A Tale for the Time Being by Ruth Ozeki - Canongate Canons Edition - Fiction - Paperback

Details:
Condition: BRAND NEW
Format: Paperback
ISBN: 9781838856250
Publisher: Canongate (Canons)
Age Range: Adult

Overview

A Tale for the Time Being is Ruth Ozeki's Man Booker Prize-shortlisted novel, part of the Canongate Canons series celebrating modern classic fiction. When Ruth finds a Hello Kitty lunchbox washed ashore in British Columbia, she uncovers the diary of Nao, a Japanese teenager grappling with bullying and her great-grandmother's Zen wisdom. Spanning oceans and the 2011 tsunami, it's a profound story about time, connection and being human.

About the Book

In the wake of the 2011 tsunami, Ruth discovers a barnacle-encrusted Hello Kitty lunchbox washed up on the shore of her remote island home in British Columbia. Inside, wrapped in plastic, she finds a diary written by Nao, a sixteen-year-old Tokyo schoolgirl who has decided that before she takes her own life, she wants to document the story of her 104-year-old great-grandmother, a Buddhist nun. As Ruth reads deeper into the diary, she becomes entangled in Nao's fate, questioning whether the girl is still alive and why the diary found its way to her. Ozeki weaves together two narrators separated by the Pacific and possibly by time itself, blending quantum physics, Zen philosophy and Japanese folklore about crows into a story both intimate and cosmic. Shortlisted for the Man Booker Prize and the National Book Critics Circle Award, the novel has been praised for its warmth, wit and philosophical depth, tackling suicide, bullying, war and the search for home with rare sensitivity. Readers who enjoy literary fiction blending personal narrative with big ideas, and fans of Haruki Murakami or David Mitchell, will find much to love here.

• Man Booker Prize shortlisted and National Book Critics Circle Award shortlisted novel
• Part of the collectible Canongate Canons series of modern classics
• Rich blend of literary fiction, Japanese culture, Zen philosophy and quantum physics
• Brand new paperback copy, perfect for gifting or building a literary fiction collection
• Ideal for readers of Haruki Murakami, David Mitchell and thoughtful, character-driven fiction
• A moving exploration of grief, identity, connection and the nature of time

About the Author

Ruth Ozeki is an American-Canadian author, filmmaker and ordained Zen Buddhist priest. Her acclaimed novels, including My Year of Meats, All Over Creation, A Tale for the Time Being and The Book of Form and Emptiness, weave personal narrative with pressing social and environmental issues, touching on science, technology, race, religion and global culture. Her work has been translated into more than thirty languages and shortlisted for major literary prizes. Ozeki teaches creative writing at Smith College, where she holds the position of Grace Jarcho Ross 1933 Professor of Humanities in the Department of English Language and Literature.

Why You'll Love This Novel

A genre-blending, prize-shortlisted story connecting a diary washed ashore to questions of time, memory and human connection. Thoughtful, moving and endlessly quotable, it's a must-read for literary fiction lovers and a beautiful addition to any bookshelf.

Please Note: Book cover may vary slightly from the image shown; you will receive the UK edition with the ISBN stated above.