Absolutely beautiful. Loved it. ( )

Shallow, boring. ( )

A Touching Book from a Favorite Author

Isabel Allende has long been a favorite author of mine. Lyrically written, this book explores forbidden love aging, loyalty, family ties, resilience, and displacement.
I would like to give it more than 5 stars!!! ( )

I grew up in San Francisco and so the story put me back in the mood for that rich and colorful place of my young adulthood. The theme, for me, was the grace and courage one needs in aging, and the intensity of our love doesn't fade away with the years. As a young woman of 70 years, I felt she was talking to me. ( )

3.5

I'm not entirely sure how this came to be on my TBR list. Was it recommended to me? Mentioned in another book? On a Best Of list? I have no clue. It's not book I would normally have picked up but it remained on my TBR list. Then it tied in a poll I did in my stories and finally won by a coin toss... So I guess it was meant to be.

Alma Belasco is an affluent and independent resident at a nursing home in San Francisco. There she meets Irina Bazili, a young care worker at the home who is running from her past. The two become close and with the help of Seth, Alma's grandson, we begin to learn about Alma's life. From being shipped to her Aunt and Uncle in the US at the beginning of WWII to meeting Ichimei Fukuda, the gardener's son, and the boy who would become her secret lifelong love.

The Japanese Lover follows not only Alma but also Ichimei to the Japanese internment camp that he and his family were forced into after Pearl Harbor. It follows Irina from her tiny village in Moldova to a house in Dallas. It manages to alternate between present day (2015) and the past very smoothly and tells the story of Alma and Irina.

It is a simple and beautiful story and was very easy to read. While not exactly up my (usually dark and creepy) alley, I can wholeheartedly appreciate it for what it is... A melodrama.

The novel is a delicate, intimate story of love (in many forms) and is written in third person which is a style that can often feel quite impersonal. While Allende manages to sidestep that hazard, the book is overflowing with exposition but short of any action which would have had my pulse racing.

Anyway, while not my usual taste, I was able to get lost in the story enough that I finished in a couple of days. The characters were genuine, unique, and complete in their own rights. The story was compelling and there were some beautiful passages. I'd be more than willing to read something else by Allende so that might tell you something. ( )