Rain Song by Alice Wisler

Rating: 5 stars

Synopsis from cbd.com: Nicole Michelin avoids airplanes, motorcycles, and most of all, Japan, where her parents once were missionaries. Something happened in Japan...something that sent Nicole and her father back to America alone...something of which Nicole knows only bits and pieces. But she is content with life in little Mount Olive, North Carolina, with her quirky relatives, tank of lively fish, and plenty of homemade pineapple chutney. Through her online column for the Pretty Fishy Web site, she meets Harrison Michaels, who, much to her dismay, lives in Japan. She attempts to avoid him, but his e-mails tug at her heart. Then Harrison reveals that he knew her as a child in Japan. In fact, he knows more about her childhood than she does...

Review:  There are certain books that I always save for vacation, for a time that I can relax and best appreciate them.  I have enjoyed seeing Rain Song on my shelf since receiving it as a Christmas gift several months ago, and I just treated myself to reading it during a recent trip to the Hudson River Valley. 

As I began reading Rain Song, I expected the plot to consist mainly of Nicole's experiences in Japan, but I soon realized that taking the steps to travel to Japan is the greatest part of the journey.  Like me, Nicole Michelin does not like the thought of flying, and she has her share of insecurities.   Like all of us, she has certain fears and past experiences that she must face before she begins to fully embrace her future.  We may have dreams and desires to accomplish something, and we may know how to take a series of small steps to get there, but taking action is often the most difficult part. Opportunities can be overshadowed by our own fears.   

Rain Song is a deeply moving novel that resonates with the part of each of us that has experienced loss, self-doubt, and fear.  Written in first person, Nicole shares her daily thoughts about her relatives and past in a way that often jumps from topic to topic, much like our own minds.  She has avoided her painful past and the mystery that surrounds the death of her mother, but the loss has left a gaping hole in her heart.  Nicole deeply loves her aging grandmother, but fears losing the only mother-figure that she can remember.  After beginning her correspondence with Harrison,  she is given the opportunity to learn about the past, but only she can fully overcome her fears.

Alice Wisler has crafted a very well-written and thought-provoking novel that will both inspire and challenge each reader.  I highly recommend Rain Song to be used in a reading group as well because it offers many possibilities for  discussions.

Moon Over Tokyo by Siri Mitchell

Rating: 4.5 Stars

After reading Siri Mitchell's She Walks in Beauty last year, I became a big fan of her writing.  Within the last year, my sister and I have read both her historical and contemporary novels and we have enjoyed each one of them. Most recently, I read Moon Over Tokyo, a novel that follows the life of an American newspaper  reporter and inspiring writer, Allie O'Connor.  Allie is a somewhat quirky and sarcastic, but very relatable character as she struggles to embrace life in Japan.  In a "it's a small world twist" Allie meets Erik Larsen, a former high school classmate who she considered her rival.  As her friendship with Erik develops, Allie is forced to examine her prejudices, dreams, and her life in and out of Japan.

I believe that one of Mitchell's greatest strengths is her ability to describe a setting so thoroughly that readers feel as though they have been transported through time or across the world.  Moon Over Tokyo is a perfect example of that strength.  Although I have never been to Tokyo, Mitchell's descriptions and imagery allowed me to envision the scenery, the skyscrapers, the hustle and bustle of the populated city, and the serenity of the smaller seaside or mountain towns.  The one minor fault that I found with this novel is that the voice of Allie O'Connor is very similar to the voice of the main characters in Mitchell's other contemporary novels.  Despite the similar voice, the setting and the plot made this story unique.  I highly recommend this novel to my fellow readers.  It is a quick and fairly light read, but I plan to keep this book on my shelf for quite a while! ~ M