One Day

I started reading The Thousand Autumns of Jacob DeZoet, by David Mitchell.  I put it down after the first 100 pages and decided that I needed to take a break and read one last summery book before embarking on such an undertaking.  David Mitchell is brilliant, but his books are not easy.  So I picked up One Day, by David Nicholls.  It had been recommended by several friends and had also been sitting on my nightstand for a while.

I found myself staying up way too late, and I finished it in three days.  It is easy to read and addictive, and since I am of a similar age as the characters (a few years younger!), I found it to be easy to relate to and interesting, thinking back on the culture and social climate of each year.  It was fun to think back on my life in my early 20s in the 90s, for example.  Being one of the last people I knew to own a cell phone.

I assume you've heard of it, but just in case....each chapter describes the two main characters on the same day - July 15 - for twenty years.  It's a beautiful and often frustrating love story, and you can definitely compare it to "When Harry Met Sally".  It is easy to picture the movie they are bound to make from it as well.

Here's the review from the Times if you want to read more.

Okay, now back to 1799 Japan...