In Search of a Distant Voice by Taichi Yamada

vIn Search of a Distant Voice was written in 1986 by Japanese author Taichi Yamada then translated into English in 2006. The story evolves around the life of a young man named Kasama Tsuneo. He has a steady career as an immigrations officer and soon becomes engaged to be married. While his life is somewhat mundane, at least it seems to be under control. That is until one day, on the job, he has an incident in a graveyard when a suspect gets away. From that day his life is changed. He has several strange emotional fits and begins to hear a woman's voice call out to him. Kasama thinks it is a ghost communicating with him from the graveyard. Kasama and this mysterious woman have regular conversations. He wants to know more about her and he eventually wants to meet her in person.

This novel dealt with the struggles and stresses of Japanese life in the 1980's. Kasama was a workaholic and very dedicated to his job. He felt his life was okay, and typical, and he was satisfied with that. He had even found a suitable bride. His friends and coworkers thought the stress of his career and upcoming marriage were beginning to take their toll on his mental health. Throughout this story the reader wonders who this woman is. Is she really a spirit from that graveyard, a figment of Kasama's imagination, or something else entirely?

In Search of a Distant Voice is eerie and mysterious like Yamada's Strangers. Any reader interested in Japanese culture or horror movies should read these books.

I give this novel a Thumbs Up.

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Shanghai Girls by Lisa See

      In Shanghai Girls Lisa See takes readers farther ahead in time to 1937 China. At this time Shanghai was the "Paris of Asia". Pearl and her younger sister, May, have glamorous lifestyles. They go to parties, have great clothes, and pose for artists. Their life is wonderful until their father announces that he has gambled away their savings. To help pay back his debts he sells his daughters as wives to Chinese men from Los Angeles. When it seems like things couldn't get worse, a war breaks out. Now the sisters must travel alone as refugees to America facing many obstacles and making many sacrifices. Once in America they seek out their husbands and try to build a new life in San Fransisco as immigrants.

I have become a fan of Lisa See's novels. In Peony in Love and Snow Flower and the Secret Fan, See writes about the struggles of Chinese women in the 17th and 19th centuries. Shanghai Girls explores the lives of women in the 1900's bringing to light different and new obstacles. While marriage is still a main theme it has a much different approach.

Shanghai Girls was a fast read and the end left an opening for a sequel. I give this book a Thumbs Up! 

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Travels in the Scriptorium by Paul Auster

In Travels in the Scriptorium an old man, referred to only as Mr. Blank, awakens in a white room with no memory of who he is or how he arrived there. There are only a few items in the room: a bed, a telephone, a desk, and chair. On the desk is a manuscript about another imprisoned man in a world unlike his own. Slowly, with the help of a stack of photographs and a few visitors, Mr. Blank begins to unravel the truth about his dark past.

I picked up this book because it was a great bargain and I thought it seemed very interesting. I really like books that are strange, eerie, and much different than the bestsellers. The beginning of this book definitely had my attention. It is very similar to the beginning of Butler's Fledgling. The main characters in these novels are disoriented and have no idea who they are. So you learn about them and their surroundings along with them. The book started to lose my understanding/interest when Mr. Blank starts to read the manuscript. I was confused the whole way through and I didn't even understand the ending that ties everything together.

It took me so long to read the book because I lost interest. So I give this book a Thumbs Down.

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New Moon by Stephanie Meyer

New Moon is the second installment of Stephanie Meyer's Twilight saga. In this book the reader learns more about Jacob Black. Jacob and Bella become best friends and spend a lot of time together. Bella is comforted by Jacob's presence and her father, Charlie, couldn't be happier that she is spending so much time with Billy's son.

I thought this book was better than the first one. It was more interesting and had more going on. It moved away from the school scene and had moments of action and suspense. I found this book took the reader through more emotions than the first. It expanded from the simple romance between Edward and Bella and made the characters' relationships more complicated.
New Moon introduced new characters and explored some in-depth. However, learning more about the characters isn't always a good thing. For example, I think if Bella was a real person, I would not get along with her because of certain personality traits. But even though I am not fond of Bella, she is more realistic. It is refreshing to read a book that has such a different take on the protagonist. I don't think main characters should be perfect, cookie-cutter people all of the time.

New Moon kept my attention from the beginning. It was better than I expected (compared to the first one), so I give this book a Thumbs Up.

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