Scan barcode
mac168's review against another edition
emotional
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.5
lotus_eater's review against another edition
(Had to read this for school) Interesting writing style choice but made me very bored and I never truly got over the dog at the beginning :(
erinlcrane's review against another edition
4.0
This is maybe 3.5 or 4 stars. The last couple chapters are what make me round it up or lean 4 stars.
I like sparse writing that doesn’t get too heavy handed. I don’t need to be told this or that is bad, it can be shown. And that’s what I got!
I liked that the last couple chapters addressed after the camp. What life was like once they were home again. Things can’t go back to normal, they’ve all been through a traumatic experience. The people around them won’t immediately treat them like they did before. I think a traditional narrative on these events would end when they leave camp and act like we reached a happy ending.
However, there were things I didn’t like. The camp chapter from the boy’s perspective did get repetitive. And overall, I had a little too much distance from the characters, and the scenes were all so short. I think given the distance from the character’s interiority, I needed to really sit with them in lengthier scenes that showed me something about them to get a sense of who they were. Instead, we jumped from one thing to the next so quickly, I never felt like I got to know anyone. Personally, I prefer it when I am presented with the intensity of feeling in characters. It can be shown rather than told through explicit thoughts, that’s ok. But I didn’t get that here. There were some poignant moments, but most just flew by.
I like sparse writing that doesn’t get too heavy handed. I don’t need to be told this or that is bad, it can be shown. And that’s what I got!
I liked that the last couple chapters addressed after the camp. What life was like once they were home again. Things can’t go back to normal, they’ve all been through a traumatic experience. The people around them won’t immediately treat them like they did before. I think a traditional narrative on these events would end when they leave camp and act like we reached a happy ending.
However, there were things I didn’t like. The camp chapter from the boy’s perspective did get repetitive. And overall, I had a little too much distance from the characters, and the scenes were all so short. I think given the distance from the character’s interiority, I needed to really sit with them in lengthier scenes that showed me something about them to get a sense of who they were. Instead, we jumped from one thing to the next so quickly, I never felt like I got to know anyone. Personally, I prefer it when I am presented with the intensity of feeling in characters. It can be shown rather than told through explicit thoughts, that’s ok. But I didn’t get that here. There were some poignant moments, but most just flew by.
dongchiot's review against another edition
emotional
reflective
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
laurenisallbooked's review against another edition
4.0
There was something about this book that was remarkably enchanting. Immersive story about life for Japenese Americans in internment camps during WWII and the effect the camps had on these people/families after the war.
jurassicreads's review against another edition
3.0
This is a elegantly simple novella portraying one family's experience in a WWII Japanese internment camp. Otsuka uses concise descriptions to convey each character's emotional landscape at brief snippets of time. There are a lot of holes in the narrative when it comes to time, but I think this is to be expected when you take into consideration how long a lot of people were in these internment camps. Seconds, turn to hours, turn to years. It's hard to distinguish one specific moment over another unless something memorable happens.
I didn't know much at all about the factual history of Japanese internment camps before reading this book, and I don't want to say this is an exact representation of them, but I think that this book was eye-opening and allowed the reader to at least somewhat understand the struggle to keep one's own identity when their country has pitted it against them.
I didn't know much at all about the factual history of Japanese internment camps before reading this book, and I don't want to say this is an exact representation of them, but I think that this book was eye-opening and allowed the reader to at least somewhat understand the struggle to keep one's own identity when their country has pitted it against them.
racheltanza's review against another edition
4.0
A poetic and concise novel that almost reads like a series of flash fiction pieces. Japanese internment in the US is not talked about enough.
nathanarciaga's review against another edition
dark
emotional
informative
reflective
sad
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? No
3.75