Serina LovesReading

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for giving me an opportunity to read an advanced copy of this book. Angie Kim's Happiness Falls is an exploration of family and of how far are we willing to go for them. This book combines elements of mystery, delves into family dynamics, disability, and touches on the concept of happiness. While it falls slightly short for me in its final pages, it's still a compelling read.

Throughout the story we follow Mia who is both an unreliable narrator and emotional anchor. In the initial chapters, Mia's scattered thoughts and wavering perceptions piqued my interest. The revelation of her doubt about her own memories adds an intriguing dimension at the beginning of the book, explaining the scattered nature of her narrative voice, and setting us up for the uncertainty that is to come.

Mia's younger brother, Eugene, is autistic, and right from the start of the book, we know that he has witnessed something significant happen to his father. At a young age Eugene was diagnosed with Angelman syndrome, also known as the “Happiness Syndrome,” and has had a difficult time communicating, especially with his family. We can tell that the author has done a lot of research on this topic as she goes on to portray Angelman with sensitivity and authenticity. This portrayal not only provides insight into the challenges faced by individuals with disabilities but also serves as a means of understanding Eugene's experience and his family's bonds surrounding his condition.

The author's use of footnotes adds an extra layer to the narrative, as it helps to bridge cultural gaps and helps us get to know the families' Korean background and upbringing; a touch of realism is at play against the backdrop of the COVID-19 pandemic; and the concept of the “Happiness Quotient” also becomes significant and a way of understanding the story, urging the characters, specifically Mia, to confront her own perceptions of happiness.

The narrative lost me a few times as it ventured into detailed explanations including quantitative equations and formulas. While they helped us to understand Mia's and her father's thought processes, the mathematical details occasionally confused and even made me bored. In addition, the way the book resolves itself felt sudden and a bit convenient for me and left some parts of the book unexplained and not fully explored. I understand that this may have been a way for the author to reunite the family collectively in their mission to save Eugene, but it left questions unanswered that, as a reader, I just desperately wanted answers to.

In conclusion, Happiness Falls is a story that is unlike a typical mystery. I went into it thinking this was a thriller/mystery and I came out feeling like it was more about family, and the different, sometimes complicated, dynamics within.

I'm giving this book 4 stars

Thank you to NetGalley for giving me the opportunity to read an advanced copy of the book.

This book is written by two authors and told from the perspectives of two different people having two different experiences. Both women are connected by a lifelong friendship. But after a young black boy is shot by police, both characters are forced to confront racial tension that has always plagued their friendship but was never spoken about and threaten to divide them.

It was a good story overall. I usually don't like going back and forth between characters, but with this book, I enjoyed reading both characters' perspectives. I found myself wondering what the other was thinking while I was reading about another. I do feel like something went unresolved near the end, but maybe I have to give it another read.

But a really good story overall, that is very relevant to our times.

Since reading this book last year, I have not been able to stop thinking about it. This review may contain spoilers:

All's Well explores the world of theatre and chronic pain, and follows Miranda Fitch, a former actress who, after taking a very painful fall while performing on stage, now has a job as a college theatre director. She suffers from chronic pain which has left her physically and emotionally drained. Her life is consumed by pain, and she fears that she will never be able to return to her career as an actress.

The novel explores the cutthroat nature of Miranda's profession as a college theatre director, where reputation and success are based on performance and attendance. Throughout the book, it is clear that Miranda's illness has impacted every part of her life, including the impact it has taken on her career. The book takes a deep look at that impact by letting us in on her personal struggles, including her abuse of pain killers, her messy relationship with her only friend, her past relationship with her ex-husband, as well as her tumultuous and negative feelings she has towards her students and coworkers, who are beginning to suspect that Miranda is just putting on a show.

One aspect that I really enjoyed in this book was the speculative aspect and how the author uses a magical element to portray the pain that Miranda is experiencing. These magical elements find their way throughout the book, and help convey a sense of dislocation and disconnect and show up as a result of her chronic pain. The author's use of language is also particularly striking, with such vivid and detailed description of the physical pain that the character is experiencing, it creates a sensory experience.

Overall, this is a powerful exploration of the intersection between pain and creativity and how the two can connect to each other in such painful ways. It is a beautifully written and deeply moving novel that offers a unique perspective that will resonate with anyone who has experienced similar challenges. It is sure to leave a lasting impression on readers. 5 stars for me.

I really enjoyed reading this book and to find out it was based on a true story of resistance set at the American Library in Paris, made it even more intriguing.

This story is told in two timelines from two perspectives. One during the war with Odile, a librarian who, along with her colleagues, risk their lives to save books and deliver them to Jewish subcribers. The second part (based in the 80s or 90s) is about a young girl named Lily whose curiousity leads her to finally meeting her older and mysterious neighbour, Odile.

It is a lovely story about love, friendship, loss, courage and resistance that is beautifully told through these two characters who realize they have so much more in common than they, or even others, believe.

A lot of the book is spent reading about Odile's time in Paris during the war and the only thing I would have wanted more of is time with Lily. I felt myself rushing through Lily's parts which made it feel like she was unimportant to the story when really her story is important to who Odile becomes to her later on.

I gave this book 4 stars out of 5 and would definitely recommend it to readers who love historical fiction.

This is an important book for people to read.
Why? Because it deals with a subject matter that for far too long we have closed our eyes and ignored. People taking advantage of others with no voice.
As a black woman, I really felt that I could relate to the main character Enchanted. Not being believed is an everyday occurrence. Add an abuser who takes advantage of that fact, and you have a situation where people are always questioning your common sense and comparing your experiences to their own.
This book was an easy read, and kept me on the edge of my seat.
The only reason I gave it 4 stars was because I felt that the end became too rushed and there was so much more that I thought could have been explained that went unexplained. I.e. the end. Whaaaat?!
Other than that, this was the first book I have read by Tiffany D. Jackson and I am definitely interested in reading more of her work.

Spoilers ahead:

I went from giving this book 2.5 stars in the middle to 3 stars at the end. Here's why.

It started off interesting. A story of an archivist (Elodie) who is engaged to be married, (seemingly having doubts) who tragically lost her mother when she was small, is consumed with trying to identify a mysterious woman from a photograph and her connection between two men from the past, and a house that she feels oddly attached to although she has never visited.

I love the story of a house with so many secrets; the truth is somewhere inside. And with this historical house, it is understandable why there would be so many characters who have lived or visited. However, it was hard to keep up with the multitude of characters, their connections to each other and the timeline. As I was reading, I was suddenly led on one different pathway after another, through a different point of view, through a slew of other different characters, that it became confusing, and on some occasions, very boring to read.

By the end, I started to understand the different timelines and connections, but it was already too late for me. I just wanted the book to be over.

I gave this book 3 stars.

The main character Bernice is really moving and I felt really connected to her. Her traumatic life experiences are so heart wrenching that there were moments where I just had to put the book down and cry because I really felt her pain.

This book is truly artistic and powerful. It is a beautifully written story filled with hearbreak. It's a challenging read at the beginning, especially the parts where Bernice is, how I would describe, having an out of body experience. But once I caught on to that, the book became easier to read. It also became apparent when those moments happened, why they were happening. Usually it occured during intense traumatic and emotional states in her life.

At first, I felt disappointed with the other female chracters in Bernice's life. But as I continued to read, I tried to put myself in their positions. As Lindberg puts it, in the book club notes, “no one takes responsibility in the text.” But I think that was the point. They too have gone through very traumatic experiences in their own lives, and trauma is very difficult to talk about and face. Even Bernice has a hard time talking about her trauma and instead would shape shift during those times. The author demonstrates so well how each character deals with their trauma differently.

The author also presents the cycle of trauma that continues to happen throughout generations and onto Bernice as well. We can only hope that it ends after Bernice as there is a poignant part in the book where Bernice and her cousin Freda encounter Bernice's uncle. As a way to save Freda from ever going through what she had gone through, Bernice saves Freda from experiencing that trauma. (I read through this part many times, and if I am wrong please let me know :)).

This was a slow-paced book for me but for a good reason. It's not a book that is meant to be rushed through. Every moment needs its time and this book really demonstrates that while still being very engaging.

I gave it 4 stars.