Search - East is East

Excellent writing, amazing vocabulary...but you need to have some good mental health because this guys stuff is dark. Not for the weak of heart.

I found this book to be thoroughly enjoyable from the first paragraph to the very last word. It was an easy read and a fun story but still had depth. It's the story of searching for one's identity and place in the world, of prejudice and preconceived notions, of misunderstandings. Hiro Tanaka is born in Japan to a Japanese mother and a white father who abandoned them before he was born. As a half-breed he is never accepted in Japan, so at the age of 20 he decides to get a job as a cook on a ship bound for America, where he has heard they will accept anyone. Unfortunately, things go badly and he ends up jumping ship off the coast of Georgia, finally coming to shore on swampy, confusing Tupelo Island. Meanwhile, Ruth Dershowitz is an aspiring author at an artist's colony on the island struggling to make her mark on the world. Their paths intertwine. I really enjoyed the way the story was told from the points of view of different characters--from the main characters to minor characters to very minor characters--which helped explain all of the misunderstandings and how even though everyone has good intentions, bad situations can still occur. A great story. I'd love to read more by this author.

Loved this book... kept me up hours past bedtime. I've yet to be disappointed by anything Boyle's written, but thus far, this one has to be my favorite.

I wish I hadn't bothered with this... I was expecting something humorous and interesting, and from day one I was a little taken aback by some of the dialect, let alone the dark overtones of the whole thing. (I *live* in the South. 'Ya'll' is *not* something you say to *one* person alone...) Having just finished it a few hours ago, I now feel a bit on the depressed side, and wish I'd spent my week on something better. If you're looking for something light-hearted, look elsewhere.