Shifting Viewpoints and Time

In the extraordinary book, A Tale for the Time Being by Ruth Ozeki, a diary written by a suicidal Japanese teenage girl, Nao, is found on the beach by a Canadian writer, Ruth. Shifting viewpoints and time, the enthralling story touches upon timeless themes of man against man, man against nature, and man against God.

Nao is more than bullied, she is tortured physically and emotionally at school, but has her Zen Buddhist grandmother to mentor her and show how Nao can discover her personal power, which evolves from her present situation connected to her ancestors. A Tale for the Time Being is a tale woven in the past and present--the now and future--of both place and time.

I found myself pleading with the young woman not to let the bullies take her self away from her, becoming passionately entangled with Nao in a way I rarely do with a character. But, unfortunately, I could not become emotionally engaged with the second narrative voice of Ruth and found myself constantly having to reacquaint myself with her husband, Oliver. He did provide the vehicle for the ecological concerns so well addressed in the story, but it was not nearly as interesting to me. That, however, is a minor road bump in the journey of a thoughtful and beautifully crafted novel. The author, Ruth Ozeki, has received deservedly high critical acclaim for this book, and it is definitely a keeper in my library.