Little Fires Everywhere Summary
5 min read ⌚
Do you have a fire burning in your eyes?
If not, we are here to help you burst into flames with a new exciting novel.
Who Should Read “Little Fires Everywhere”? And Why?
Sometimes, life throws at us various things and commitments we just can’t get out of. On the way to success, only a handful of people fly right into the faces of danger, prepared to sacrifice everything for their moral beliefs.
Little Fires Everywhere, is recommended for all people over the age of 15, because of its natural flow, and outstanding scheme.
Celeste Ng Biography
Celeste Ng is an American author born in 1980, in Pittsburgh. In 2012 she was rewarded with the Pushcart Prize for one of her best works – Girls, At Play.
She continues to tell magnificent stories and expands our perspective with each new novel.
Plot
The Little Fire story starts in a highly unusual fashion when a raging fire almost destroys a house. The Richardson family is at the center of the scene. Pretty much all of them speculate that Izzy is the one who should be held responsible.
The narrator takes us one year back, or in 1997. Elena Richardson (A writer for a local newspaper) decides to rent the upstairs room of one of her suites on the other side of the town, to Mia and her daughter Pearl.
In the meantime, Moody (Elena’s Son) meets Pearl while riding a bike nearby the house, and over the time, he realizes that he has a crush on her.
They are about the same age, which strengthens this early acquaintanceship. Moody (a teenager) wastes no time and eagerly makes up his mind to introduce Pearl to Trip, Lizzy and eventually Lexie. Pearl, is not used to seeing such a beautiful home, because every day she and her mother struggle to make a living.
She becomes an everyday visitor at the Richardson home, and overtime Pearl develops a crush on Trip and thinks very highly of Lexie.
Mia is a photograph who tries hard to sell her work in New York. In the meantime, she works at a Chinese Restaurant, to collect a few more bucks here and there.
Mia is not happy about Pearl’s admiration for the Richardson’s lifestyle and even accepts to work there as a housemaid only to watch her daughter’s every move. In the family, Izzy gets the least amount of respect, and she is considered to be an outcast.
Izzy reveals to Mia that she is suspended due to her urge to defend a student who was racially abused by the teacher. Mia offers her a piece of advice, to handle this little wrinkle. Izzy grows closer to Mia and the two of them, develop a healthy relationship.
The Richardson family receive an invitation to attend the birthday-party of Mirabelle McCullough. Mirabelle is not the daughter of Elena’s friend; she was found wrapped in a blanket, at the local fire station.
Lexie is very amused and impressed by Mirabelle, and passes this information to Mia, who realizes that Bebe Chow and May Ling, her colleagues from the restaurant are the birth parents of Linda’s daughter.
Most communities just happen; the best are planned.
They gave up on her, due to the economic crisis that raged the country a couple of years back. Mia informs the Chows of Mirabelle’s whereabouts, but Linda (her non-biological mother) warns them that she will file a lawsuit for trespassing if they come anywhere near her house.
Mia lays out a few tips to help Bebe to be granted visitation rights. A great story in a local newspaper can be an exciting way to unveil this scandal. The trick works, and the court allows the Chows to stay in touch with Mirabelle.
Elena learns about Mia’s involvement in this whole operation and gets very angry. She despises Mia’s mysterious plans and begins to dig deep into her past to get back at her.
Elena eventually gets to the bottom of Pearl’s conception and finds out that Mia was hired by a wealthy New York couple, who didn’t have any babies.
After a few tragedies rolled into her life, such as losing a brother, Mia decides to keep the baby and disavows the deal.
Meanwhile, Pearl and Trip take their relationship a step further and have sex in the basement of his friend’s home. They keep their sexual energies hidden from everyone else, for the time being.
Lexie, however, realizes that she is pregnant and begs Pearl to accompany her for the abortion. Afraid of potential discovery, they use Pearl’s name at the clinic. Mia takes good care of Lexie, upon her arrival from the hospital.
The tension in court between the McCulloughs and Bebe Chow grows by the minute, and Bill Robinson desperate to prove that Bebe Chow had an abortion several years back, finds out unintentionally about Pearl’s recent “visit” to the hospital.
He accuses Moody of being the father, only to find out that it was someone else. Izzy overhears their conversation and gets away from the “crime” scene. Bebe Chow’s testimony falls short in court, and she loses the case.
Part of the process,” Pearl informed him as they cut through the living room, with the nonchalant air of a native unfazed by the curious customs of the land.
Before telling Mia to leave the house, Bill reveals a little secret to her, about Pearl’s intertwined origins. Put in a tight spot, Mia finally tells Pearl about her father, and why they must leave at one. Pearl unwillingly accepts, and on the way out they run into Izzy.
Izzy as an act of despair and revenge realizes that the Richardsons have used the Warrens for their own agendas. She chooses the perfect momentum when everyone is out of the house and intentionally starts a fire, not knowing that her mother is still in the house.
Luckily, Elena manages to escape without a single bruise.
After the house fire, they have little options but to settle down permanently at the rental place that early belonged to Mia and Pearl, only to discover that Mia has left them personalized photos, describing their involvement in the drama.
Bebe Chow out of hopelessness and love for her daughter decides to sneak into the McCullough’s home and kidnaps Mirabelle.
For her plan to work, she had bought tickets to Canton in advance. McCullough’s efforts to locate her adopted daughter don’t bear any fruit, and they end up with empty hands.
Little Fires Everywhere Epilogue
Mia and Pearl now freed from the bondage of the past, hit the road to restore peacefulness and nurture the healthy mother-daughter relationship.
Izzy flees over to New York City to escape the daily problems with the Richardsons. She uses a false name and swears that she will never go back.
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“Little Fires Everywhere PDF Quotes”
Sometimes you need to scorch everything to the ground and start over. After the burning the soil is richer, and new things can grow. People are like that, too. They start over. They find a way. Click To Tweet Most of the time, everyone deserves more than one chance. We all do things we regret now and then. You just have to carry them with you. Click To Tweet It came, over and over, down to this: What made someone a mother? Was it biology alone, or was it love? Click To Tweet I don't have a plan, I'm afraid, but then, no one really does, no matter what they say. Click To Tweet She had learned that when people were bent on doing something they believed was a good deed, it was usually impossible to dissuade them. Click To Tweet
Our Critical Review
This novel can shake your world. The unexpected twists and turns make it even more compelling.
Indeed, honesty meets power on controversial grounds, and this book is no different. It was exciting to the very end, and we really enjoyed every bit of it.
Emir is the Head of Marketing at 12min. In his spare time, he loves to meditate and play soccer.
