[FW1]≡ [PDF] Free Snow Falling on Cedars David Guterson 8601400186572 Books

Snow Falling on Cedars David Guterson 8601400186572 Books

Download As PDF : Snow Falling on Cedars David Guterson 8601400186572 Books

Snow Falling on Cedars David Guterson 8601400186572 Books

This is one of my all time favourite novels, rife with beautiful writing, rich characters, excellent description, thoughtful, poignant, at times nostalgic, at times hopefull, but Amazon's words are so lacking here.. It is one of those hard to describe types of novels that defies a simple categorization, and I hate to call it a mystery because while there is one, it is NOT a "mystery novel." They writing is poignant, there is a wonderfully written back story interposed, moral dilemmas, and of course a man is on trial for murder.

Set in the 1950s, the flashbacks go to the 1930s and 1940s, both before and during WW II. We see how WW II threw this community with both European and Japanese Americans into a tailspin and with unresolved conflict and issues still simmering under the surface. Ishmael, the protagonist and not on trial, is a one-armed vet who is the town reporter, is one of those with those unresolved issues in his life. I have read this novel more than once from the library, but finally realized I want to own my own copy, and not just buy it as a gift for someone else.


Tags : Snow Falling on Cedars [David Guterson] on Amazon.com. *FREE* shipping on qualifying offers. Winner of the PEN/Faulkner Award American Booksellers Association Book of the Year Award San Piedro Island,David Guterson,Snow Falling on Cedars,Vintage,067976402X,9780679764021,Literary,Reading Group Guide,FICTION Asian American,FICTION Literary,FICTION Thrillers Suspense,Fiction,Fiction - General,GENERAL,General Adult,Japanese Americans,Japanese Americans;Fiction.,Journalists,Journalists;Fiction.,Legal stories,Modern & contemporary fiction (post c 1945),Trials (Murder),Trials (Murder);Fiction.,Washington (State),romance;washington state;washington;books to movies;immigration;asian american;twentieth century;20th century;courtroom drama;pacific northwest;murder mystery;american fiction;japanese;japan;snow;literary fiction;thriller books;thrillers;thriller;suspense books;betrayal;suspense;asian;asian fiction;mysteries and thrillers;fiction;novels;fiction books;literature;books fiction;suspense thriller books;realistic fiction books;mystery thriller suspense;mystery and thriller;suspense fiction;wwii,romance; washington state; washington; books to movies; immigration; asian american; twentieth century; 20th century; courtroom drama; pacific northwest; murder mystery; american fiction; japanese; japan; literary fiction; wwii; snow; thriller books; thrillers; suspense; thriller; mystery thriller suspense; asian; asian fiction; mysteries and thrillers; fiction books; fiction; literature; suspense fiction; mystery and thriller; suspense thriller books; suspense books; betrayal; novels; realistic fiction books; books fiction

Snow Falling on Cedars David Guterson 8601400186572 Books Reviews

More than met expectations. I grew up during that time. I had a Japanese piano teacher in the 1950's and 1960's. I was a missionary in Japan. And I lived in the Puget Sound area of Washington for nearly 10 years. So the story rang a lot of bells for me, and the book presented a very sensitive portrayal of both the Japanese immigrants and the Americans who lived on this small island. I highly recommend it.
The opening scene in riveting a small-town courtroom on an island in the upper end of Puget Sound on a snowy day. Having lived in Seattle for a few years, I can really say that his description of the residents of the island, and the geography itself (sounds like Whidbey Island to me) is excellent. Guterson's descriptions of the salmon-fishing, strawberry-growing culture, their houses, boats, and perspectives are wonderfully refreshing. Set in the 50's, it shows the honest simplicity of life in that era, yet gets into the complexity of the personalities and feelings of the main characters. Guterson displays the interactions of the local people as though he might have been one of them. Their social transactions are complex, although properly muted in 50's fashion so there is not a lot of dirty wash hanging out in public. If you like Garrison Keillor's Prairie Home Companion stories from Lake Wobegon, you will probably do well with this book. The alleged murder of fisherman Karl Heine by Japanese fisherman Kabuo Miyamoto kicks off a fury of irrational anger at the otherwise exemplar Japanese population. Having been born in 1945, it reminds me vividly of the comments and prejudices I heard about the Japanese way back in South Dakota where most people had never met such a human -- except on the battlefield. The teenage romance between Ishmael (later the island's sole newspaper editor) and Hatsue Imada (who would finally marry Kabuo) is touching and heart-wrenching, although their conversation and insights into their situation might be a bit too high-level for their time and maturity. It is Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet set in Puget Sound. The sudden hysteria and hatred that boils over when Heine is found dead and Kabuo is accused, jailed and charged based on very circumstantial evidence shows how fine the line is between acceptance, toleration and total condemnation when ethnic groups live together in close proximity. Guterson uses flashbacks to develop the main characters very fully to the point where you think you might be living next door to them by the end of the novel. The murder mystery aspect of this story is only a vehicle for a deep exploration into the heart and soul of humans, as individuals and groups. The ending is predictable and uplifting, but left me with the feeling that the island had a lot of work to do to get back to normal -- years of atonement and reconciliation. This story is a good read for those who allow themselves to be swept away into a beautifully told, tragic story. Real men do not cry when reading storybooks, but I strangely noticed some tears on my cheeks every now and then. This is not a formula-based murder mystery. It is a story that can stick with you and make you look at yourself as though you might have been one of the islanders.
I watched the movie on a rainy day and decided to buy the book. The book gives a great deal of insight into the tragic time for the Japanese community in USA. It is suspenseful and very well written but it is not a huge mystery.
The author recreates the wartime hysteria that led to Japanese-Americans being sent to concentration camps. The book is more than a story of one man's guilt or innocence; it is a story of a community's fear and prejudice against the Japanese Americans and brings to mind the current prejudice against people of Islamic faith. The story stays with you but it is not a book that I can't put down.
I read SNOW FALLING ON CEDARS when it was first published years ago and it left such a positive impression that I decided to re-read it recently. This is one of my favorite books of all time and the second time around was just as spellbinding, emotional and gripping as the first. While I discovered more details with my recent reading than I remembered, the overall experience was just as powerful. I've recommended it to numerous people who have also been impressed with the quality of writing and the powerful and emotional impact of this novel. I happen to know quite a bit about gill net fishing and about Puget Sound so felt immersed in this setting. CEDARS creates a palpable "feeling"... not just words...haunting and ethereal at the same time...I was inside the cedar tree with Hatsue and Ishmael, on the boats and at Manzanar. The author is truly a master with words and his novel is a master of literature. I probably will read it again and again.
This is one of my all time favourite novels, rife with beautiful writing, rich characters, excellent description, thoughtful, poignant, at times nostalgic, at times hopefull, but 's words are so lacking here.. It is one of those hard to describe types of novels that defies a simple categorization, and I hate to call it a mystery because while there is one, it is NOT a "mystery novel." They writing is poignant, there is a wonderfully written back story interposed, moral dilemmas, and of course a man is on trial for murder.

Set in the 1950s, the flashbacks go to the 1930s and 1940s, both before and during WW II. We see how WW II threw this community with both European and Japanese Americans into a tailspin and with unresolved conflict and issues still simmering under the surface. Ishmael, the protagonist and not on trial, is a one-armed vet who is the town reporter, is one of those with those unresolved issues in his life. I have read this novel more than once from the library, but finally realized I want to own my own copy, and not just buy it as a gift for someone else.