Play Book Tag discussion

A Tale for the Time Being by Ruth Ozeki - 4 stars - My Review

Ruth, an author, finds a Hello Kitty lunch box washed ashore. It is in a sealed bag that contains two diaries, a packet of letters, and an antique watch. She reads the diaries, one of which was written by Nao, a sixteen-year-old Japanese girl, a decade ago. The other diary and letters were written by Nao’s great-uncle, a WWII kamikaze pilot. Nao writes of her Buddhist nun great-grandmother, Jiko, and of her own plans to die by suicide when she completes the story. Ruth is troubled by Nao’s diary and becomes preoccupied with finding out whether or not she is still alive.

The narrative combines elements of Zen Buddhism, Japanese culture, environmentalism, and natural phenomena. The plot is intricate. The tsunami of 2011 is featured prominently. The book also explores suicidal ideation, bullying, unreliable parenting, and loneliness. It regularly refers to the writings of Marcel Proust. The character’s name, Nao (pronounced Now in English), is no coincidence. There are many discussions of the concepts surrounding time. Even Schrödinger's cat makes an appearance (so to speak).

This book considers humans to be time-beings, which is true, actually, but I never thought of a life in quite that way. I particularly enjoyed the author’s portrayal of the continuity in generations past and present. It took a while for the pieces of this story to gel for me, but once they did, I was enthralled.

I liked this quirky book too!