Dreaming Water by Gail Tsukiyama
Nov. 22nd, 2009 10:49 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
meganbmooreHana Maruyama is 38, but has the body of an 80-year-old thanks to Werner’s Syndrome, a genetic defect that causes rapid aging. Hana is almost entirely dependent on her mother, Cate, and the two live a very quiet, orderly life. Hana’s best friend, Laura, has not seen Hana in over ten years, despite repeated offers to visit with her two daughters, who are Hana’s goddaughters. On the verge of divorce, Laura decides to take matters into her own hands, determined to see Hana at least once more before Hana is robbed of her awareness.
The book is split between the present and Cate and Hana’s pasts, not only with their living with Werners, but also the experiences of Cate and her husband, Max, as a biracial couple in the 50s and 60s, and Hana and Laura’s youthful friendship. Tsukiyama’s writing, I think, is better suited for whimsical, if sad, takes on history, and so ends up somewhat stilted when dealing with the present. Very good, but I’m starting to wonder if I’ll like any other book of Tsukiyama’s as much as The Samurai’s Garden.
The book is split between the present and Cate and Hana’s pasts, not only with their living with Werners, but also the experiences of Cate and her husband, Max, as a biracial couple in the 50s and 60s, and Hana and Laura’s youthful friendship. Tsukiyama’s writing, I think, is better suited for whimsical, if sad, takes on history, and so ends up somewhat stilted when dealing with the present. Very good, but I’m starting to wonder if I’ll like any other book of Tsukiyama’s as much as The Samurai’s Garden.