debut, the book plots its way into a
smart, accessible conversation about race and class. But free of
the restraints of Everything's thriller construction, Little Fires
gives Ng the space and patience to confront how progressive-minded
communities approach identity." --GQ.com "[A] suspenseful, tense
tale." --W Magazine
"[Ng's] descriptions are so dead-on you can practically see the
Cleveland skyline as you ride shotgun with these characters."
--Glamour "A meditation on the unspoken pains and contradictions of
motherhood. Its story unspools all the raw, knotted tensions that
go into making a family . . . Choosing a rambling van over a 401(k)
isn't a sign of delinquent parenting in Ng's universe; it's just
one of a series of possible paths, with its own unique pleasures
and pitfalls." --Refinery29 "Unmissable . . . Ng's psychological
insight is acute, yet generous . . . Little Fires Everywhere
examines the cruelties that we unwittingly inflict on those we
claim to love." ―Claire Fallon, HuffPost's Best Fiction Books of
2017 "Takes unerring aim at upper-middle-class America's blind
spots . . . a nuanced study of mothers and daughters and the burden
of not belonging to our families or our communities." --Vogue
"Totally absorbing, each character drawn so well it makes it
impossible to decide whose side you're on." --Marie Claire "Ng
writes with the wisdom of a hundred lives lived, churning out
complex characters mostly sympathetic, sometimes loathsome, but all
startlingly human." --HarpersBazaar.com "Fans of novelist Celeste
Ng's debut, Everything I Never Told You, and devotees of her
resistance-ready Twitter feed can rejoice . . . The story drifts
effortlessly between characters; each is full and memorable as they
coax the novel to its fiery climax. Ng reminds us that action is a
choice, and you'll want to keep reading until the last irreversible
actions play out." --Bust "Couldn't be more timely . . . Little
Fires Everywhere might just be the signpost that we need, pointing
a way forward with the gentle suggestion that sometimes doing the
right thing means breaking some rules." --Paste "Compelling . . .
Little Fires Everywhere invests all of its emotional energies in
the relationship between mothers and their children . . . in Ng's
precisely rendered perfect suburb." --Vox "Ng's taut class drama is
calibrated for fireworks." --New York Magazine, Books to Read This
Fall "Written with deep empathy and vivid characters who feel true
to life, Little Fires Everywhere is a captivating, insightful
examination of motherhood, identity, family, privilege,
perfectionism, obsession, and the secrets about ourselves we try to
hide." --Buzzfeed "There are few modern writers as brilliant at
capturing the complexities of a family as Celeste Ng . . . The book
is smart, nuanced, and exhilarating--but more than anything, Little
Fires Everywhere is a gorgeous exploration of motherhood in its
many forms, and the many different paths that women travel to get
there." --Shondaland.com "Ng's uncanny ability to embody multiple
viewpoints makes for a powerful, revelatory novel." --BBC.com, Ten
Books to Read in September "The un-put-downable story that everyone
will be talking about this Fall. A must read for book clubs."
--PopSugar "Equal parts clever, relatable, surprising and
unsettling . . . Ng covers a lot of ground here, from class nuance
to the nature of conformity. But the story really shines when she
examines complex mother-daughter relationships and how they work .
. . until they don't." --PureWow "Engrossing . . . Ng's characters
are authentic and complex, but it's her confident narration that
will invite readers to settle in for the ride--a storyteller who
knows what she's doing is at the wheel . . . With each revelation,
Little Fires Everywhere grows more propulsive and insightful,
boring through the placid surface of American suburbia." --Dallas
Morning News "Ng has one-upped herself with her tremendous
follow-up novel . . . a finely wrought meditation on the nature of
motherhood, the dangers of privilege and a cautionary tale about
how even the tiniest of secrets can rip families apart . . . Ng is
a master at pushing us to look at our personal and societal flaws
in the face and see them with new eyes . . . If Little Fires
Everywhere doesn't give you pause and help you think differently
about humanity and this country's current state of affairs, start
over from the beginning and read the book again." --San Francisco
Chronicle "The truth is messy for everyone in Little Fires
Everywhere. As she did so well in Everything I Never Told You, Ng
crafts sympathetic backstories for the characters that make their
decisions understandable if not entirely acceptable. She also
creates layered portraits, especially of the girls and women, to
raise questions about what mothers can give and what their children
need when no one can stick to the rules." --St. Louis Post-Dispatch
"Ng's talent for depth of story and character development shines
and will stay with you long after you've finished the book."
--Richmond Times-Dispatch "Immersive and thought-provoking . . .
Hang on and prepare to be mesmerized as you meet two families in
idyllic Shaker Heights, Ohio." --The Missourian "A haunting,
layered story of mothers and daughters, and how they attract and
repel each other." --Seattle Times "A multilayered, tightly focused
and expertly plotted narrative . . . A deeply impressive novel with
the power to provoke and entrance." --Minneapolis Star Tribune "One
of the best novels of the fall is an emotional tale about
motherhood, class and so much more . . . Everything I Never Told
You, was good, but this is better." --AARP.org "Mesmerizing . . .
The result is a deftly woven plot that examines a multitude of
issues, including class, wealth, artistic vision, abortion, race,
prejudice and cultural privilege." --BookPage "Ng's best-selling
first novel Everything I Never Told You proved her deft hand at
crafting family dramas with the deep-rooted tension of a thriller,
a skill she puts to pitch-perfect effect in her latest entry . . .
that is equal parts simmering and soulful." --HarpersBazaar.com
"A quiet but powerful look at family, secrets, and running from the
past. Once again, Ng has delivered a near-perfect novel."
--BookRiot
"An intricate and captivating portrait of an eerily perfect
suburban town with its dark undertones not-quite-hidden from view
and a powerful and suspenseful novel about motherhood . . . Ng
explores the complexities of adoption, surrogacy, abortion,
privacy, and class, questioning all the while who earns, who
claims, and who loses the right to be called a mother . . . an
impressive accomplishment." --Publishers Weekly (starred review)
"Ng's stunning second novel is a multilayered examination of how
identities are forged and maintained, how families are formed and
friendships tested, and how the notion of motherhood is far more
fluid than bloodlines would suggest . . . [A] tour de force."
--Booklist (starred review) "This incandescent portrait of suburbia
and family, creativity, and consumerism burns bright . . . As in
Everything I Never Told You, Ng conjures a sense of place and
displacement and shows a remarkable ability to see--and reveal--a
story from different perspectives. The characters she creates here
are wonderfully appealing, and watching their paths connect--like
little trails of flame leading inexorably toward one another to
create a big inferno--is mesmerizing, casting into new light ideas
about creativity and consumerism, parenthood and privilege. With
her second novel, Ng further proves she's a sensitive, insightful
writer with a striking ability to illuminate life in America."
--Kirkus (starred review) "Spectacular sophomore work . . . a
magnificent, multilayered epic that's perfect for eager readers and
destined for major award lists." --Library Journal (starred review)
"Little Fires Everywhere takes us deep into other people's homes
and lives and darkest corners. Along the way, Celeste Ng is always
witty, engrossing, unsparing and original." --Meg Wolitzer "Little
Fires Everywhere is a dazzlingly protean work--a comedy of manners
that doubles as a social novel and reads like a thriller. By turns
wry, heart-rending and gimlet-eyed, it confirms Celeste Ng's genius
for gripping literary fiction." --Peter Ho Davies, author of A Lie
Someone Told You About Yourself and The Fortunes "As if it wasn't
totally obvious from her stunning first novel, Little Fires
Everywhere showcases what makes Celeste Ng such a masterful writer.
The way she examines the complexity of place, and the people who
inhabit that place, is some of the most virtuosic, compelling, and
wise storytelling that I've seen in a long time. By looking so
closely at this community, she opens up the entire world, and it's
an amazing experience." --Kevin Wilson, author of Nothing to See
Here and The Family Fang "Yes, it's the story of one Ohio town, but
Little Fires Everywhere is not that familiar tale of the underside
of the American suburb. It's a powerful work about parenthood and
politics, adolescent strife and artistic ambition, and the stark
choice between conformity and community. Celeste Ng possesses the
remarkable ability to write about the most serious of subjects with
the lightest possible touch." --Rumaan Alam, author of Leave The
World Behind "I cracked open this book mid-morning and did not even
move again until it was time to turn on a light. What a joy it was
to be so thoroughly taken, to let the chores and clocks and even my
own breathing stop while I raced through these pages. Celeste Ng
once again proves she is a force to be reckoned with. Little Fires
Everywhere is a deft, smoldering masterpiece." --Mira Jacob, author
of Good Talk: A Memoir "As I read Celeste Ng's second novel I found
myself thinking, again and again: How does she know so much? About
all of us? How does she write with such perception, such marvelous
grace, such daring and generosity? Little Fires Everywhere has the
irresistible pace of an expertly tuned thriller, and the
observational brilliance of lasting literature. It marks Celeste Ng
as a writer of the first rank, among the very best in her
generation--right there with Zadie Smith and Jacqueline Woodson. I
was mad for this book." --Joe Hill, author of The Fireman and
Heart-Shaped Box "I was fascinated, not to mention worried about,
and frightened of and for, these intriguing characters. Celeste Ng
is a powerful and poignant writer whose attention to detail is
pitch-perfect. Her intuitive rendering of how and why people behave
in such unflattering ways is important. Her writing is honest and
rich--and I love how little fires spread here until they're put
out." --Terry McMillan, author of It's Not All Downhill From Here
and Waiting to Exhale
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