Sherry S. (SherryKaraoke) - , reviewed on 1/9/2012 + 36 more book reviews

I loved this book. Not quite a novel, it reads more like a long poem, each chapter echoing with the voices of the Japanese mail order brides of the early twentieth century, telling their stories and conveying their emotions. Nothing is told straight through in a narrative, yet somehow after finishing it you can feel their emotional life - traveling so far from home, their disappointments and triumphs, their joys and sorrows. The style reminded me of Tim O'Brien's short story of the soldiers in Vietnam, "The Things They Carried." Both works use lists to make an impact on the reader.

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