Our Missing Hearts by Celeste Ng

OUR MISSING HEARTS by Celeste Ng (Little Fires Everywhere) should not be missed, even though it is an emotionally difficult read. Ng sets this dystopian novel in the near future; it occurs after the Crisis (a period of economic upheaval) and subsequent passage of PACT (Preserving American Culture and Traditions Act). Desperate leaders sought a common enemy and Asian Americans suffer the consequences of anti-Chinese feelings. One of them is a young mother and poet named Margaret Miu. She becomes a target when a poem that she wrote transforms to a rallying cry for those protesting as more and more children are taken from their supposedly subversive families and “re-placed” in foster care as a form of re-education. Margaret flees, leaving behind her husband Ethan Gardner, and their mixed race, pre-teen son called Bird. This story - with literal and figurative journeys by Bird and by Margaret - allows Ng to explore the characters’ feelings and dawning comprehension while also encouraging readers to reflect. At one point, she writes, “Would one person be compelled? One out of eight million, a fraction of a fraction. But not nothing. … saying to others at last: Listen, this isn’t right.” Book banning and suppression of dissent is repeatedly referenced, as is the quiet resistance and strength of librarians (e.g., “the brain of a librarian was a capacious place”).

A LibraryReads selection for October, OUR MISSING HEARTS received starred reviews from Booklist (“utterly stupendous tale”), Kirkus (“sensitive, nuanced, and vividly drawn”), Library Journal (“beautiful yet chilling tale”), and Publishers Weekly (“remarkable”). Ng is an extremely gifted writer; consider this description of a rainstorm: “The rain hisses as it falls, like a thousand tiny snakes, and where it hits, the ground writhes. It needles the dirt, punching holes that widen to craters that fill and swell into ponds.” Her wordplay (“Spirare, Bird hears his father say. To breathe. Con: together. So conspiracy literally means breathing together”) and emphasis on fables and the art of storytelling is amazing. Start reading for yourself or with others – this title would make an excellent book group or literature circle selection. For more reaction, see Stephen King’s review in the New York Times. He says, “Governments are right to fear words. They can change hearts and topple tyrannies.”