I finally reached my goal for the year. I read 37 books! I’m sure that number will grow by the end of the year. But I’m really proud of myself for accomplishing it. I read two books last month and the clear theme was ‘second books of authors I’ve read.’ Let’s get into the books that I read in November 2023.
This post contains affiliate links (read my disclaimer). Thanks for helping me adult!
LITTLE FIRES EVERYWHERE BY CELESTE NG
I avoided watching this show until I finished the book. Let me tell you. The book was worth the wait. This was my second book by Celeste Ng; she is truly a gifted writer. The way she intertwines her characters throughout each chapter is masterful.
Everyone in Shaker Heights was talking about it that summer: how Isabelle, the last of the Richardson children, had finally gone around the bend and burned the house down. In Shaker Heights, a placid, progressive suburb of Cleveland, everything is meticulously 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 teenage daughter Pearl, and rents a house from the Richardsons. Soon Mia and Pearl become more than just 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 rules that threatens to upend this carefully ordered community. When old family friends 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 of Mia’s past. But her obsession will come at an unexpected and devastating cost
As a kid growing up in the 90s, the book hit home on many levels about how many people operated during that time frame. There were three themes that really struck me from this book: colorblindness/racism, classism, and motherhood. This idea of colorblindness – something that I cringe at every time someone says that out loud, proudly – is actually quite harmful. This idea ignores the essential part of the person’s identity in a country so keen on not addressing the pink elephant in the room – systemic and institutional racism. This theme was quite clear in the conflict between Bebe, the McCulloughs, and their Chinese American baby.
I also loved the clear theme of class differences between Mia and Eleana. Elena’s privilege struck a nerve with me because it was clear that she was speaking from a place of privilege while imposing her views on the way the world should work. Even though I wanted to hate her so much, the complexity of Elena made it hard to do so. The theme of motherhood and the idea of a ‘right and wrong’ way to be a mother and who was ‘deserving’ to be a mother was ever-present. I loved the journey following the 4 mothers and their different relationships with their children. Finally, There’s also this unofficial theme of the mysterious component of Mia’s past. It kept me guessing about who and what she was running from.
HOW DOES THE BOOK COMPARE TO THE MINISERIES?
I immediately watched the series after putting down the book (I literally set the book down, opened Hulu, and finished the series in a day in a half). In my opinion, the show is a different interpretation of the book while keeping some of the salient details and themes. Because the writers chose to change the dynamics between the characters – likely to make it more dramatic for tv – the story changed. For example, the complex relationship between Izzy and Elana is explained differently in the book and the show. Not that these changes were bad. It brought a different perspective to the story. Another example is the decision to make Mia a Black woman. I loved that change because it adds a racial component to the dynamic between Mia and Elena that’s not seen in the book. The series is different but still good. I enjoyed each for different reasons and don’t think comparing the two on the same level is fair.
I will say this – Don’t be like me. Give yourself time to fully process the book before jumping into the series. I feel like I started comparing the clear differences between the book and the tv without appreciating the goodness of each.
My Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
THE MAIDENS BY ALEX MICHAELIDES
I was super excited to read this book because his first book, the Silent Patient, was so good. I mean, that twist still haunts me! So, when I had the chance to scoop up this book, it was a no-brainer because I figured it would be just as good.
Edward Fosca is a murderer. Of this Mariana is certain. But Fosca is untouchable. A handsome and charismatic Greek Tragedy professor at Cambridge University, Fosca is adored by staff and students alike—particularly by the members of a secret society of female students known as The Maidens. Mariana Andros is a brilliant but troubled group therapist who becomes fixated on The Maidens when one member, a friend of Mariana’s niece Zoe, is found murdered in Cambridge.
Mariana, who was once a student at the university, quickly suspects that behind the idyllic beauty of the spires and turrets, and beneath the ancient traditions, lies something sinister. And she becomes convinced that, despite his alibi, Edward Fosca is guilty of the murder. But why would the professor target one of his students? And why does he keep returning to the rites of Persephone, the maiden, and her journey to the underworld? When another body is found, Mariana’s obsession with proving Fosca’s guilt spirals out of control, threatening to destroy her credibility as well as her closest relationships. But Mariana is determined to stop this killer, even if it costs her everything—including her own life.
I really wanted this book to be just as good as the first one, but it wasn’t. A few things that I did not enjoy: The use of Greek mythology as a connector for the killer was hard for me. There were a lot of gods and goddesses storylines I had to keep track of in order to make sense of a lot of the conversations being had. It took a while to build the foundation and get to the point of the reasoning behind the killings. But then, the ending felt rushed. I felt cheated that the author took all that time to build the story just to rush the ending. I did enjoy the short chapters, making it easy to get through the book. It also kept me guessing about the killer. I will say that the reasoning for the killings stunned me and made me sad. Finally, I enjoyed the nod to the previous book by including Theo for a couple of pages.
My Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️☆
