When Rose arrived in Japan, she didn’t have any idea what to expect. When her father’s lawyer reached out after his death and said she had to come for the reading of the will, she hadn’t spoken to her father in decades. Now, here she was, on some preplanned journey her father crafted to learn more about his legacy and who she really is. What she finds is so much more than information about her father.
A Single Rose is the latest release from Muriel Barbery, the award-winning novelist behind The Elegance of the Hedgehog. Originally written in Barbery’s native French, the novel was translated into English by Alison Anderson for further distribution. This book focuses on the power of heritage and family legacy. It also highlights the danger of waiting too long to repair broken relations. Readers will find this book engaging and inspiring for their own relationships.
I give A Single Rose 3 out of 5 stars. This book felt hard to follow and confusing at times. I was confused by how the characters connected and, at times, the relationships felt inappropriate. This was a book I had a hard time getting into and then had a very difficult time staying interested in. This just wasn’t the book for me, but I can see the draw and potential it could have for some readers.
With descriptive sexual encounters and other difficult topics, this book would be best directed to audiences over 16. I would recommend this book to readers who enjoy works by other authors like Kazuo Ishiguro or Arthur Golden. This may also make a great book club pick for foreign literature clubs.
I chose A Single Rose for the Read With Lindsey Reading Challenge prompt Less Than 200 Pages. I did choose the audio version of this book and I don’t think I would have made it through this if I had chosen the print version. There are other great choices for this prompt like Of Mice and Men, Animal Farm, and The Great Gatsby. We are reading these shorter books this week as school begins because we are all short on time as things get busy. What’s your favorite short novel?
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What I’m Reading
- Current print book: The Fall of Butterflies, Andrea Portes
- Current audio book: The Second Story Bookshop, Denise Hunter
- Book I’m most looking forward to: Gallop Towards the Sun, Peter Stark
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