“Consider this book a must-read.” – Marie Claire
“Poignant and timely.” – Real Simple
“Vividly written and moving.” – BuzzFeed Books
“Excellent.” – Bustle

The praise just keeps rolling in for The Leavers by Lisa Ko! The winner of the PEN/Bellwether Prize for Fiction that addresses issues of social justice, this debut novel is one of the most anticipated novels of the year. Now the wait is (almost) over with publication day coming this Tuesday, May 2.

“The Leavers is my effort to go beyond the news articles, using real-life details as a template to build from, not to adhere to. It’s the story behind the story, a tribute to sweat, heart, and grind. But it’s really the story of one mother and her son — what brings them together and takes them apart,” Lisa Ko wrote about her novel.

The Leavers is a powerful story of mothers and sons that “feels as relevant as ever as the future of immigrants in America hangs in the balance,” according to Time.com.  Told from the perspective of both Daniel—as he grows into a directionless young man—and Polly, The Leavers 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, The Leavers is a vivid examination of borders and belonging. It’s 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.

Kaitlyn Greenidge, author of We Love You, Charlie Freeman, raves that The Leavers “was a book I did not want to end.”

Now’s the time to begin: Click here to start reading The Leavers.