April 2020

By Katharine Brown

Celeste Ng is a highly acclaimed writer with dozens of awards under her belt. Her first book, Everything I Never Told You, was a New York Times Notable Book of 2014 and was named a best book of the year by over a dozen publications. Everything I Never Told You was also the winner of the 2015 Massachusetts Book Award, the 2014 the Asian/Pacific American Award for Literature, the 2015 ALA’s Alex Award, and the Medici Book Club Prize. Her second novel, Little Fires Everywhere, was not only an instant NY Times bestseller but won the 2017 Goodreads Readers' Choice Award and was named the 2017 Best Book of the Year by NPR, Guardian, Washington Post and many more. 

Little Fires Everywhere is 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

If this sounds like something you'd like to read, you can get your copy of the book from the store or online with a 15% discount through the end of April. Remember, you can have it shipped directly to you or come pick it up curbside! This riveting story is also available as an audiobook, narrated by the author herself, through our partner Libro.fm.

Reviews & Interviews

"On 'Little Fires Everywhere'" -- The Kenyon Review
"In a Quiet Ohio ​Town, Who Started the Fire, and Why?" -- The NY Times Book Review
"Little Fires Everywhere" -- Kirkus Review
"It's a Novel About Race, and Class, and Priviledge" -- The Guardian
Celeste Ng Says "Little Fires Everywhere" Is a Challenge To "Well-Intentioned" White Ladies" -- BuzzFeed Reader
"A Mother And Daughter Upset Suburban Status Quo In 'Little Fires Everywhere'" -- NPR

We'll meet online via Zoom on April 25th at 7:30 pm. You can follow the link here to join in or get more information from our Facebook page. We want to know what you thought about the book, even if you didn't finish it and we can't wait to "see" you there. Read on!