Before Arin, Genevieve Yang was an only child. Living with her parents and grandmother in a single-room flat in working-class Bedok, Genevieve is saddled with an unexpected sibling when Arin appears, the shameful legacy of a grandfather long believed to be dead. As the two girls grow closer, they must navigate the intensity of life in a place where the urgent insistence on achievement demands constant sacrifice. Knowing that failure is not an option, the sisters learn to depend entirely on one another as they spurn outside friendships, leisure, and any semblance of a social life in pursuit of academic perfection and passage to a better future. When a stinging betrayal violently estranges Genevieve and Arin, Genevieve must weigh the value of ambition versus familial love, home versus the outside world, and allegiance to herself versus allegiance to the people who made her who she is.
Wei delivers an expertly paced and moving debut, a tragedy without over-the-top drama. Her precise descriptions—a character 'pickles in disgrace'—keeps the focus on the taut action. Best of all, she paints holistic people who may be petty and selfish and yet display grace and kindness.
Resonant ... With meticulous detail, Wei unfurls the aching provenance of the family's irreparable fracture ... Although Gen's relentless, self-admitted 'hubris' occasionally threatens to weigh down the narrative, Wei's glorious phrasing and revelatory observations provide buoying antidotes ... Wei reveals a tragic, haunting exercise in the limitations of not-quite unconditional love
Wei’s multilayered writing sweeps readers up to carry them alongside Gen through her emotional and financial struggles and lifelong conflict with Arin as they both vie for their mother’s love and attention. Some characters might have been more fleshed out, and the ending could be seen as a tad too neat, but Wei’s debut is a promising one ... This novel should appeal to readers who appreciate relationship-based stories within families; also a good candidate for book clubs.
