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A review by book_concierge
A Tale for the Time Being by Ruth Ozeki
4.0
Book on CD read by the author
This is Ozeki’s most widely-read work (if the Goodreads ratings are any indication). It was nominated for both the Booker Prize and the National Book Critics Circle Award, and it won the Los Angeles Times Book Prize.
The novel is told in a dual timeframe with two distinct narrative arcs. We have Ruth, who is an author living on a remote island off the coast of British Columbia in about 2013; and we have Nao, a US-born Japanese student living in Tokyo some 8-10 years earlier. What brings them together is Nao’s diary / journal, which Ruth discovers on the beach near her cottage, along with other items a young teen might accumulate, all preserved in a plastic bag inside a Hello Kitty lunchbox.
I don’t think I’ve ever read anything quite like this. Yes, I’ve read other books with multiple narrators and with multiple time lines. But there is an ethereal quality to Ozeki’s novel that I can’t remember ever encountering. I felt transported and immersed in these characters’ lives.
Not that I always wanted to be there. Nao’s story is particularly distressing with the bullying she endures, her family’s disastrous financial situation and her father’s deep depression. But, like Nao, I find some solace in the time spent with her grandmother – a bald, Buddhist nun living a life of quiet contemplation.
The audio edition is read by Ozeki, herself. I can’t imagine anyone else doing a better job of it. Clearly this is a very personal sort of story for her to tell. Others have complained about her droning voice in certain segments, but I found this effective when used for these sections of the book (although, yes, I also disliked the voice).
This is Ozeki’s most widely-read work (if the Goodreads ratings are any indication). It was nominated for both the Booker Prize and the National Book Critics Circle Award, and it won the Los Angeles Times Book Prize.
The novel is told in a dual timeframe with two distinct narrative arcs. We have Ruth, who is an author living on a remote island off the coast of British Columbia in about 2013; and we have Nao, a US-born Japanese student living in Tokyo some 8-10 years earlier. What brings them together is Nao’s diary / journal, which Ruth discovers on the beach near her cottage, along with other items a young teen might accumulate, all preserved in a plastic bag inside a Hello Kitty lunchbox.
I don’t think I’ve ever read anything quite like this. Yes, I’ve read other books with multiple narrators and with multiple time lines. But there is an ethereal quality to Ozeki’s novel that I can’t remember ever encountering. I felt transported and immersed in these characters’ lives.
Not that I always wanted to be there. Nao’s story is particularly distressing with the bullying she endures, her family’s disastrous financial situation and her father’s deep depression. But, like Nao, I find some solace in the time spent with her grandmother – a bald, Buddhist nun living a life of quiet contemplation.
The audio edition is read by Ozeki, herself. I can’t imagine anyone else doing a better job of it. Clearly this is a very personal sort of story for her to tell. Others have complained about her droning voice in certain segments, but I found this effective when used for these sections of the book (although, yes, I also disliked the voice).