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A Tale for the Time Being

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( 132,674 ratings, 17,247 reviews)
Book Hero Magic crafted this summary to help describe this book. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! Summary
A Tale for the Time Being by Ruth Ozeki weaves a compelling narrative between two characters across continents and time. It follows Nao, a Japanese teenager chronicling her life in Tokyo, and Ruth, a writer in Canada who discovers Nao's diary washed ashore after the 2011 tsunami. As Ruth is drawn into Nao's world, she confronts her own life and the interconnectedness of their stories through themes of time, identity, and reality.
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Format: Paperback / softback
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Book Hero Magic created this recommendation. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! IS THIS YOUR NEXT READ?

You might enjoy this book if you're intrigued by philosophical musings intertwined with poignant storytelling. It seamlessly blends narratives across time and cultures, exploring themes of identity, family, and the interconnectedness of all beings. If you appreciate rich, multifaceted characters and the intertwining of modern life with history, this novel may captivate you.

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Book Hero Magic formatted this description to make it easier to read. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! Description

Nao lives in Tokyo. She is sixteen and has decided to write a diary before she kills herself. She has plenty of material—school bullies, depressed parents—but she particularly wants to chronicle the life of her great-grandmother, Jiko, a Buddhist nun. Eventually, Nao thinks, her diary will find its reader.

Ruth lives with her husband on the Pacific coast of Canada. A few months after the 2010 tsunami, she finds a Hello Kitty lunchbox washed up on the shore. It contains a diary…

This is the simple story of a girl, her great-grandmother and the novelist who becomes enthralled with their tale. But this simple story draws from the deep currents of our times, from quantum physics, Japanese ghost tales, suicide trends, first-person accounts of kamikaze fighters during World War II, thirteenth-century Buddhist texts and recent pop culture. It is a meditation on impermanence, and the intimate relationship between past and present, fact and fiction, and time and text. Ruth Ozeki

Book Hero Magic summarised reviews for this book. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! HOW HAS THIS BEEN REVIEWED?

Ruth Ozeki's A Tale for the Time Being has been widely praised for its beautifully interwoven narrative, blending elements of magic, loss, and the intricate connections between lives. Reviewers have highlighted its depth, intelligence, and emotional resonance, often describing it as a masterpiece that is both profound and accessible. The novel's themes encompass cultural exchanges and environmental reflections, presented with a captivating and thoughtful prose style.

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Book Details

INFORMATION

ISBN: 9781925498950

Publisher: Text Publishing

Format: Paperback / softback

Date Published: 30 October 2017

Country: Australia

Imprint: The Text Publishing Company

Audience: General / adult

DIMENSIONS

Width: 129.0mm

Height: 198.0mm

Weight: 250g

Pages: 432

About the Author

Ruth Ozeki was born and raised in Connecticut by an American father and a Japanese mother. She has lived in Japan, where among other things she worked as a bar hostess and studied flower arrangement, Noh drama and mask carving. Ruth practises Zen Buddhism and was ordained as a priest in 2010. She is the bestselling author of My Year of Meats and All Over Creation.

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