4/20/14

SPOILER ALERT(I will be talking about my Lit circle book: Snow Falling on Cedars. Do not read this blog if you plan to read the book). Okay I have to be honest, in the beginning, I was a little disappointed with the novel I chose for my lit circle. Everyone else seems to be so passionate about their novel, and I like my novel but I do not LOVE it. I chose the novel Snow Falling on Cedars, and I expected it to be a thrilling murder mystery! However, I soon found out that murder is not the center focus of the novel. The novel begins in the middle of the the trial of a Japanese American who is convicted with killing Carl Heine. The novel jumps between the life of Carl Heine, the life of Kabuo, the life of Hatsue and her relationship with Ishmael, and so much more! I have read half the book, and it seems that the author has given me so much information, yet I still do not have all the information to connect the dots!
   In out first lit circle, my group and I discussed the fact that the author did not write the novel chronologically. He wrote it so that each chapter focuses on a different person and a different point of view to the story. When I first started reading the novel, I was frustrated with the way it was written because I did not like all of the interruptions! I just wanted to find out who the murder is!  Now that I have gotten through half of the book, I have gotten used to the different aspects and points of view, and I now realize how important it is that the book is written this way. The author gives the reader so much information about the people on the island and the people related to the murder, so the reader will be able to try to figure out the results of the trial. I personally cannot decide who killed Carl! My lit circle group and I at this point in time do not think Kabuo killed Carl. We believe that he is a man who has been marked and hardened by war. He knows the sins he has committed, and it seems that he would rather stay in jail to pay for these sins. Although he has every motive to want to kill Carl, I think this solution would be too obvious. All good murder mysteries have a plot twist in the end. I think Kabuo has made mistakes and has sinned in the past, but I think he is innocent of killing Carl.
  I want to clarify that I do not dislike this novel at all! I actually enjoy learning about the history of the treatment of the Japanese Americans after Pearl Harbor in a fictional story. The novel is growing on me, and I am finally getting into the characters and into the story. I know understand how it is written and how the different points of view and details of the different relationships are necessary! I looks forward to reading the rest of the novel and finding out who the murderer truly is!