gilda_elise

Celeste Ng’s enthralling dissection of suburbia meets Shirley Jackson’s creeping dread in this propulsive literary noir, when a sudden tragedy exposes the depths of deception and damage in a Long Island suburb—pitting neighbor against neighbor and putting one family in terrible danger.

Welcome to Maple Street, a picture-perfect slice of suburban Long Island, its residents bound by their children, their work, and their illusion of safety in a rapidly changing world.

Arlo Wilde, a gruff has-been rock star who’s got nothing to show for his fame but track marks, is always two steps behind the other dads. His wife, beautiful ex-pageant queen Gertie, feels socially ostracized and adrift. Spunky preteen Julie curses like a sailor and her kid brother Larry is called “Robot Boy” by the kids on the block.

Their next-door neighbor and Maple Street’s Queen Bee, Rhea Schroeder—a lonely community college professor repressing her own dark past—welcomes Gertie and family into the fold. Then, during one spritzer-fueled summer evening, the new best friends share too much, too soon.

As tensions mount, a sinkhole opens in a nearby park, and Rhea’s daughter Shelly falls inside. The search for Shelly brings a shocking accusation against the Wildes that spins out of control. Suddenly, it is one mom’s word against the other’s in a court of public opinion that can end only in blood.

A riveting and ruthless portrayal of American suburbia, Good Neighbors excavates the perils and betrayals of motherhood and friendships and the dangerous clash between social hierarchy, childhood trauma, and fear.

It’s hard to imagine a book that more unearths the deadly undercurrents of hate and classism that can erupt from one incident. With little effort rumor becomes truth, and the people of the neighborhood start to believe without proof. Differences become exaggerated, and sides are drawn. Violence quickly follows.

On another level are the effects of climate change, the cause of the sinkhole. Though referenced almost in passing, its symptoms are everywhere though no one speaks of it, the reader is aware that it’s a major reason that the people of the neighborhood are having their lives changed. It’s a slow-moving tragedy that’s exacerbated by one woman’s hate.

As our own lives are further disrupted by climate change, it isn’t hard to imagine something like this happening in almost any neighborhood in America.