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The Leavers (National Book Award Finalist): A NovelAmazon Videos

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The Leavers (National Book Award Finalist): A Novel Paperback – April 24, 2018

by Lisa Ko (Author)

8,185 ratings

Editors' pick Best Literature & Fiction

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This award-winning novel from the author of Memory Piece is a moving story of how a boy comes into his own when everything he loves is taken away, and how a mother learns to live with the mistakes of the past.

One morning, Deming Guo’s mother, Polly, an undocumented Chinese immigrant, goes to her job at a nail salon—and never comes home. No one can find any trace of her.

With his mother gone, eleven-year-old Deming is left mystified and bereft. Eventually adopted by a pair of well-meaning white professors, Deming is moved from the Bronx to a small town upstate and renamed Daniel Wilkinson. But far from all he’s ever known, Daniel struggles to reconcile his adoptive parents’ desire that he assimilate with his memories of his mother and the community he left behind.

Told from the perspective of both Daniel—as he grows into a directionless young man—and Polly, Ko’s novel gives us one of fiction’s most singular mothers. Loving and selfish, determined and frightened, Polly is forced to make one heartwrenching choice after another.

Set in New York and China, Lisa Ko’s The Leavers shares a vivid examination of borders and belonging, which earned it the 2016 PEN/Bellwether Prize for Fiction, awarded by Barbara Kingsolver for a novel that addresses issues of social justice.
"Required reading.” —Ann Patchett

National Book Award finalist

Named a Best Book of 2017 by NPR, Entertainment Weekly, the Los Angeles Times, BuzzFeed, Bustle, and Electric Literature

From the Publisher

The Leavers: A Novel

	At the Edge of the Haight	Mudbound	The Girl Who Fell from the Sky	Good Kings Bad Kings	Running the Rift	And West Is West
						Buying Options
Customer Reviews	511	4,511	3,551	395	496	91
Price	$13.48	$10.44	$9.99	$17.64	$9.07	— no data
More PEN/Bellwether Winners from Algonquin	“Drives home a lightning bolt of empathy.” —Barbara Kingsolver	“Packed with drama.” —People	“Affecting, exquisite.” —The Miami Herald	“A joy for readers.” —Chicago Tribune	“Audacious and compelling.” —The Washington Post	“A calculated nail-biter.” —The Washington Post

WARNING: California’s Proposition 65

Editorial Reviews

Review

“Here is imperative reading: a vivid fictional exploration of what it means to belong and what it feels like when you don't . . . Ko gives us an unsparing portrait of the resilience and grit it takes to risk everything to break free of tradition and start over in a foreign land.”
—O, The Oprah Magazine (Favorite Books of 2017)

"[A] dazzling debut . . . Filled with exquisite, heartrending details, Ko’s exploration of the often-brutal immigrant experience in America is a moving tale of family and belonging.”
—People (Book of the Week)

“When Deming Guo was 11, his Chinese immigrant mother, Polly, left for work at a nail salon and never returned. In alternating perspectives, this heart-wrenching literary debut tells both of their stories. Grade: A.”
—Entertainment Weekly

“Ambitious . . . Lisa Ko has taken the headlines and has reminded us that beyond them lie messy, brave, extraordinary, ordinary lives.”
—The New York Times Book Review

“This wrenching and all-too-topical debut novel picks up the life of an 11-year-old American-born boy on the day his mother, an undocumented Chinese immigrant, disappears . . . Ko uses the voices of both the boy and his birth mother to tell a story that unfolds in graceful, realistic fashion and defies expectations.”
—Janet Maslin, The New York Times

“Lisa Ko’s The Leavers is the year’s powerful debut you won’t want to miss. The Leavers expertly weaves a tale of the conflicts between love and loyalty, personal identity and familial obligation, and the growing divide between freedom and social justice. An affecting novel that details the the gut-wrenching realities facing illegal immigrants and their families in modern America, Lisa Ko’s debut is the 2017 fiction release you can’t afford to miss.”
—Bustle.com

“An exceptionally well written, fully realized work of art portraying the circumstances and inner worlds — the motives and emotional weather — of its two central characters. Ko is so psychologically penetrating, so acute in her passing observations and deft in the quick views she affords of her characters’ inner lives and surroundings, that her skill and empathy give real joy.”
—Barnes Noble Review

“The Leavers describes the devastation caused by forced, abrupt and secret detentions that occur daily under our current Immigration Act. The novel weaves from past to present, from immediate abandonment to chronic loss, showing how the unfathomable disappearance of a mother eats into her son's effort to "move forward.” . . . The story soars when Ko writes of immigration detention— a civil detention for violation of a civil law that is as callous and brutal as the worst sort of criminal incarceration . . . [The Leavers] lets us feel the knife twist of sweeping government authority wielded without conscience or control. [Ko’s] work gives poignant voice to the fact the U.S. can, and must, write a better immigration system.”
—Ms. Magazine

“Consider this book a must-read: They may be fictional, but these characters have a lot to teach us about the difficulties of belonging and the plight of illegal immigrants.”
—Marie Claire

“Poignant and timely, this novel is ripe for discussion.”
—Real Simple

“One of 2017's most anticipated fiction debuts… The winner of last year's PEN/Bellwether Prize, which recognizes fiction that explores issues of social justice, The Leavers feels as relevant as ever as the future of immigrants in America hangs in the balance.”
—Time.com

“Ko’s debut is a sweeping examination of family through the eyes of a single mother, a Chinese immigrant, and her U.S.-born son, whose separation haunts and defines their lives. Ko’s stunning tale of love and loyalty – to family, to country—is a fresh and moving look at the immigrant experience in America, and is as timely as ever.”
—Publishers Weekly, starred review

“Touching upon themes such as identity, determination, addiction, and loyalty, the author clearly shows readers that she is an emerging writer to watch. Ko’s writing is strong, and her characters, whether major or minor, are skillfully developed. Readers who enjoy thoughtfully told relationship tales by authors such as Lisa See, Jamie Ford, and Nadia Hashimi will appreciate.”
—Library Journal, starred review

“Vividly written and moving, The Leavers is an engrossing story of one young boy struggling to adjust to his new life without his mother and community.”
—Buzzfeed

“A timely touching story . . . excellent: compelling, well-realized, gritty and complicated.”
—Kansas City Star

“The Leavers is a masterful debut novel that examines borders and belonging, and the universal desire for love.”
—Redbook.com

“This excellent book has already won the PEN/Bellwether Award for Socially Engaged Fiction (selected by Barbara Kingsolver). One morning, eleven-year-old Deming Guo’s mother is unexpectedly deported to China. Deming is then adopted by a white family and renamed Daniel Wilkinson. But as he grows up, he struggles to reconcile his new life with his former one.”
—Bustle.com

“Ko’s debut novel has already won the 2016 Pen/Bellwether Award for Socially Engaged Fiction, a prize created and selected by Barbara Kingsolver. The contest awards a novel that 'addresses issues of social justice and the impact of culture and politics on human relationships,’ and Ko’s book certainly fits that laudable description.”
—TheMillions.com

“An inspiring debut, which focuses on issues of assimilation and the true meaning of home. Ko’s unforgettable narrative voice is a credit to the moving stories of immigration, loss, recovery, and acceptance that feel particularly suited to our times.”
—Nylon Magazine

“Lisa Ko’s The Leavers, which won the PEN/Bellwether Prize, may be a work of fiction, but the plot twists mirror America’s own urgent and timely political landscape.”
—W Magazine

“Gorgeously redemptive . . . Lisa Ko’s debut novel is an achingly beautiful read about immigration, adoption, and the drive to belong. Beyond the desensitizing media coverage, Ko gives faces, (multiple) names, and details to create a riveting story of a remarkable family coming, going, leaving . . . all in hopes of someday returning to one another.”
—Christian Science Monitor

“If you come away from reading The Leavers with a sense of disconnect, that’s no surprise—disconnectedness is its central theme, its structural and stylistic touchpoint, and the emotional engine driving its main characters . . . The Leavers stands firmly as Lisa Ko’s act of arrival.”
—The Rumpus

“A searing novel about a mother and son who are separated by forces beyond their control in New York, a book that promises to challenge our perceptions of immigration, adoption, family and American values.”
—Kveller.com

“This timely novel depicts the heart- and spirit-breaking difficulties faced by illegal immigrants with meticulous specificity.”
—Kirkus Reviews

“Skillfully written . . . those who are interested in closely observed, character-driven fiction will want to leave room for The Leavers on their shelves.”
—Booklist

“What Ko seeks to do with The Leavers is illuminate the consequence of [deportation] facilities, and of the deportation machine as a whole, on individual lives. Ko’s book arrives at a time when it is most needed; its success will be measured in its ability to move its readership along the continuum between complacency and advocacy.”
—Los Angeles Review of Books

“The Leavers . . . using effective literary techniques and beautiful language—powerfully illustrates the impact that social policies and injustice have on the lives of individuals and families.”
—Bookreporter.com

An “assured debut novel…a timely story of immigrant families in America…a thoughtful work about undocumented immigrants and the threats they endure.”
—BookPage

"There was a time I would have called Lisa Ko’s novel beautifully written, ambitious and moving, and all of that is true, but it’s more than that now: if you want to understand a forgotten and essential part of the world we live in, The Leavers is required reading.”
—Ann Patchett

"Courageous, sensitive, and perfectly of this moment: The Leavers is everything I could hope for in a winner of the Bellwether Prize."
—Barbara Kingsolver

“In The Leavers, Lisa Ko has created one of the most courageous mother character's in recent memory. Polly is brash, brave and heartbreaking and her ferocity is marvelous to behold. The Leavers is about the bonds between parents and children and the many pulls of home. It was a book I did not want to end.”
—Kaitlyn Greenidge, author of We Love You, Charlie Freeman

"A rich and sensitive portrait of lives lived across borders, cultures, and languages. . . one of the most engaging, deeply probing, and beautiful books I have read this year."
—Laila Lalami, author of The Moor’s Account

"A moving mother/son story and welcome contribution to immigrant literature. In writing about Polly and her son Deming, Ko captures one family's unique experience of becoming American while also exposing the loss of status, economic desperation, physical endangerment, and psychological grit of the undocumented worker as well as the alienation, double consciousness, mobility, and comparative access of the first generation."
—Emily Raboteau, author of Searching for Zion

“The story’s most heartbreaking disclosures are powerful in their indictment of the unrealistic expectations placed upon struggling families.”
—Foreword Reviews

About the Author

Lisa Ko’s fiction has appeared in Best American Short Stories 2016, Apogee Journal, Narrative, Copper Nickel, the Asian Pacific American Journal, and elsewhere. She has been awarded fellowships and residencies from the New York Foundation for the Arts, the MacDowell Colony, the Lower Manhattan Cultural Council, Writers OMI at Ledig House, the Jerome Foundation, and Blue Mountain Center, among others. She was born in New York City, where she now lives.

Product details

Publisher ‏ : ‎ Algonquin Books; Reprint edition (April 24, 2018)
Language ‏ : ‎ English
Paperback ‏ : ‎ 368 pages
ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 161620804X
ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1616208042
Lexile measure ‏ : ‎ 870L
Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 2.31 pounds
Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 5.55 x 0.75 x 8.2 inches

Best Sellers Rank: #80,900 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #234 in Asian American & Pacific Islander Literature (Books)
- #388 in Cultural Heritage Fiction
- #1,353 in Coming of Age Fiction (Books)

Customer Reviews:
8,185 ratings

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Lisa Ko

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I'm the author of Memory Piece and of The Leavers, which was a national bestseller and a National Book Award for Fiction finalist and won the PEN/Bellwether Prize for Socially Engaged Fiction. My writing has also appeared in Best American Short Stories, The New York Times, The Believer, and elsewhere. Learn more about me and my writing at lisa-ko.com.

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Customers say

Customers find this novel enthralling with multiple compelling themes, particularly appreciating its insight into the immigrant experience and Chinese immigration issues. The writing is praised for its poetic language, and customers find the characters very compelling, with one noting how the author skillfully invites empathy for them. The book receives mixed reactions regarding its pace and emotional impact, with some finding it fast-paced and emotionally moving while others consider it slow-moving and depressing.

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Story quality Insight Writing quality Character development Family dynamics Heartbreaking story Pace Pacing

245 customers mention "Story quality"216 positive29 negative

Customers find the novel enthralling with multiple compelling themes, and one customer notes its interesting way of appreciating both sides of the story.

"A superb story about loss and resilience. You fall in love with the main characters Polly and her son Deming...." Read more

"...like during the current political climate this would be a good book for people to read as it focuses on a immigrant family from China...." Read more

"There's a lot going on in this novel. There are really 2 stories that unfold: one of a young Chinese girl coming to America; the other is the son..." Read more

"I loved this book, it is an eye opener of what immigrants to the United States may have to deal with & how they are treated...." Read more

103 customers mention "Insight"81 positive22 negative

Customers find the book insightful about the immigrant experience, particularly its interesting presentation of Chinese immigration issues and how it illuminates unknown aspects of the topic.

"...this would be a good book for people to read as it focuses on a immigrant family from China...." Read more

"...Will he reconnect? Lisa Ko has written a haunting story of connection and family. What makes a family?..." Read more

"...It was a great piece on identity and not being content with oneself. The writing in the book drew me in and I just flew through this book...." Read more

"...: China’s emergence, an unwanted teenage pregnancy, the challenge and reward of immigration—both legal and otherwise, the dual coming of age stories..." Read more

93 customers mention "Writing quality"83 positive10 negative

Customers praise the writing quality of the book, describing it as brilliantly and poetically written, with one customer noting its fluid prose.

"...Lisa Ko has a great command of vivid and poetic language. I would recommend this book. I really wanted yo give it 3 1/2 stars...." Read more

"...The writing in the book drew me in and I just flew through this book...." Read more

"...In the end, Ko is a gifted writer whose career will deservedly continue to climb. I look forward to her next book with optimistic anticipation." Read more

"...The story is compelling, the characters flawed and lovable. The writing is exquisite, both fast-paced and dreadfully slow where it fits, lots of..." Read more

78 customers mention "Character development"58 positive20 negative

Customers appreciate the character development in the book, finding them compelling and relatable, with one customer noting how the author skillfully invites empathy and another mentioning the clear character voices.

"...All around Lisa Ko fleshes out her main characters so that you really care about them." Read more

"...But there's more to it than that. The story is compelling, the characters flawed and lovable...." Read more

"...so in a book of reasonable length, however, some of the characters are ultimately clichéd...." Read more

"...And her characters are deeply and complexly realised, even when they’re not the main focus of the story...." Read more

16 customers mention "Family dynamics"16 positive0 negative

Customers appreciate the family dynamics in the book, particularly its touching portrayal of strong relationships, with one customer highlighting the complex familial triangle involving a birth mother.

"...story is told from both Polly and Deming's perspective it is a story about family, loss, survival, healing, and ultimately finding yourself in a..." Read more

"...Issues of familial separation, belonging, and personal identity are brought to the fore through Ko’s fluid prose and lively descriptions...." Read more

"...the meantime the boy is put up for adoption and has a wonderful American family in upstate NY, where he finishes school and becomes a very unhappy..." Read more

"...Above all though, it is a familial triangle between a birth mother, adoptive parents and a confused, lost young man on the brink of adulthood and..." Read more

65 customers mention "Heartbreaking story"43 positive22 negative

Customers have mixed reactions to the emotional content of the book, with some finding it beautifully heartbreaking while others describe it as depressing.

"...from both Polly and Deming's perspective it is a story about family, loss, survival, healing, and ultimately finding yourself in a world where you..." Read more

"...But it also had a very humanistic and relatable quality when it delved into relationships between parent and child, lovers, and friendships...." Read more

"...I found the book enlightening and often frustrating and sad, but also hopeful." Read more

"...Although difficult subject matter, you will find warmth and sympathy in her telling, and glad for the learning experience." Read more

36 customers mention "Pace"23 positive13 negative

Customers have mixed opinions about the pace of the book, with some finding it fast-paced and timely, while others note it is not fast-paced and can be confusing.

"...He starts talking with her and the connection is instantaneous across the years. Will he reconnect?..." Read more

"...The story doesn't ever really slow at all and at times I didn't want to put it down...." Read more

"...This book is not fast paced, and occasionally you tend to be annoyed with the characters, but Ko ties together their stories beautifully and in a..." Read more

"...The writing is exquisite, both fast-paced and dreadfully slow where it fits, lots of wonderfully quirky bits of detail that make the places and..." Read more

17 customers mention "Pacing"11 positive6 negative

Customers have mixed opinions about the pacing of the book, with some finding it moving and touching, while others describe it as somewhat boring.

"...Issues of familial separation, belonging, and personal identity are brought to the fore through Ko’s fluid prose and lively descriptions...." Read more

"This book has an unusual plot that sometimes makes for uncomfortable reading...." Read more

"This is a moving and contemporary novel that not only questions the policies of U S policy in immigration but also of the motivations of those..." Read more

"...American I can relate to the internal conflicts of identity and belonging ...." Read more

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Tache Noire
Amazing! Great Story Telling, Emotions, and Realism
Reviewed in the United States on February 5, 2025
Verified Purchase

A superb story about loss and resilience. You fall in love with the main characters Polly and her son Deming. You watch them struggle with hardship and opportunity. They are imperfect but readers close the book feeling their energy and optimism. The story also takes readers into the Chinese immigrant community in NYC and links that world with China. Polly survives and flourishes in spite of the horrors of America’s broken immigration gulag of prison camps. But her broken relationship with the son torn away from her can never be forgotten.

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Rachel Perry
Review of The Leavers
Reviewed in the United States on June 14, 2017
Verified Purchase
I've always loved reading stories about families. Every persons perception of what family is is different from the next depending on their experiences. I love reading about the flaws, quirks, and circumstances that bring families together or drive them apart. The Leavers by Lisa Ko was a novel that looked at the topic of families in a way that differed from any other I've read before. I feel like during the current political climate this would be a good book for people to read as it focuses on a immigrant family from China. In a time when immigrant is a word that has different connotations to people Lisa Ko gives a face, a name. And a heartbeat to these sometimes invisible and nameless people. It is by no means a "political novel" which for me is a good thing. I'm not a terribly political person so that would have detracted from the book for me if I felt like their was a strong political motive. Maybe there was and Lisa Ko delivers it delicately enough that it doesn't smack you across the face which if that is the case I applaud her. The story follows the lives of Peilan "Polly" Guo and her son Deming Guo or Daniel. As a teenager Polly became pregnant in her small village in China. Finding herself in the difficult situation of being unmarried with an unwanted and unauthorized pregnancy she acquired money from a loan shark to escape to America and pursue her dreams of independence and freedom by making a life of her choosing. Upon arriving in America however she immediately discovered the struggles and limited opportunities for a woman in her position who spoke little to no English. Polly discovers after Deming is born that what had begun as an unwanted pregnancy developed into a love so fierce that she would do anything for it. Burdened by an overwhelming debt and lack of support Polly makes the impossible choice to send her infant son back to China to be cared for by her father while she worked to reduce her debt and be able to bring him back to America when he reached school age. As a mother I cannot fathom being separated from my child. I read several reviews that commented that the characters in this novel were not likable. I think Polly herself said it best when she said " I didn't forget, I survived." Polly is fierce and strong. I think her circumstances would have broken weaker people it is impossible to face what she faced and come out unscathed. What some saw as selfish behavior I see as a necessary sense of self preservation for a woman who had a lifetime of losses. After the death of her father Deming returned to America to live with a mother he did not know. Raised in crowded housing with other immigrants the Guo's definitition of family seems to shift with every chapter. Several years later Polly and Deming are living with Polly's boyfriend and his family when inexplicably Polly fails to return home from work one day. When Polly's absence turns from days to weeks to months and no other options Deming is surrendered to Foster care by his caregivers and is shortly after placed for adoption with American college professors Kay and Peter Wilkerson. Deming' snake is changed to Daniel by his adoptive parents because they feel it will make him feel more apart of their family, but it only serves to add in the identity struggles that he faces and the fear of not being enough that fill him after he is abandoned by his mother without explanation. Much of the book deals with him as a teenager and young adult at the age of 21 who like most people his age are trying to figure out who they are and what they want to do with their life. Coupled with issues from his past and poor choices Deming finds himself sort of bouncing aimlessly through life caught in a struggle to fulfill his adoptive parents expectations and find himself. When he is contacted by someone from his past telling him they have news about his mother it serves to stir up even more uncertainty and fear about his future. Deming eventually finds his mother and begins the sometimes painful process of finding out why she left him and learning that time and distance cannot break the bonds between them. The story is told from both Polly and Deming's perspective it is a story about family, loss, survival, healing, and ultimately finding yourself in a world where you are pulled an infinite amount of directions. This book is not fast paced, and occasionally you tend to be annoyed with the characters, but Ko ties together their stories beautifully and in a heartbreaking manner. While the book ends differently than I had hoped it did leave me with a sense of hope for all the characters involved which I guess at the end of the day is all you can ask for.

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Amazon Customer
Growing up in 2 different worlds; mother & son reunited
Reviewed in the United States on August 14, 2017
Verified Purchase
There's a lot going on in this novel. There are really 2 stories that unfold: one of a young Chinese girl coming to America; the other is the son she is pregnant with and his coming of age. Then there is the separation that they both must endure, and finally their being reunited after many years apart. I found the writing to be overloaded at times with a rambling quality. But it also had a very humanistic and relatable quality when it delved into relationships between parent and child, lovers, and friendships. Lisa Ko has a great command of vivid and poetic language. I would recommend this book. I really wanted yo give it 3 1/2 stars. All around Lisa Ko fleshes out her main characters so that you really care about them.

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Amazon Customer
Relevant Reading
Reviewed in the United States on April 2, 2025
Verified Purchase
I loved this book, it is an eye opener of what immigrants to the United States may have to deal with & how they are treated. The adoption story line was fascinating from a child & young adults perspective.

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Sandra Iler Kirkland
A Haunting Tale Of Family Connection
Reviewed in the United States on May 7, 2024
Verified Purchase
Demming Guo and his mother Polly don't have much time together. Polly came to the United States undocumented and had Demming there, making him a citizen. But she sent him back to China to live with his grandfather when he was one as she didn't have anyone to watch him and had to work to pay back her passage. Demming came back to New York and Polly when he was five after his grandfather died. By then, Polly had given up factory work and was working in a nail salon, living with her boyfriend Leon, his sister Vivian and her son Michael.

Demming had from five to twelve with his mother, the person he adored above all others. Then she started getting antsy and talked about moving them to Florida. When she disappeared, everyone thought she had gone without Demming or telling anyone. Eventually, Vivian signed Demming over to social services and he was adopted by a set of white college professors in New England.

He had lost all track of his mother and had no hope of finding her. He went back to New York only to find Leon, Michael and Vivian gone also from their apartment. Demming grew up being called Daniel by his parents. They wanted him to follow them into an academic career. Demming wanted to play music and went back to the city to play with a friend from high school. Just as they were about to break through, Demming's got into gambling and debt. He lost his friends over money and lost his parents over refusal to do what they wanted.

But he was contacted out of the blue by Michael and eventually found Leon in China and from there he found his mother's number. She had been in China all those years, deported back in an ICE sweep but never contacting Demming as she had no way of finding him. He starts talking with her and the connection is instantaneous across the years. Will he reconnect?

Lisa Ko has written a haunting story of connection and family. What makes a family? Is it the blood connection or is it whoever shows up to take care of a child. Both Demming and Polly are restless souls, constantly moving and changing their lives to try to find a fit. Polly is ambitious and determined to make a life that is comfortable while Demming just wants to find a place to belong. This novel was a National Book Award Finalist and is recommended for readers of literary fiction.

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Joker
Good
Reviewed in Mexico on October 31, 2019
Verified Purchase

Good

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May
母を探し続けて、、。
Reviewed in Japan on November 10, 2018
Verified Purchase
野心溢れる中国人女性がシングルマザーとして息子を産み、ニューヨークに渡り、貧困と闘いながら息子を育てるが、ある日、忽然と消息不明になってしまう。
残された息子は、アカデミックな白人夫婦に引き取られ裕福に育てられるが、、。
息子と母親の両方の視点から、淡々と語られる二人の人生は、アメリカ移民の現実、中国の急激な経済発展、人種の壁、いろんな要素を含んでいて現実の酷しさが伝わってくる。

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Marian
Life, love, leaving and loss
Reviewed in Australia on May 16, 2018
Verified Purchase
A complex and at times hearbreaking story of life, love, leaving, loss. Told from two perspectives across two very different countries this intricately woven yet simply written story highlights the issues of migration, of adoption, of the bonds that bind a family and finally of hope, belonging and the need to find and choose one's own destiny.

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Lehrerin
Gem
Reviewed in Germany on June 4, 2024
Verified Purchase
I liked this book very much, what makes a family a family, what is your identity are main topics. Also learned about aspects of immigration I never knew anything about. Would recommend the book.

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Leonard Kooperman
Beautifully written
Reviewed in Canada on December 7, 2021
Verified Purchase
Mesmerizing story about a family torn apart by the same kind of immigration laws we still must endure today. .

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5.0 out of 5 stars Amazing! Great Story Telling, Emotions, and Realism

4.0 out of 5 stars Review of The Leavers

3.0 out of 5 stars Growing up in 2 different worlds; mother & son reunited

5.0 out of 5 stars Relevant Reading

4.0 out of 5 stars A Haunting Tale Of Family Connection

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5.0 out of 5 stars Good

4.0 out of 5 stars 母を探し続けて、、。

5.0 out of 5 stars Life, love, leaving and loss

5.0 out of 5 stars Gem

5.0 out of 5 stars Beautifully written

Amazing! Great Story Telling, Emotions, and Realism

Review of The Leavers

Growing up in 2 different worlds; mother & son reunited

Relevant Reading

A Haunting Tale Of Family Connection

Good

母を探し続けて、、。

Life, love, leaving and loss

Gem

Beautifully written