Review: Little Fires Everywhere
For my money Celeste Ng is one of the most complete writers working today. She always spins an interesting yarn that sucks you in. She’s more than just a raconteur, though. When I look at her work more broadly, the plot structure is clear and concise. The key points are all balanced and adorned with just enough ornamentation for relief and contrast. The sections, chapters, and paragraphs all serve the story. And the whole story is built from charming – occasionally gorgeous – prose.
That narrative comprises themes and imagery amplified by repeating motifs. These school below the surface, reinforcing the ideas and emotions without distracting from them. The themes Ng explores are complex and powerful enough that her multicultural and multifaceted views find plenty of traction. She lights new ideas in those themes and points out the path to long standing takes. She lays out a solid intellectual meal.
Her thematic exploration is literary and lively. Metaphor and imagination rule here. Her precise prose leads readers through these oblique and attractive path to the underlying ideas without detracting from the literary scenery. She is masterful in both her choices of images and her execution.
I worry that when I praise a writer like I’m an English teacher I turn potential readers away. Fires is interesting and dramatic to read. It’s fun.
Strongly recommended.