Celeste Ng's 'Our Missing Hearts' plunges readers into a dystopian America where laws like the PACT (Preserving American Culture and Traditions Act) suppress dissent and promote nationalistic fervor. Twelve-year-old Bird Gardner lives a quiet life with his father, attempting to forget his mother, a Chinese American poet whose works have been deemed unpatriotic and whose disappearance remains shrouded in mystery. When a cryptic drawing leads Bird on a perilous quest to find her, he uncovers uncomfortable truths about the world he inhabits and the power of art to inspire resistance. Ng masterfully weaves a poignant narrative about the enduring strength of familial love, the fragility of freedom, and the courage it takes to speak truth to power in a society that demands conformity.