Book Review: Kaleidoscope by Cecily Wong

Kaleidoscope (Dutton, 2022) by Cecily Wong is a sweeping tale of sisterly love, identity, and suffocating grief. I read this beautiful, intense book back in February and have felt very attached to it since. At once a novel tinged by aimless yearning, it is also propelled by its specificity of place; the story glides from Oregon to New York to all across India. On this journey, Riley Brighton explores a deeply internal relationship with her surroundings.

When Riley is young, her identity orbits her older sister, Morgan. Their family’s history is rags to riches, so their younger years bond them together in hard work and a festering co-dependency that follows them into adulthood. As Riley gets older she realizes she is so close to her sister that she does not know herself; or rather, that her sense of self is predicated on her proximity to Morgan.

Another factor in Riley’s crippling identity crisis is Morgan’s personality: she’s beautiful, creative, and publicly beloved once the family’s company, Kaleidoscope, sends them into fortune and fame. Morgan’s shadow covers every aspect of Riley’s life. Riley is the forgotten child. Her childhood crush, James, comes tumbling back into their life only to reveal that he had been in love with Morgan all along. Riley deals with this in the only way she knows how. She distances herself from Morgan. 

Yet, Morgan is excruciatingly reliant on Riley as a support system. She needs Riley like air in her lungs, yet Riley pulls away. The problem between the two sisters is not a lack of love, but a lack of understanding as they grow up. Riley finds that the key to her happiness is learning how to be alone. She turns this into a ritual: A $20 day roaming around New York with her headphones in. She learns how to do this, forgets, and learns again.

Then, tragedy. It floats in as tragedy does: without warning, without answers to the problems that lived before it. Riley’s journey for identity is derailed. She is thrust into a surprising yet inevitable romance. Grief and regret dictate her life in a way that somehow feels like reluctant relief.

Her journey then becomes physical, and she travels to India where food and sensation take over. In a way, this is an escape from the reality of her grief. But, for the first time, real growth begins to take root.

These travels in India highlight the best part of Wong’s writing. Wong is previously known for her expansive food adventurer’s guide Gastro Obscura (Workman Publishing, 2021). Using her own experiences, she gives each place a sense of authenticity that wafts off the page. The tumbling of people, the sheer pleasure of food, the intensity of smell. It all weaves together to set the scene as Riley learns about herself and her sister in new and profound ways.

As a reader, I found that this story dazzled with nostalgia from beginning to end. As an older sister myself, this book tugged on my heart, pulled at my selfish tendencies, and made me miss my own sisters with fervor. I recommend this book to anyone craving a sense of movement and profound interiority. 

Enjoy with: A complex yet familiar white like the characters of this story! Try the Massa Timorasso ‘Piccolo Derthona’ 2018 (Retail $25)

Review by Andi Pignato