Happiness Falls

2023

by Angie Kim

Happiness Falls is a thrilling page-turner and a deeply moving portrait of a family in crisis. This riveting book about a biracial Korean American family in Virginia is upended when their beloved father and husband goes missing.

Mia, the irreverent, hyperanalytical twenty-year-old daughter, isn't initially concerned when her father and younger brother Eugene don't return from a walk in a nearby park. But as time progresses, it becomes clear that something is terribly wrong. Eugene returns home bloody and alone, with their father nowhere to be found. The only witness to the father's disappearance is Eugene, who has the rare genetic condition Angelman syndrome and cannot speak.

What follows is both a ticking-clock investigation into the father's whereabouts and an emotionally rich exploration of family dynamics. Angie Kim turns the missing-person story into something wholly original, creating an indelible tale of a family who must understand one another to uncover the truth.

Reviews

Review by ivette

Me gustó mucho cómo la autora aborda la discapacidad del hijo al centro de esta historia. No hay sentimentalismo ni intentos de "golpearte en la cabeza" para que entiendas su forma de vida, es simplemente escuchar a su hermana -la narradora- contándonos desde su perspectiva y amor por Eurgene. La parte del manejo del lenguaje es FASCINANTE, aprendí mucho al respecto, y valoré la explicación que ofrece la autora al final del libro sobre su investigación de terapias de lenguaje. A pesar de todo esto, no me convenció el final. Creo que la autora quería que en vez de enfocarnos en qué pasó, nos diéramos cuenta que no importa qué pasó, porque eso no arrebata la inocencia de las acciones de Eugene. Pero algo me dejó mal sabor de boca y no sé explicar qué fue....

Likeless so far. Lead the way
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