The Bells of Old Tokyo
Book Title: The Bells of Old Tokyo
Book Description: An elegant and absorbing tour of Tokyo and its residents From 1632 until 1854, Japan’s rulers restricted contact with foreign countries, a near isolation that fostered a remarkable and unique culture that endures to this day. In hypnotic prose and sensual detail, Anna Sherman describes searching for the great bells by which the inhabitants of Edo, later called Tokyo, kept the hours in the shoguns’ city. An exploration of Tokyo becomes a meditation not just on time, but on history, memory, and impermanence. Through Sherman’s journeys around the city and her friendship with the owner of a small, exquisite cafe, who elevates the making and drinking of coffee to an art-form, The Bells of Old Tokyo follows haunting voices through the labyrinth that is the Japanese capital: an old woman remembers escaping from the American firebombs of World War II. A scientist builds the most accurate clock in the world, a clock that will not lose a second in five billion years. The head of the Tokugawa shogunal house reflects on the destruction of his grandfathers’ city: “A lost thing is lost. To chase it leads to darkness.” The Bells of Old Tokyo marks the arrival of a dazzling new writer who presents an absorbing and alluring meditation on life in the guise of a tour through a city and its people.
Publisher Logo:
ISBN: 978-1250206404
Number Of Pages: 352
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Story / Interest
(3.5)
A bit of a slow read. Book's bibligraphy is helpful.
I wanted to love this book, especially as I love Japan and its rich culture. The Bells of Old Tokyo by Anna Sherman was a little slow reading for me. I thought some of the text was awkward and there seemed to be some condensation in the way it was written in a few parts. The story centers around the annual ringing of the temple bells across Tokyo. It is an exploration of both old Tokyo and its modern reimagination, as seen through the eyes of a young girl named Momo and her grandfather, Katsaburo. The illustrations, created by Yuko Shimizu, are stunning. I will take the book for the parts I enjoyed which included the complexities of reuniting Tokyo’s past and present. The Bells of Old Tokyo does capture Japan’s complex history and culture with warmth and beauty. I would rate it a 3.5 out of 5 and recommend reading this with the expectation that it is more of a personal reflection of the author.
Overall
3.5