Good Craft but Meh

An award winner, this is well crafted and deserves a solid three stars. Some will love.

I felt it was unbalanced between the time in Japan and the reminiscing about the boyfriend. Narrator let it down. So hard to tell if I would’ve rated it higher if I read the physical copy. Am left without feeling.

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justice for the book, justice for the narrator!

I see that there's mixed reviews, so I'd like to add my 2 cents.
I read this for a bookclub and after my first read I couldn't find the narrative and I was frustrated! but after my second pass I realised the happenings were in the subtext, and the book itself is a warm and beautiful stream of consciousness. If you need a clear plot, big moments, and a moral to the story, this might not be the one for you. But this book is really a simple art; the author has done a wonderful job telling us so much with her curated words in this descriptive story.
(and good job to the narrator, I think you captured the tone really well!)

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1 person found this helpful

Haunting and evocative reflections on life and family

Haunting and measured reflection on the life of the traveler and her family as she travels with her mother in Japan. The story and style grew on me as the book progressed and I enjoyed the insights and events in the life of children of Chinese immigrants . The tone was beautiful and evocative .

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had high hopes

I thought the narration was soothing and gentle which suited the style of the book. The scenes set and were described vividly with so much detail it was almost poetic however it lacked any connection to the characters they fell flat and were uninteresting. Overall I felt like this book was about everything and yet nothing. I feel the author has such potential to be a great story teller if there is an actual story to tell.

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A beautiful, poetic narrative

It is not so much a story as it is a very beautiful recount of a journey, from the perspective of someone who is very observant and thoughtful when reflecting on the mundane. It also paints a picture of a different culture through the observations. I enjoyed listening to it a lot, though it wasn’t at all what I expected.

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Ordinary story not helped by bland narration

I listened to this book after it was recommended to me by a friend on the basis of good reviews. I have an interest in Japan and travel so I thought it would be a good match, however, I found in the naration really, really bland. the story was quite vague and it didn’t really go anywhere.

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Narration style not for me

Unfortunately, I couldn't get past the narration style to get far enough in to this book to appreciate it. Seemed monotone and full of unnatural pauses. Just because a text is "literary" doesn't mean it needs to be read in (what I perceived as) a cold, detached way. Such a shame because I am keen to read this story. It will have to be the print version for me I think.

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story let ðown by narration

great story, though I found I often drifted and didn't find the narration held my attention. Ended up listening twice and still think I missed a fair bit of the story.

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Read the book don’t listen to it

I feel compelled to weigh in on the narration because I found it so awful. Words were mispronounced, the tone was robotic and the audio quality was so clipped I actually thought it was an AI. The story itself has a beautiful symbolism to it that I feel like I want to give it another go but read it this time instead of listening to it.

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Beautiful simple study of relationships

I really enjoyed this tale of a mother and daughter’s trip to Japan. The writing is beautiful in its simplicity and echoes the characters and their interaction, as well as being the setting. Through the descriptions and stories from the past we come to understand the main character and her relationship with her mother and other important people in her life. There are no major plot lines and it is much like an art house movie in this way, so it won’t be for the plot-driven, however I loved it. The narration was gentle and mimicked the understated style of the writing.

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