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What Members Thought
I intentionally didn't read this when it came out because the description sounded as if it would too much like his prior book, The Gift of Rain. Enough time as passed that I am no longer able to make a comparison.
The prose is neither complex and interesting nor simple and boring. It does its job, I suppose. The characterizations were just OK, neither flat nor fully fleshed.
I'm not sure what the author was trying to accomplish. He has at least three stories to tell in addition to the building o ...more
The prose is neither complex and interesting nor simple and boring. It does its job, I suppose. The characterizations were just OK, neither flat nor fully fleshed.
I'm not sure what the author was trying to accomplish. He has at least three stories to tell in addition to the building o ...more
Jul 25, 2012
Penny (Literary Hoarders)
rated it
really liked it
Shelves:
books-read-in-2012,
bookermarks
I thoroughly enjoyed this book. Comes in second for me in this Booker Prize (#1 is Lighthouse). The descriptions of the gardens, the history behind tattoos was extremely beautiful and the pain and suffering the prisoners in the internment camps endured made for some great reading.
Wow, I just loved this story! I’ve been aware of this book for quite some time but did not add it to my tbr because it looked to be too sad and I’m almost never in the mood for sad. Whilst I shed some tears, the whole feel of the book was more poignant as we are reading of an old woman’s memory of the past. The language was poetic and the author obviously have done some serious research into history and Japanese gardens. Of course, there had to be a twist at the end… am still not sure how I feel
...more
Deceptively gentle. Packs a punch.
I liked the story. I liked Yun Ling and Aritomo. I think they had something more than friendship. I got confused with the timeline because it seemed to go back and forth between her past and present. I didn't understand what Yun Ling's illness was. I thought it was cancer.
...more
Jul 26, 2012
Juniper
marked it as to-read
Sep 17, 2012
Jayme Pendergraft
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Sep 19, 2012
Mary Beth
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Nov 23, 2012
Susan
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May 15, 2014
Krista
marked it as to-read
Aug 04, 2014
Laurie
marked it as to-read
Sep 22, 2014
Angelbis
marked it as to-read
Dec 08, 2014
Katy
marked it as to-read
Nov 29, 2015
Lindsay
marked it as to-read
Feb 18, 2016
Sally
marked it as to-read
Aug 11, 2016
Debbie Hoffman
marked it as to-read
Sep 28, 2018
Anika
marked it as to-read
