Synopsis (taken from Goodreads):
Lydia is dead. But they don’t know this yet.
So begins this exquisite novel about a Chinese American family living in 1970s small-town Ohio. Lydia is the favorite child of Marilyn and James Lee, and her parents are determined that she will fulfill the dreams they were unable to pursue. But when Lydia’s body is found in the local lake, the delicate balancing act that has been keeping the Lee family together is destroyed, tumbling them into chaos.
A profoundly moving story of family, secrets, and longing, Everything I Never Told You is both a gripping page-turner and a sensitive family portrait, uncovering the ways in which mothers and daughters, fathers and sons, and husbands and wives struggle, all their lives, to understand one another.
Everything I Never Told You: 4/5
After watching Little Fires Everywhere on Hulu (which I highly recommend if you haven’t seen it yet) I knew I wanted to read one of Celeste Ng’s novels. I finally decided to buy this and I’m so glad I did.
Everything I Never Told You is a beautiful and heartbreaking portrayal of a family in. Taking place in the 1970s, this book deals with topics such as race, ethnicity, sexuality, and the nuanced relationships between family members. It is not a long book (~300 pages) but it felt much longer – in a GOOD way.
Celeste Ng does a wonderful job of portraying her characters and we get to hear each of their thoughts, feelings, and interpretations about certain events. There were several times when I wanted to dislike the characters for certain choices they made, but when you get to hear their internal dialogue it makes it hard to dislike them.
This book is pretty sad, but I highly recommend it for anyone looking for a contemporary family drama. Everything I Never Told You was my first read from this genre but will certainly not be my last (I’m looking at you, Little Fires Everywhere)!
