Everything I Never Told You

What’s it about?
This mystery highlights the dysfunction of the Lee family. The novel’s main character is 16-year-old Lydia.  Lydia mysteriously disappears in the middle of the night, and the family is left to wonder what happened?  Each family member questions if they knew Lydia at all?

What did it make me think about?
This novel explores family, race, grief and parenting among other difficult topics.   What do the expectations we place on our children lead to- success or pressure?

Should I read it?
I have to say this was a good book but not a great one.  Ng is a talented writer but some parts were stronger than others.  The plot kept me engaged but I also got tired of the behavior of some of the characters.  Mood plays a large role in how much I enjoy a book and maybe I was just in the wrong mood.  Too many depressing novels in a row.  I think I am ready for a fun, light book!

Quote-
“But from Far away, with the heat and the noise of the party cocooning him, his perspective had shifted.  Everything that loomed so large close up- school, their parents, their lives- all you had to do was step away, and they shrank to nothing.  You could stop taking their phone calls, tear up their letters, pretend they’d never existed.  Start over as a new person with a new life.  Just a problem of geography, he thought, with the confidence of someone who had never yet tried to free himself of family.”