Category: Book Review

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Book Review – The Cat Who Saved Books by Sosuke Natsukawa

It’s been a year since my last book review. But in those 12 months, so much has happened for my family and I – The Big Move occupied all my attention.

So i did finish reading this lovely book, The Cat Who Saved Books, a few months ago but I have only found time to write a review now.

It’s another English translation of a Japanese novel. I previously reviewed a translated book here. This book is translated by Louise Heal Kawai. Once again, highlighting the hard work a translator puts into bringing us a wonderful story we might otherwise not have the privilege of reading in our native language.

The start of this story was a little slow but the writing was simple and lovely. The main character, Rintaro, is a young boy who just lost his grandfather. It’s stated upfront in the prologue so you know immediately that the state of affairs is not great.

We go on to learn that there’s a little bookshop Grandfather left behind, score point for a book-lover like me. Rintaro grew up in that bookshop, something I wished many times for myself. The bookshop houses books that are rare and out of print as well as other treasures, another plus point. But now he may have to leave it all behind – oh, no 😦 He is considered too young to live by himself.

As I got to know Rintaro, I became a little irritated with him, just like Sayo, Rintaro’s class rep, who visited him numerous times at the bookshop, bringing the homework he missed because he didn’t feel like going to school. I found myself wishing that Rintaro would take action more but that’s the point of the story.

This mysterious cat appears out of the back of the bookshop, literally, and tells Rintaro that the books he loves so much needs his help. As Rintaro reluctantly follows the cat, moving through the different labyrinths and challenging the various people who treat books in strange and sometimes terrible ways, Rintaro learns, grows and takes brave steps to save these books. Sayo becomes part of these adventures too.

The end (i will NOT reveal it) put a smile on my face and brought a warmth to my heart. And I wondered if I would have said and done the things Rintaro did. Truly, what he did and said does warrant time and effort to mull over.

If you like books, if you enjoy fantasy without any gore, if you think a talking cat is great, you should have a read.

Happy Reading.

syc

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FINALLY–A Book Review: The Book You Wish Your Parents Had Read… by Philippa Perry

Oh my, it has been 7 months since my last book review… But it doesn’t mean I have not been reading. On the contrary, I have tried to read more than one book simultaneously. Actually, I tried to read 3 books at the same time. I had a devotional via personal stories type book which I read a few times a week before bed, as well as this big fantasy novel and a more serious book – the one I am reviewing today. However, my brain and life schedule just didn’t allow me to. I felt conflicted about which book I should read (between the fantasy and the serious one) each time I wanted to read during the day. In the end, I gave up trying to read both and stayed with the Philippa Perry one.

This is the first time I am reviewing a book which is non-fiction and I think it would fall under self-help or parenting book.

The subtitle for this book by Perry goes on to say “(and Your Children Will be Glad That You Did) – I hope so.

Perry focuses on the child-parent relationship and clearly states in the foreword, “This is not a straightforward parenting book. I’m not going to go into details about potty training or weaning. This book is about how we have relationships with our children, what gets in the way of a good connection and what can enhance it…” so there are no “tips, tricks or parenting hacks…”

I would go a bit further and say that the basic ideas and principles Perry highlights in this book can be applied to any relationship we have. There’s a lot of extending understanding and kindness, a lot of stating clearly what one’s feelings are and for the very young in our lives, we the adults, need to be naming feelings for them.

That said, a lot of what Perry recommends is quite contrary to what I have been brought up to believe about the parent-child relationship. But I can see her logic – it’s probably true that I grew-up under the “parent-as-doer” and “child-as-done-to” model which has been a model for many generations and I see it is especially so in Asian societies where age takes precedence over any other consideration; so what your parent says goes.

While I have grown up under the “doer-done-to” model, I consider myself as having had a good childhood and very loving parents who are supportive and always there for us. Looking at my family circumstances, both parents working full time to provide for us, there was perhaps not the luxury of time to apply all of Perry’s principles of defining ourselves, trying to understand the feelings behind each behaviour and brainstorming with the child to come to a solution. This collaborative approach takes time and I can see that there are family circumstances which may not allow for this approach.

But as parents, we all do our best. I certainly know my parents did their best and it was enough. I hope I have and continue to do my best. Perry is very encouraging and repeats many times that we all make mistakes and it’s not the error that is important; it is the making the repair that is crucial.

It took me a while to finish this book because I had to read, digest, reflect on each section in relation to my life, my parents, my child and my own feelings about it. While I may not agree with every single thing Perry wrote, I come away from this book with a better understanding of myself and with a sadness that there were some things I would have done differently if I had known. However, I also know that I did my best and have hope that it’s never too late for repair.

I would recommend any one who wants a better understanding of the relationships in our lives and how our parents relationship with us as children and as adults affects how we relate to our own child/ren and other people.

Have you read this book? What are your thoughts on it?

Happy Reading.

syc

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Book Review: The Accidential Further Adventures of the Hundred-Year-Old Man… by Jonas Jonasson

I had so much fun reading The Hundred-Year-Old Man Who Climbed Out the Window and Disappeared that is why I knew I had to read this book which once again features the much-beloved Allan Karlsson.

On reading the foreword by Jonasson, the author himself, I was even more excited to get reading. Jonasson had confessed that he had had no intention of writing another book about Allan, however, Mr. Karlsson kept entering his thoughts and recent world events left Jonasson feeling the need to write about how it ought to be, and Allan was the only one who could help him do that.

So this is how we find ourselves witnesses to Allan’s 101st birthday at a luxurious Indonesian beach resort where in the midst of festivities, Allan and his dear friend Julius find themselves floating away in a balloon. Landing in the Indian Ocean, they are picked up a North Korean carrier which delivers them to Pyongyang and its supreme leader.

The story takes all the unexpected twists and turns we have come to expect of Jonasson’s writing. Of course, recent world events and world leaders (let’s do some name-dropping here; the Swedish foreign minister, the German chancellor, Donald Trump) are woven into the plot to make a tale that is rather tall but still within the realm of probability. Throw into the mix some plutonium, a coffin-making business, some spiritual research, journeys through various countries with a crazy “Nazi” on their heels and we have ourselves a book that I could not get enough of.

Now you know what I think, I hope you would give this book a read and let me know what you think.

Happy Reading!
syc