The Leavers, Lisa Ko

 

The Leavers by Lisa Ko was a finalist for the National Book Award and that is where I saw it.

Started: 12/27/2020
Completed: 12/31/2020
Recommendation: Recommended
Recommended By: National Book Award

Review:

The story, largely, of a boy with synesthesia who is abandoned by his birth-mother.  His subsequent adoption was unsettling and his eventual search for his birth-mother dominates most of the book.  His unsettled nature mimics his birth-mother's unsettled nature.  The book does change perspective to that of his birth-mother at times and provides insight into her experiences.

I feel like I have now heard of the sense of deportation/immigration from every angle despite this being a clear novel with no effort to necessarily reflect the truth, but with a clear effort to embody the process of deportation.  In that sense it was a hard read, but I have to say that the great similes and metaphors (I especially liked the sense of security being retracted like the cord into a vacuum cleaner) made the book enjoyable without regard for content.  I think this kind of thing is what elevates a good book into a finalist for the National Book Award.