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A Tale for the Time Being

Ruth Ozeki

Start date: December 1, 2017

Finish date: December 30, 2017

Discussion: Monthly Group Reads

Why we're reading this: The diversity topic that was voted on to be covered in December Religion/Spiritual beliefs/Practices.
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A Tale for the Time Being by Ruth Ozeki

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What Members Thought

Dec 02, 2017 Candace rated it it was amazing

Naoko "Nao" Yasutini is a sixteen year old American of Japanese origin. The only person Nao relates to is her 104 year old great-grandmother, Yasutani Jiko. Jiko is a "famous anarchist-feminist-novelist-turned-Buddhist-nun of the Taisho era." (19) Nao has decided to write the story of Jiko in her diary. She sits in the Lovely Apron cafe (Nao calls it the Lonely Apron cafe) writing about her life, her family, her great-uncle Haruki #1 (Nao's father is Haruki #2), and her great-grandmother. She pl Naoko "Nao" Yasutini is a sixteen year old American of Japanese origin. The only person Nao relates to is her 104 year old great-grandmother, Yasutani Jiko. Jiko is a "famous anarchist-feminist-novelist-turned-Buddhist-nun of the Taisho era." (19) Nao has decided to write the story of Jiko in her diary. She sits in the Lovely Apron cafe (Nao calls it the Lonely Apron cafe) writing about her life, her family, her great-uncle Haruki #1 (Nao's father is Haruki #2), and her great-grandmother. She plans to write Jiko's story before she commits suicide.

Across the Pacific, Ruth is walking along the beach at Jap Ranch. While strolling she finds a Hello Kitty lunchbox sealed inside a ziplock bag. Inside the lunchbox is a diary, letters and a watch. The diary is Nao's. It is undated and Ruth decides to read it in real time. Before long Ruth and her husband, Oliver, are caught up in Nao's life. Ruth wants to know if Nao is still alive, or was she washed away in the earthquake and tsunami of 2011.

The novel does discuss the concept of Time Being. Time Being are words, memories, and self. It is a being in time. The following quote stands out:

Both life and death manifest in every moment of existence. Our human body appears and disappears moment by moment, without cease, and this ceaseless arising and passing away is what we experience as time and being. They are not separate. They are one thing, and even a fraction of a second, we have the opportunity to choose, and to turn the course of our action either toward the attainment of truth or away from it. Each instant is utterly critical to the whole world. (324)

The novel is written in alternating third-person narratives. We learn about Nao in the past by the reading of the diary and the letters in the present with Ruth. The main characters Nao and Ruth are captivating. The secondary characters, especially Jiko, Oliver and Schrödinger (also known as Pest or Pesto) the cat, are lively and intriguing. The plot is complicated and, along with the subplots, is neatly tied up. I enjoyed this novel. The concept of the Time Being, coupled with human conscience, just about overwhelmed me with their theories. It was deep thinking. I welcome other readers to immerse their minds in Nao and Ruth's lives. It's well worth the journey. ...more

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Oct 07, 2016 Lisa rated it it was amazing

I've never read a book like this before and therefore don't know how to rate it. I have nothing to compare it to. Nevertheless, its uniqueness makes it extremely interesting to me and I'm glad that I read it.

Using magic realism, humor, theories about physics, and background information about Zen Buddhism Ruth Ozeki, a Buddhist nun, blurs the lines of fact and fiction to weave a tale of longing and wonder. Ruth, a writer who lives on a remote island off the coast of British Columbia, finds a plas ...more

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Sep 04, 2013 Chris Blocker rated it liked it

Shelves: booker

Two storylines. No three. No two. One? … Quantum mechanics. Metafiction. Superpowers. Hello Kitty. Cats. Zen Buddhist Nuns. Ghosts. Dot-coms. Philosophy. WWII. 9/11. What am I missing? What am I missing?

A Tale for the Time Being is a brilliant novel in that way that books can sometime be brilliant. It's the sort of novel that you'll probably feel strongly about from the beginning, or be completely indifferent to. But what else is there? Perhaps, as Jiko would say, they are “same thing.” It's a c ...more

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Mar 02, 2014 Melissa Rochelle rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: own, read-2014

I finished this almost two weeks ago and haven't had the energy to write a thing about it. I was very busy with reading the Tournament of Books judgments and sleeping and working and...umm...doing other stuff?

I have no real excuse. The delay has nothing to do with how much I did or did not like this book so let me just get to the part you actually (maybe) want to read.

I loved Nao's story and Ozeki made a very smart decision by leading with Nao. The "Ruth" story I grew tired of quickly, I just wa ...more

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Jan 26, 2017 Katrisa rated it liked it

This book was really a mixed bag. Parts of it I enjoyed a lot! It took a minute for me to get into it, then the second half was much better until the end. I wasn't a big fan of the overt philosophical discussion about Schrodinger's cat and quantum universes right at the end. I think the book did a fine job bringing up questions of time and parallel realities without that addition and it spoiled the mood. ...more

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