“I bought this in a used bookstore thirty years ago on a whim, and have been oddly fascinated by it ever since. It's written in epistolatory style and reminds me a great deal of Louisa May Alcott. Our letter writer is a young widow from Kentucky who goes to Japan to teach in a Mission school in order to "recover" from her bad marriage. It's half-travelogue, half-morality tale written as a journal. The date is 1901, so the threat of war with Russian is everywhere, but all she sees at first is the fairytale beauty of Japan. The language is of its time, which makes a modern reader wince a little, but it's a compelling story and I recommend it for those who enjoy the 19th century style and want a glimpse of Japan at an interesting moment of history.”
Athenais wrote this review Tuesday, September 11, 2007.
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