Bone

This was a short, quick read, yet still haunting. As a warning it may be triggering for those dealing with mental health.

Leila is the oldest of three daughters to a first generation Chinese American and a man who is father by choice to her and blood to her sisters. Bone talks about an event that changes the family dynamic forever, both in positive and negative ways. The youngest sister, Ona, commits suicide, leaving the middle sister, Nina to run to the opposite side of the country and Leila to try and hold the family together. That is how Leila is.

Bone is an examination of a family that is in between things. The mindset of the parents and the mindset of the children are incredibly different. I would think that this is something that people have noticed with families who immigrate to any country. In the case of Bone, Mah and Leon are more tradition-based and just continually work so that their children can have a better opportunity. Leila, Nina, and Ona have individual opinions on what to stick to and not, which is where you see a separate examination of the sibling dynamic. Leila is the oldest and the most responsible, sometimes putting a strain on her relationship with her boyfriend/fiancé because she feels that she has to always go back home and help her parents; Nina is the middle, still responsible yet wants to go out and do different things and assimilate to the culture of the States; Ona was the youngest, Leon’s favorite, and therefore had the burden of trying to live to expectation when some of those expectations were not for her life.

It was so interesting to see that Nina and Ona were Leon’s blood children, yet when the chance came they escaped San Fran Chinatown by their own means, but Leila stays and, about the half the time, makes it about Leon. The memories of the past were about Leon and working, the times in the present were about Leon and worrying about his well-being, and even when the book ends, I assume that it remains that way until he dies. I would hope that by then, with her now husband’s encouragement, Leila has the permission she needs to make her own life and do what she wants with it. Yes, there was Mah, who she also continually worries over, but Mah is consistently home and present. Leon is not. I think it is a longing for a consistent fatherly presence.

I enjoyed reading Bone. There is an incredible amount of dissecting and discussion that can be done with this book. Fae Myenne Ng did such a wonderful job in giving us moments of deep richness, yet simple dialogue. It feels like if this were a movie, the pace would be slow, like digesting or working through something.

I would recommend reading Bone if you are looking for something to discuss, or dig deep into without noticing it. If you are interested, you will find it here.

9/10