One Hundred Flowers
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Description
'A believable slice-of-life window into human nature that resonates on multiple levels' - The Japan Times
FROM THE AUTHOR OF THE JAPANESE BESTSELLER IF CATS DISAPPEARED FROM THE WORLD WHICH HAS SOLD OVER TWO MILLION COPIES
The fragrance of a single stem in a vase.
The shimmering reflection of fireworks in a lake.
The quiet of a bookshop as evening falls.
The feeling of opening a brand-new diary and beginning to write ...
Moments of beauty endure. But what happens when you begin to forget?
Yuriko leads a quiet, orderly life as a piano teacher. It's New Year's Eve and her grown-up son Izumi comes to visit. Yuriko makes him his favourite meal: omelette and hayashi rice. Together, they look like a normal family.
But Yuriko has a secret. Many years earlier, when Izumi was a boy, Yuriko suddenly disappeared for an entire year. She returned, but the lost year was never discussed.
Now as Yuriko begins to lose her memory, Izumi is forced to race against time as he seeks the truth behind this long-buried mystery. Will he learn to understand the woman his mother once was, before it is too late? And is he ready to become a father himself?
One Hundred Flowers is a story about the preciousness of every moment, the beauty and pain of family love, and the healing power of letting go.
Translated by Cathy Hirano.
Book Information
Posts
Guter Anfang, okayes Ende
Das Buch hatte mich am Anfang echt gepackt, nur wurde es relativ schnell uninteressant mit komischen Zeitsprüngen (die ich echt viel zu spät gemerkt habe) und dann war auch schon das Ende da (wo ich leider viel überflogen habe- 30 Seiten). Am Ende wurde es wieder emotionaler, aber nicht so, wie ich es mir „erhofft“ hatte. Würde ich nicht weiter empfehlen.
Heartwarming and heartbreaking 🫶
A very touching story about a son trying to understand his mother as she's slowy losing her memory. As the story progresses we get to know parts of their broken son and mother relationship and it's truly interesting what kind of memories remain and how two people can remember the same event so differently. The more the mother struggles with Alzheimers the more confusing her point of view gets - it makes you feel like you too are slowly losing your mind. A truly scary illness which unfortunately many families have to deal with. It raises the question about what makes us human and who we are without our memories. There were a few odd chapters set at the son's work space which kind of interrupted the reading flow for me since they didn't have anything to do with the main story and were rather random. But all in all I really enjoyed it and the ending definitely made me cry. Parts of it are set during New Years so it's a great book to start the year with :) It made me think about my own parents and family and how hard it would be to watch a loved one slowly vanish and not recognize you anymore.
Description
'A believable slice-of-life window into human nature that resonates on multiple levels' - The Japan Times
FROM THE AUTHOR OF THE JAPANESE BESTSELLER IF CATS DISAPPEARED FROM THE WORLD WHICH HAS SOLD OVER TWO MILLION COPIES
The fragrance of a single stem in a vase.
The shimmering reflection of fireworks in a lake.
The quiet of a bookshop as evening falls.
The feeling of opening a brand-new diary and beginning to write ...
Moments of beauty endure. But what happens when you begin to forget?
Yuriko leads a quiet, orderly life as a piano teacher. It's New Year's Eve and her grown-up son Izumi comes to visit. Yuriko makes him his favourite meal: omelette and hayashi rice. Together, they look like a normal family.
But Yuriko has a secret. Many years earlier, when Izumi was a boy, Yuriko suddenly disappeared for an entire year. She returned, but the lost year was never discussed.
Now as Yuriko begins to lose her memory, Izumi is forced to race against time as he seeks the truth behind this long-buried mystery. Will he learn to understand the woman his mother once was, before it is too late? And is he ready to become a father himself?
One Hundred Flowers is a story about the preciousness of every moment, the beauty and pain of family love, and the healing power of letting go.
Translated by Cathy Hirano.
Book Information
Posts
Guter Anfang, okayes Ende
Das Buch hatte mich am Anfang echt gepackt, nur wurde es relativ schnell uninteressant mit komischen Zeitsprüngen (die ich echt viel zu spät gemerkt habe) und dann war auch schon das Ende da (wo ich leider viel überflogen habe- 30 Seiten). Am Ende wurde es wieder emotionaler, aber nicht so, wie ich es mir „erhofft“ hatte. Würde ich nicht weiter empfehlen.
Heartwarming and heartbreaking 🫶
A very touching story about a son trying to understand his mother as she's slowy losing her memory. As the story progresses we get to know parts of their broken son and mother relationship and it's truly interesting what kind of memories remain and how two people can remember the same event so differently. The more the mother struggles with Alzheimers the more confusing her point of view gets - it makes you feel like you too are slowly losing your mind. A truly scary illness which unfortunately many families have to deal with. It raises the question about what makes us human and who we are without our memories. There were a few odd chapters set at the son's work space which kind of interrupted the reading flow for me since they didn't have anything to do with the main story and were rather random. But all in all I really enjoyed it and the ending definitely made me cry. Parts of it are set during New Years so it's a great book to start the year with :) It made me think about my own parents and family and how hard it would be to watch a loved one slowly vanish and not recognize you anymore.