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librarystax's review against another edition
4.0
3.75. She is such a good writer, but it is a strange type of writing and you have to be in the mood to read basically a bunch of lists. But I do love how the story builds without really any true characters or any of the usual rules of literature. Compelling.
billmc's review against another edition
2.0
The story of the women who left Japan to become wives in the US in the early 1900s is a poignant one. The tragedy of their deportation to the camps in California and elsewhere is real. That said, this book becomes phenomenally repetitive, with what amounts to page after page of lists. "They did X, they did Y, they didn't want X, the dreamt of Y, they never saw Z." It becomes so tedious that the touching parts of the experiences are drowned out by the sheer minutiae of the lists.
msstwnpks's review against another edition
4.0
Intensiv och magnifik. Grät ungefär varannat kapitel.
_emaliemoore's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? N/A
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
charlied10's review against another edition
informative
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? N/A
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.5
A short but concise book that somehow manages to tell the story of a whole people - , Japanese migrants - voyaging to America, with all the miriad of possibilities that their journeys took.
The response of their American neighbours to their disappearance was shocking & depressing examples of human nature that show how easy it was to oppress the Jewish people in Germany with barely a comment.
risimi's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
informative
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.25
beereadingagain's review against another edition
emotional
informative
inspiring
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
ivi_reads_books's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? N/A
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
3.0
The book is written in the first person plural which I found interessting and different in the beginning but also confusing at times because I was unsure who's experience I was reading about.
If the book was longer I don't think I would have finished it because there is no discernible plot
If the book was longer I don't think I would have finished it because there is no discernible plot
juliasilge's review against another edition
3.0
This short novel about Japanese mail-order brides who emigrated to California in the first decades of the 20th century is lovely and interesting. It's written in the plural 1st person, which worked for me. It didn't come off as gimmicky or silly; it made this novel feel wide in scope and maybe highlighted differences in cultural attitudes about individualism. There is a good bit of sexual violence, which was hard to get through, but it is super interesting to hear the diverse stories of women who came and built new lives in rural farm areas, Japantowns in big cities, etc. The story ends with the internment of people of Japanese heritage in camps during World War II, a grim event in Japanese-American life indeed.
kathieboucher's review against another edition
3.0
The first person plural voice of this story got pretty wearying but I can see why it was appealing to the author--it set up a distance between story and reader and underscored the "otherness" of the characters.