Wednesday, August 29, 2018

The Japanese Lover; Isabel Allende


The Japanese Lover was our August book group pick.  Unfortunately, most of us had lots of issues with this story.

First, here's a description of the story line ---

In 1939, as Poland falls under the shadow of the Nazis, young Alma Belasco’s parents send her away to live in safety with an aunt and uncle in their opulent mansion in San Francisco. There, as the rest of the world goes to war, she encounters Ichimei Fukuda, the quiet and gentle son of the family’s Japanese gardener. Unnoticed by those around them, a tender love affair begins to blossom. Following the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, the two are cruelly pulled apart as Ichimei and his family—like thousands of other Japanese Americans—are declared enemies and forcibly relocated to internment camps run by the United States government. Throughout their lifetimes, Alma and Ichimei reunite again and again, but theirs is a love that they are forever forced to hide from the world.

Decades later, Alma is nearing the end of her long and eventful life. Irina Bazili, a care worker struggling to come to terms with her own troubled past, meets the elderly woman and her grandson, Seth, at San Francisco’s charmingly eccentric Lark House nursing home. As Irina and Seth forge a friendship, they become intrigued by a series of mysterious gifts and letters sent to Alma, eventually learning about Ichimei and this extraordinary secret passion that has endured for nearly seventy years.


Group Comments -


  • Book was poorly written - grammar, lack of punctuation, just a bad translation in general
  • Might have benefited from some actual dialogue
  • It seemed like the author tried to throw in every issue she could think of - WWII, Japanese Internment camps, racism, illegal abortion, homosexuality, sex trafficking, child porn, assisted suicide and even AIDS
  • Alma, the main character, was a selfish individual that was hard to sympathize with. She was a woman living in wealth yet she would meet her lover at a run-down, rat infested, motel.
  • Irina was unlikeable as well: she spies on Alma and, although she had 3 jobs, she lives in a rat infested place with no bathroom and even has to shower at the old age home where she worked.
  • Overall opinion was - Disappointing
My Rating - 2/5 stars

13 comments:

  1. I've heard lots of good things about Allende's work so I'm sorry to see this was disappointing.

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    1. I really tried to like it and the first half held my interest.

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  2. Yikes! 2 out of 5 is not so good. I am impressed that you finished the book; if I am not enjoying a book I tend to stop and move on to something else.

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    1. I must admit to skimming toward the last 50 pages; not a terribly long book either.

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  3. Too bad... I've enjoyed one or two of her books in the past.

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    1. I think I've only read one other book by this author but, I know she is very popular.

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  4. I've had this on my radar but I think I'll pass. I dislike the books where the author is clearly trying to cram every tough issue they can think of into a book. It always feels very artificial.

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  5. I've read other reviews of disappointed readers with this novel. I have read three novels by Allende: two were very good, one was so-so. I have several more on my TBR, but I think I will leave this one for last, if I decide to read it at all.

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  6. Oh, dear. I like the premise of the novel, but I dislike it when an author seems to have a punchlist of all the issues they wish to address in their book. If it's not done well, it can be a huge distraction. I think I'll take a pass on this one. Have you read Snow Falling on Cedars? Your review brings to mind that book, which I thought was excellent!

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  7. I am sorry you and your group were disappointed with this one. I liked it quite a bit.

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  8. I still have never read anything by Isabel Allende, and now I’m not sure I will. Sometimes a theme or setting doesn’t appeal, but there’s no excuse for poor writing. That comment really surprises me!

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