Saturday, January 19, 2019

One Day in December; Josie Silver and The Travelling Cat Chronicles; Hiro Awikawa


TITLE: One Day in December (416 pages)
AUTHOR: Josie Silver
PUBLISHER: Crown Publishing
PUB. YEAR: 2018
SETTING:  London
FORMAT:  - eGalley (Edelweiss)
RATING: 4/5 stars

  • It feels like love at first sight when Laurie sees a man through the window of a bus she is on. Their eyes connect but then he is gone.  His name is Jack but, all Laurie can do is search, yearn and hope that their paths will cross once more.  Then one day at a party they meet, nut, Jack is dating Sarah, Laurie's best friend.
  • Romantic comedy with movie potential - think of Sleepless in Seattle.
  • A feel good story to be enjoyed by anyone longing for a nice lighter read.
  • The story is told through Laurie and Jack's POV.
  • It makes you think about the "one that got away".
  • A nice story that I enjoyed way more than I  enjoyed way more than I  expected to.


TITLE: The Traveling Cat Chronicles (288 pages)
AUTHOR: Hiro Awikawa
PUBLISHER: Berkley
PUB. YEAR: 2018
SETTING:  Japan
FORMAT:  - print (sent by publisher)
RATING: 4.5/5 stars

  • Translated from the Japanese and told mostly from the POV of a once stray cat.  The cat was taken in by the kind-hearted Santoru after it was hit by a car.  The cat was named Nana (based on the Japanese word for seven-a lucky number). After 5 years together, the two head out on a road trip to visit old friends from Santoru's past. We are not sure why, but, it appears as if Santoru is trying to find a new home for Nana.
  • Without giving spoilers, this book is a must-read for anyone who has had a special bond with a cat (or any animal for that matter).
  • Funny, sad and a quick read as well. It's a story of family, old friendships, love and loss.
  • I loved this story so much but, I do wish that it was all told from the POV of the cat.

12 comments:

  1. I hope to read One Day in December soon because a customer recommended it to me. The Traveling Cat Chronicles sounds terrific!

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  2. The first one sounds good, we don’t do sad cats.

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  3. I read One Day in December, and I agree with you...it has great movie potential.

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  4. I like stories told from the point of view of animals. And I just read a novel translated from the Japanese, A Personal Matter by Nobel Prize winner Kenzaburo Oe, although it was I guess you would say considerably more gritty.

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  5. These both sound like something I would enjoy. Adding them to my library list!

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  6. I want to read One Day in December, but will likely have to wait a while for the library. Once Reese puts her 'stamp' on it, the hold list gets long, long, longer. Ha!

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  7. Both books sound really good. I think I might read The Traveling Cat Chronicles for Dolce Bellezza's Japanese Literature Challenge. It sound like one I would really like.

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  8. I enjoyed reading One Day in December as well. It was a good light holiday read.

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  9. I liked One Day in December and wouldn't be surprised if a film is eventually made.

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  10. I really enjoyed One Day in December and totally agree, this seems like it's meant to be a movie right? Now thinking who would I cast? :)

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  11. I've seen several positive reviews of ONE DAY IN DECEMBER. It sounds cute!

    I tend to shy away from books narrated by animals, so I probably won't check out THE TRAVELING CAT CHRONICLES, although I've heard good things about it as well.

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  12. Both of these books sound interesting and good. What is it with the Japanese and cats?

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