The Samurai's Garden

by Gail Tsukiyama

A 20-year-old Chinese painter named Stephen is sent to his family's summer home in a Japanese coastal village to recover from a bout with tuberculosis. Here he is cared for by Matsu, a reticent housekeeper and a master gardener. Over the course of a remarkable year, Stephen learns Matsu's secret and gains not only physical strength, but also profound spiritual insight. Matsu is a samurai of the soul, a man devoted to doing good and finding beauty in a cruel and arbitrary world, and Stephen is a noble student, learning to appreciate Matsu's generous and nurturing way of life and to love Matsu's soulmate, gentle Sachi, a woman afflicted with leprosy.

Genres: Historical Fiction, Fiction, Japan, Book Club, Asia, Historical, Asian Literature

211 pages, Hardcover

First published March 1, 1995

About the author

Born to a Chinese mother and a Japanese father in San Francisco, Gail Tsukiyama now lives in El Cerrito, California. Her novels include Women of the Silk (1991), The Samurai's Garden (1995), Night of Many Dreams (1998), The Language of Threads (1999), Dreaming Water (2002), and The Street of a Thousand Blossoms (2007).

Reviews

[Jim Fonseca · Rating 4 out of 5]

This novel very much focuses on Japanese culture in 1930’s rural Japan. At that time Japan was invading China and savaging China’s people and cities. Yet life goes on in the rural village pretty much as usual with the exception that all the young men are missing as they are off at war.

(Edited 5/11/19 to hide spoilers and add photos)



The main character is not Japanese, but a young Chinese man from Hong Kong. His father is a wheeler-dealer businessman who does much business in Japan as his father before him did. So the father inherited a house with a caretaker in this rural seafront Japanese village.

While in the village he hears of the war only from a distance -- from letters from friends and family and from occasional radio broadcast that the servant/caretaker immediately turns off when he hears the young man approaching. The boy contracts tuberculosis and leaves college and his family in Hong Kong to recuperate in Japan for a year. He also learns by letter from his mother of his father’s on-going affair with a Japanese woman. He has to deal with these emotions toward his mother and father – again – at a distance. And what about the caretaker --- has he known all along of the father’s affair?



It’s a very atmospheric novel. We learn of Japanese daily life as well as festivals and celebrations, religious ceremonies, food and cooking. Much of the limited plot revolves around the caretaker’s support for a nearby leper village and a love triangle that existed between the caretaker, a woman who was (and still is) beautiful before she became a leper, and her former fiancée who abandoned her when she came down with the disease. The boy frequently visits the leper village and becomes acquainted with its inhabitants. Both the caretaker and the woman find fulfillment in their painstaking care of their gardens.

The boy also has a puppy love romance with a young Japanese woman whose father is fiercely anti-Chinese. In the end the boy returns home to Hong Kong enriched by what he has learned about Japanese culture but equally decimated by how the Japanese have ravaged his home country while they stand poised to take over Hong Kong.

Top photo from pandotrip.com; bottom from gstatic.com

[Jessaka · Rating 5 out of 5]

15 stars This is my second reading of this most beautiful book. It was hypnotic the 1st time around, but the second reading made me think about why I loved it the 1st time This took away it's hypnotic effect. Never analyze a book just go with the flow

But I had to question why I felt this book was so peaceful. Why when people were dying, when leopards were suffering, when they were shunned. When the young man, Steve, had TB and came to the samurai's garden to heal It was because of the gardener, Matsu, was so compassionate like a Zen master. And Steve was compassionate as well. It was the peace they both Brought into this world of sorrow.

[Chrissie · Rating 3 out of 5]

NO SPOILERS

This book is beautiful. The primary theme is about beauty. (And then there is a love story too.) I think beauty is very important in the Japanese culture. What really is beauty? The tempo is lulling, quiet, and calming. This too creates a kind of beauty. The concept of beauty is drawn through the lives of the main characters. The novel takes place at the time of the Rape on Nanking, when the Japanese were invading and slaughtering the Chinese at the end of the 1930s. In contrast, the novel plays out in a small Japanese village outside of Kobe. You have the quiet village life following the seasons, the routine Japanese festivals and the pervading sense of tranguilty that gardens and gardening create. Honor and respect and traditions of non-confrontation/silence still cannot stamp out the rumbling fears and problems of the time. Not only are we confronted with hatred between Japanese and Chinese but also the fear and dishonor associated with leprosy, the lepers having been pushed out to the village Yamaguchi. Silence and honor cannot remove the threats of natural disasters, fires and storms of nature and of people. These contrasting forces play out against each other. On one side you have the lulling order of society, and yet underneath rumbles these threatening problems. All would seem less threatening if allowed to surface.

This novel teaches the reader about Japanese traditions. The prose style fits the message. Look at Indian art. Compare it to Chinese art and then to Japanese art. You clearly see that as we move eastward all the nonessentials are removed. What is left is pure and simple. Art is incorporated into all parts of daily life - house construction, bathing, gardening, the use of scrolls, food preparation, to name but a few. This pure, simple form of art is also reflected in how the Japanese interact with each other.

I think you will be surprised about who the main protagonists are in this novel. I do not see Stephen in this role. It is Matsu and Sachi. So be a bit patient when you begin the novel. You will delight in the life story of the main two protagonists. Remember, beauty is not always what is on the surface. I said this book was about beauty. Well it is. But What is beauty? Is it that we see only with our eyes? Is it the clicking of stones when you rake a stone garden? Is it the delight of soaking in a hot, clean bath?, Is it all of these things? Is it something more?

P.S. How the Japanese switch between Shinto beliefs and Buddhism for different ceremonies never ceses to amaze me!

Stephen and his family seemed a way for the author to incorporate the confict between the Japanese and the Chinese into the plot. I do not think this was adequately explored. I found it hard to believe the ease with which they were accepted by the Japanese. Maybe that is why I chose three rather than four stars.

And was Yamaguchi truly a Japanese leper colony, or is this fictitious?!

[Kemunto Books · Rating 5 out of 5]

Many thanks to my GR friend Murray for the recommendation!

Something beautiful. Something tender. For a year we follow Stephen, a 20 year old Chinese boy sick with TB and who to recuperate, moves from busy Hong Kong to his grandfather's beach house in Tarumi, Japan. It is also around this time that Japan invades China(the story is set in 1937-1938).

Matsu is an older gentleman who lives in Tarumi and takes care of the beach house and its accompanying garden. He receives sick Stephen, takes care of him, cooks him meals but Stephen remains lonely and worried for his family back in Hong Kong because each day the Japanese army progresses more and more into China.

Throughout this formative year we follow Stephen as he copes with the realities of war, and the growing pains of young adulthood. He befriends a woman called Sachi. Her impression on young Stephen changes him. (Sachi has leprosy and lives in adjacent Yamaguchi, a secluded village for people with leprosy. Matsu and Sachi are lovers, and it's a tender thing to witness.... the whole thing was.) Stephen grows so much, many things happen during his stay: deaths, suicide, falling in love, looming divorces, and of course the invasion by Japan.

The story, it's beautiful, melancholic. Gentle and kind. I didn't want it to end. I wish I could get to know them all more and more!

[TXGAL1 · Rating 5 out of 5]

Beautifully written and serenely paced.

[Emiliya Bozhilova · Rating 4 out of 5]

Китайските пейзажи са наситени с една очарователна, преливаща в безкрайността перспектива, която е много далечна спрямо установения ни познат от Ренесанса насам триизмерен пейзажен западен модел. В китайската и японската пейзажна живопис светът е смътно очертан с няколко пестеливи, измамно конкретни, калиграфски линии, нанесени с едно едничко непрекъсващо движение, сред които сякаш се скита душата на художника, следвана от тази на зрителя. Някои модерни интерпретации смесват тези пейзажни техники с източнотоазиатската любов към цветята, и по-конкретно към лотоса. В един крехък, току що разпукнат лотосов цвят художникът е в състояние да помести неизбродими планини, гръмовни водопади, тайнствени мъгли, безметежно гладки езера, ярки залези и мънички лодки с околните крайбрежни храмове.



В един безметежно и неумолимо кратък отрязък от няколко случайно пресекли се човешки живота, Гейл Цукияма е приложила подобна техника. Малкото прелива в голямото, историческото - в интимното, ежедневното - в епичното, ефимерното - във вечното. Може би това е и една от тайните на японските градини, както - впрочем - и на китайските. Прекрасна книга с онази ясна, ведра и умиротворяваща мъдра тъга, като последно листенце, политнало към земята под напора на пролетен вятър.

П. П. Толкова е хубаво да се чете в добър роден превод ❤️

———
▶️ Цитати:

🍃“Градината е свят, изпълнен с тайни. […] Градината на Мацу ти шепне, тя никога не вика; води те по пътя с надежда за повече, сякаш всичко е видимо, но все пак е скрито.”

🗻“- Искате ли да ми помогнете? - попита тя.
- Не желая да разваля формите [на каменната градина] - отвърнах аз […]
Сачи прикри смеха си с дясната си ръка.
- Как можете да развалите едни камъни, Стивън сан? Можете само да ги разположите в нова подредба, а кой знае дали няма да се получи още по-добре.”

[Iliyana · Rating 5 out of 5]

Открих „Градината на самурая“ по абсолютна случайност преди около две години. Отне ми месеци да намеря праводържателите и когато най-сетне отворих файла на таблета си, се надявах да прочета хубава роман за Япония. За радост, оказа се много повече.
Лесно е да кажа, че книгата представя историята на Стивън – млад художник от Китай, изпратен да се възстановява от туберкулоза в крайбрежната вила на дядо си в японското селце Таруми, където първо открива градинаря с душа на самурай Мацу, а после и пътя към себе си. По-трудно ми е да разкажа колко значи тази книга за мен.
В лекция пред Обществената библиотека в Сан Франциско (може да се открие в YouTube, много е приятна за слушане) Гейл Цукияма разказва колко трудно ѝ е било да се захване да пише втора книга след успеха на първата си – Women of the Silk, още повече, че е искала следващият ѝ роман да бъде посветен на японската половина от наследството ѝ, да ѝ помогне да изследва част от себе си, която все още не познава добре. Започва с мънички стъпки, „много по японски“, както сама се изразява, от едно от най-характерните за културата неща, за които се сеща – градината. Чете книга след книга, докато не попада на едно конкретно изречение: You never walk from the front gate to the front door in a straight line; it’s always a curving path in which you discover things along the way. [Никога не изминаваш пътя от портата до входната врата в права линия; той винаги криволичи, така че да откриеш разни неща, докато вървиш.]
Така от образ, вдъхновен (в много общи линии) от чичо ѝ по майчина линия, Стивън се превръща в герой с история, герой, който чувстваме все по-близък заради епистоларната форма на романа – като личен дневник. Той слиза на гарата в Таруми и докато бавничко върви по криволичещата пътечка, разбира все повече и повече за живота и светогледа на Мацу – вглъбения градинар, който се грижи за къщата им и за самия него.
Четох книгата за проучване в труден за мен период и бързо открих, че всяка страница от нея ми действа като медитация – успокоява борещите се в мен емоции и мисли и ме оставя на брега пред къщата в Таруми, вгледана във вълните и в историята на Стивън, Мацу, Сачи и всички останали герои, които ме караха все по-навътре в себе си да се взирам. Самата Цукияма казва, че въпреки войната (действието се развива в края на трийсетте години на миналия век, по време на Втората китайско-японска война), природните и душевните бедствия в романа, тя винаги го е определяла като своята дзен книга. Майре Буюклиева, прекрасната преводачка, която със сърце и душа претвори текста на български, я определи като съзерцателна. И двете са прави, разбира се. Но нещата, които най-много ме впечатлиха в „Градината на самурая“ бяха спокойствието, стоицизма на Мацу, умението и силата да води достойно тихата битка на живота и да открива доброто и красотата в хората и заобикалящия го свят. И точно като Стивън, аз влязох в ролята на негов ученик и с любопитство го следвах, намирах частица след частица от историята му и взимах това, от което имах нужда, за себе си.
Ако трябва да завърша с едно изречение, то ще е, че препоръчвам „Градината на самурая“, защото истински я заобичах и защото в крайна сметка това е една изящна и затрогваща приказка за доброто и красотата, написана фино, елегантно, омайващо.

Прелестната корица е на Яна Аргиропулос.

[Connie G · Rating 4 out of 5]

"The Samurai's Garden" is a touching, gentle novel filled with Japanese culture. A Chinese young man, Stephen, was sent to his family's vacation home in a coastal town in Japan to recuperate from tuberculosis. The artistic student spends time with the caretaker, Matsu, who has created serene gardens. Matsu is quiet, but has hidden depths of wisdom. Matsu has been taking care of an older woman, Sachi, in a leper colony since they were both teenagers. Although Stephen is the narrator of the story, the lives of Matsu and Sachi were the most important focus of the book. Their devotion to each other under challenging circumstances taught Stephen the true meaning of love.

The novel is set in 1937-38 when Japan invaded China. Occasional radio reports and letters tell of the Japanese advance. Stephen meets his first love, a Japanese girl, but her father has a strong anti-Chinese attitude.

The story has elements of isolation and loneliness because Stephen was dealing with tuberculosis, and Sachi and the other lepers had to live away from society. It also had themes of loyalty, honor, and the quiet comfort of gardens. I enjoyed this lovely story, and wished I was reading it in Matsu's peaceful Japanese garden.

[Rumelia Nikolaeva · Rating 5 out of 5]

“ Дори да минеш по един път сто пъти, пак ще намериш нещо различно.”

“ Понякога обичаме и мразим, без да влагаме мисъл. Очакваме твърде много един от друг, а често грешим.”

“ Всички сме на този свят, за да следваме съдбата си.”

“ Животът не е само вътре в теб, а се простира навсякъде около теб, независимо дали го желаеш или не.”

“ Не сме толкова различни, хората и растенията. Всички сме част от една и съща природа и се учим да живеем едни с други.”

[Luke · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5/5

The jury's still out on this one, but frankly, I know myself too well to believe that they'll ever return with a definitive answer in hand.

Relying simply on gut instinct, I enjoyed the book. I have never traveled outside the US, and the cosmopolitan feeling of having aspects of China, Japan, and vague traces of Western culture all wrapped into one story was appealing, to say the least. The appeal for me was strengthened by the majority of the story taking place in Japanese landscapes filled with calm and natural beauty, an aesthetic that the prose made an especial effort to convey. However, there were many things that increasingly bothered me as the pages progressed, and were never satisfactorily resolved enough for my taste.

My biggest issue was with the main character, who as the sole first person narrator was entrusted with setting and maintaining the tone through the entirety of the novel. This tone is a very comforting, but ultimately placid one, and it is hard to believe someone would be so overwhelmingly lighthearted and good-naturedly accepting considering all the events swirling around him. Tuberculosis, being in a foreign country that is currently attacking your homeland, leprosy, suicide, parental issues, and so many other major events that seemed to only register for brief moments within the narrator's mind as a side note to an entry. However, I fully admit to being introspective in reaction to external conflicts to the point of neurotic anxiety, so I may be judging the character too harshly in terms of how he chooses to deal with all the chaos around him.

It still seems odd, though, his ability to block out major concerns and focus on the smaller events of the much less chaotic everyday life. One event in particular makes me believe that the author used the epistolary form as a means to achieve exactly that, namely when the narrator receives a letter concerning the Nanjing Massacre. Just as he sits down to compose a letter to his family and friends back on the mainland, time skips forward more than two weeks, and there is little mention of what had to have resulted in huge amounts of mental conflict. Ultimately, all conflict both physical and mental is received secondhand by the narrator, and he maintains his well meaning nature all the way through without any repercussions or consequent soul-searching. Forgive me my cynicism, but golden boy characters such as these don't seem the most realistic of beings.

There was an also worrying amount of focus on physical beauty being a synonym for moral goodness, an example being the numerous occasions when the narrator evaluated and reacted to characters seemingly for how their faces look and/or might have looked in the past. I don't see his interest in being a painter, a good looking one at that as mentioned by many of the other characters, as a good enough excuse for this constant preoccupation and lack of further insight into those around him, especially when concerning the females.

There's also the Second Sino-Japanese War to consider, which began before the events of the book and ended long after, fully subsuming this tale of a young Chinese man and his father traveling back and forth between the two participating countries. I have very little hard knowledge of the events, so it is near impossible for me to gauge how feasible it would have been for this kind of story to have actually happened. While it is obvious that the author made an effort to include pertinent cultural details of both countries, as well as the influences the West had on both, there is very little commentary on the difficulties there must have been in traveling between the two during a time of war. I find it hard to believe that the narrator and his father had such an easy time of coping with being in a country currently responsible for the slaughter of so many of their people, or that the Japanese themselves accepted them with minimal signs of anger and distrust. Again, I don't know the facts, so this is all personal perception of the matter.

Lastly, I had an issue with the prose. Admittedly, I am biased against short sentences, but there were too many times when I was thrown off by the basic mechanics of word order and usage, and had to backtrack in order to figure out what the author was trying to say. Many of the better ones were beautiful, to be sure, but I feel that the novel could have used to a better editor. Also, the ending explanation of the epistolary form used throughout the novel was a weak one, and rather than tying up the conclusion left me with a deep feeling of disbelief.

Ultimately, it was a very relaxing and casual novel that fed my craving for lands I have never been to, but didn't do much when it came to my craving for good literature.

[Kevon · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was an excellent and peaceful book...it is about a young chinese man who is sent to his parent's summer home at the beach in Japan to recover from an illness. The caretaker of the home becomes his life-teacher and as the book unfolds he learns about relationships, how to find peace within himself, and about love and loss. It is written as excerpts from his journal and so it is from his perspective...as though we, the reader, are sharing his inner-most thoughts and feelings. It gave me an insight into the beauty of Japan and the way of life in the remote parts of that country in the 1930s. I also particularly enjoyed it because the caretaker's garden is his reverent and therapeutic domain..something i can relate to. I had a sense of peace while reading this book and could not wait to find time to sit and read it in my free time. I would strongly recommend this book..it is an easy book to read and a quick read..one that I hated to see come to an end.

[Krasi Karaivanov · Rating 5 out of 5]

Как е възможно, в тази книга да не се случва нищо и в същото време да се случват толкова много неща?🫶🏻
Не успях да се свържа с персонажите през половината от историята и това е причината да не дам 5 от 5 звезди.
История за живота, за смъртта, за семейството, за честта и за изборите. Изненадващо съм много доволен, защото началото ми беше мех, но слава богу всичко се промени.

[Annette · Rating 5 out of 5]

The serenity and beauty of a Japanese garden and assistance of a samurai come through this story. Both aspects unveil a poignant story.

1937: Stephen Chan, 20 years old, is sent by his family from busy Hong Kong to his family’s summer house by the sea in Tarumi, Japan, to recover from tuberculosis.

He is met there by the only occupant of the house Matsu, who’s been taking care of the house and garden since early age. The garden reflects the extension of his life. In the village he is known for his art as a master of gardens. He uses flowers as colors to paint his picture in the garden.

While Stephen recuperates, he occupies his time with painting and drawing.

At the beach, he meets two sisters Keiko and Mika. As he gets to know Keiko, he learns of her brother being with the Japanese army in China. That makes him wander if the brother is in Shanghai, where Japanese recently celebrated their victory over controlling the city.

Matsu takes Stephen to Yamaguchi to visit his leper friend Sachi. This village in the mountains was designated just for lepers. With each visit Stephen gets to know Sachi more and he is fascinated by her calmness. He persists in convincing her to tell him her story. And it is a profound story.

As the story develops, it reveals in bits the sad history of Japanese invasions, including unnecessary brutality. But the story is concentrated on human nature and what it takes to achieve calmness as human nature tends to struggle.

The story has a bit slow beginning, but once the leper village is introduced (pg 23) the story picks up its pace and is touchingly presented.

The book mentions women divers, if you’d like to read more about this: The Island of Sea Women by Lisa See – about Korean island of Jeju known for women divers.

Highly recommend another book about the issue of lepers: The Island by Victoria Hislop

@FB/BestHistoricalFiction

[Tocotin · Rating 1 out of 5]

Bad, sentimental, insipid book about a young Chinese man from a wealthy Hong Kong family who is sent to a small village in Japan (why?) to convalesce from TB (?), only to discover a leper colony (named Yamaguchi lol) up in the mountains. The Japanese are conquering China, but the young man Stephen who loves to call himself Stephen-san (which he shouldn't do when speaking about himself) doesn't really care either for his country, his friends, or his family. Neither does he care about his illness, swimming in the sea, visiting people whose health has already been weakened by their disease, or kissing Japanese girls, all the time more or less happily spraying his surroundings with bacteria.

What else? There is a supposedly taciturn and secretive gardener Matsu, who after a few days spills all his sweet red beans to Stephen-san. There is his lover Sachi who lives in the colony and is ashamed at not having committed seppuku long time ago (despite the fact that women didn't commit seppuku). There are a few other people, who very often say "I am honored to see you here" and not much more. There is a lot of Japanese, which is funny, because a lot of it is incorrect (genken instead of genkan, yakata instead of yukata, stuff like that). The Japanese people in general are completely dead, killed by their politeness, mysteriousness and I dunno? honor? and rice crackers.

As long as books like these are being published, there is hope for every and all Orientalist charlatans under the sun. Cheers!

[Любен Спасов · Rating 5 out of 5]

Влюбен съм в тази книга!

Толкова красива, дълбока, смирена, смислена, изпълнена с любов история, скоро не бях чел. Книга, в която на пръв поглед не се случва нищо, а в същото време се разказа за цял един живот. Книга, която може да се определи като мудна, а я четеш, все едно е най-напрегната сцена в някой трилър и страниците просто летят. Книга, която дава уроци без да назидава и в един същи момент те умилява, разсмива и до болка натъжава. Книга, която ще помня дълго време и съжалявам, че я отлагах 2 години.

Въпреки че, като се замисля, тя дойде при мен в най-правилния момент. Момент, в който имах нужда точно от такава истинска история, пропита с реалистични герои и ситуации. История, която да ми покаже, че всеки един от нас има минало, което ни е направило хората, които сме днес. Показа ми как въпреки забързаното ни ежедневие е хубаво да поспрем за малко и да се опитаме да опознаем човека срещу нас, да бъдем търпеливи, да му дадем шанс. Защото е най-лесно да заклеймиш някого като мълчалив, недружелюбен, кисел, намръщен, но не знам зад неговата тишина какви истории са крият.

Гейл Цукияма е написала прекрасна книга – от онези тихите, които не вдигат шум, не се бият в гърдите колко са велики, а с простота на живота ни разбиват сърцето и ни карат да искаме още и още от нея. „Градината на самурая“ ни разказва за едно опознаваме между момче и възрастен мъж, който никой не познава, но през никой не се е и опитал да го направим. Стивън с едно юношеско любопитство, бавно и с финес, достига ди сърцевината на душата на Мацу и той му се довери да му разкаже своя лична история.

История, изпълнена със смърт, чест, семейство, тайна любов, искрено приятелство, красиви градини, които осмислят цели светове. Обратите в тази история са спокойни, но големи. Точно, когато си помислиш, че горе-долу си разбрал за какво иде реч, авторката добавя нов пласт, който допълва картинката или пък я променя напълно.

Стилът на писане на Гейл Цукияма е прекрасен. Както казах и по-горе „Градината на самурая“ е мудна книга, но се чете леко, бързо и не ти доскучава в нито един момент. Просто като разтвориш книгата се потапяш в света изграден от авторката и той ти е уютен и в никакъв случай не искаш да го напуснеш. И въпреки че част от темите в книгата са войната, нелечими болести, отритнати хора, самоубийства, това не те отблъсква от нея. Гейл Цукияма така е поднесла нещата, че те по-скоро дават хляб за размисъл и допълват цялата атмосфера в книгата.

Препоръчвам с 10 ръце тази „Градината на самурая“. Ако ви се чете нещо интересно, смислено и докосващо сърцето, тази книга ще ви задоволи напълно и ще ви накара да не искате да спрете да четете, докато не стигнете до финала.

[Ellery Adams · Rating 5 out of 5]

Languish for a while in the Tsukiyama's Japanese garden and you may never want to leave. The serenity created in Matsu's little haven is contradicted by the military domination of the Japanese over the Chinese and the reclusive leper colony struggling for a peaceful existence in a realm beyond that of war. It is to this environment that a young Chinese boy enters into in search of healthier air and soothing salt of the sea . As his body begins healing, his emotions are delicately fractured by all that he learns of war, leprosy, first love, his family secrets, and the servant Matsu - who is truly a master of wisdom, honor, and faith. I wanted to walk through this garden again and again.

[Aya · Rating 5 out of 5]

Разкошен historical fiction! Просто разкошен 🖤

[Maria Yankulova · Rating 5 out of 5]

Красива, изящна, бавна, фина, семпла, съзерцателна, красива книга. Роман, за който смятам, че няма нужда да се бият тъпани и да се пишат дълги ревюта. Ако ви намери, ще е вашата книга и ще си я преживеете сами. Никога не съм медитирала, но мисля, че с прочита максимално се доближих до медитация. Сюжета е много обран, но авторката успя да ме завладее по хиляди начини с всички разговори между героите, красотата на природата и спокойствието което всяка страница ми даваше. Исках и можех да прочета романа за два дни, но и ми се искаше това да става бавно, за да съм по-дълго в компанията на Стивън, Мацу и Сачи.

“Животът не е само вътре в теб, а се простира навсякъде около теб, независимо дали го желаеш или не.”

“Красотата съществува там, където най-малко очакваш да я намериш… Ти познаваше само обикновената красота, която се проявява външно. Може би сега ще изпиташ желание за нещо по-дълбоко.”

“Човек може само да се обърне назад с надеждата, че всичко, което се е случило в живота му, е имало някакъв замисъл.”

[Bookmaniac70 · Rating 5 out of 5]

Много източен по дух роман, в който събитията се разгръщат по-скоро във вътрешното, отколкото във външното. "Градината на самурая" разказва за една година от живота на млад мъж от Хонконг, който е изпратен да възстановява здравето си в крайбрежна семейна вила близо до Кобе, Япония. Годината е 1937, започнала е Втората китайско-японска война. В компанията на Мацу, възрастният домакин, и неговата градина Стивън намира своеобразен оазис между двата свята, но и получава трудни уроци. Грижата на Мацу за неговата приятелка Сачи, принудена да живее в отдалечено планинско селце, показва на Стивън какво е да си истински самурай в ежедневието. Много съзерцателна и фина книга, в която е вплетена част от семейната история на самата авторка – дъщеря на японец и китайка.

[Savina Nikolova · Rating 5 out of 5]

Прекрасна история, събрала толкова много смисъл в себе си. Всяка втора дума те замисля, кара те да се връщаш към спомени, към неизречени неща. Обичам такива книги, онези, които те карат да се вгледаш в себе си и да погледнеш живота отвъд ежедневието, отвъд битовизмите и малките неща, които съставят дните ни.

Нещата, които помниш за някого, когато вече го няма, са странни. Няма двама души, които да се чувстват по един и същи начин, макар че повечето хора обикновено помнят най-вече миризми или изражения, звученето на гласа, нетипичен жест.

Лудостта на войната унищожава много повече от войниците, които я водят. Тя съсипва всичко по пътя си и никой не е в състояние да избегне грабливите ѝ нокти.

[Diane Barnes · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a good book, a well told, gentle story, with believable, likable characters, but, for whatever reason, I just never got emotionally involved. A solid 3, heading toward 3.5.

[Yanitsa Genova · Rating 4 out of 5]

Разтягаща се нежност.

[Diane Lynn · Rating 5 out of 5]

Buddy read with Jeannette

On the face of it, The Samurai’s Garden is a beautifully told story of one young man’s journey to figure out who he is, a sort of coming of age story. But there is really so much more below the surface. There is an enchanting and poignant love story. The reader is shown how beauty can exist in a cruel world. There is betrayal, adultery, young love, and two gardens that play a large role as a place of peace. Plus other topics I don’t want to mention so as not to spoil anything. All of this is framed by the Japanese invasion of China during 1937-1938. Writing this I wonder how it all came together to make a cohesive story, but it does, and with beautiful imagery.

Stephen Chan is a young man of 20, recovering from tuberculosis. He is sent from his family’s home in Hong Kong to their summer beach home in Tarumi, Japan. Stephen is met at the Tarumi train station by Matsu, the family’s long time gardener/caretaker of the summer home. From the beginning it is clear that Matsu will not baby Stephen and that is just what Stephen needs at this point in his life. At first it seemed to me that Matsu was more the teacher or guide to Stephen. But really Matsu and Stephen form a bond and learn about life and family from each other. Stephen is introduced to other inhabitants of Tarumi who play a large role in his year long stay. Kenzo, Keiko and the most important, Sachi (an older woman who actually lives in Yamaguchi) all develop a relationship with Stephen.

This story is told by way of entries in Stephen’s journal as he learns about loyalty to friends and family. Japanese culture is incorporated into the story. Read the book it really is wonderful!

[Lisa (NY) · Rating 4 out of 5]

I hesitate to call this a "quiet" novel because often that means dull and boring. I enjoyed every page of this gentle, meditative book. The Samurai's Garden starts as the straightforward story of Stephen, a young Chinese man who goes to his family's seaside vacation home in Japan to recover from tuberculosis during WWII. But underneath the calm surface there is much more going on. Stephen's taciturn caretaker emerges as a hero, a woman whose face is eaten away by leprosy is profoundly beautiful and his Japanese friends are his country's enemies.

[ShirleyS · Rating 5 out of 5]

Lovely book. I didn’t want it to end. I wanted to accompany Stephen back to Hong Kong to rejoin his mother and sister. Also, I wanted him to continue to have Matsu and his garden and his words of wisdom in his life. Sigh. The book ended too soon.

[Teodora Zhelyazkova · Rating 5 out of 5]

Невероятна книга, чете се на един дъх.

[Daniela Marcheva]

"Градината на самурая" от Гейл Цукияма (изд. Benitorial, 2023) започва бавно и това е целенасочено, мисля - и ако влезеш в обувките на главния герой - Стивън, плавно те отвежда далеч от препускащия свят, там където времето тече по съвсем различен начин, то просто отминава и няма нищо по-нормално от това. А ти се сливаш с него, влизаш в ритъма на природата, на вътрешните си усещания, в теб се надига желание да учиш, да достигнеш истинско познание. И го правиш - учиш с искрено любитство и търпение за местата, за миналото, за връзката му с настоящето, за хората около теб, за техните причини да бъдат това, което са, за себе си. Учиш се на достойнство в мълчанието и непримиримост в примиримостта, на градинарство в градината на живота.

Даниела,

09.08.2023 г., гр. София

[Debbie Zapata · Rating 4 out of 5]

Sep 7, 10am ~~ Review asap. My good friend Insomnia and I rushed through this lovely book, but I want to think a bit before completing my review.

6pm ~~ This was my second Tsukiyama title, after The Street Of A Thousand Blossoms. Her work is lovely; I find it very easy to get lost in both the story and her way of writing it.

We are in Japan again for this book, but in a coastal village where the narrator's family has a vacation home. Stephen is sent from the main family home in Hong Kong to recover from a bout of tuberculosis. He will be staying with the caretaker Matsu, a man he vaguely remembers from childhood summers.

While he is there, Stephen learns quite a bit about the realities of life not only in the village but in his own family. I liked Stephen, he seemed a decent young man with the usual 20 year-old's issues to work through. But of course this is 1937, a time of war between Japan and China, so Stephen is a bit confused. Shouldn't he be seeing all the people around him as the enemy? And how is it that suddenly his own father seems more of an enemy than he could have ever imagined? Growing up and learning about the adult world you were sheltered from for so many years can be rough.

Of course I liked Stephen, I was shared his curiosity about Matsu, Matsu's best friend Kenzo, and the lady Sachi. What tied these three together and what lesson do they have for Stephen?

This seems like such a gentle little book, but there are some powerful themes involved. The bonds of community, love and respect between friends and family, dreams dashed and dreams fulfilled. I thought it was wonderful and I was glad it did not end the way I was halfway expecting it to end.

[Kathleen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Have you ever turned off the sound on a video or TV program, and just watched the picture? You see things you don’t see when you are distracted by the “noise.” That’s how this book felt for me--quiet and calm enough to expose some details I might otherwise have missed. And they were delicately beautiful details.

One of my takeaways: creating order and carefully-tended beauty can help us deal with the ugly and uncontrollable things that exist in our lives.

I love this kind of quiet and sensitive writing. While there were times when I thought Tsukiyama had taken it a bit too far, that the quietness here was possibly too much of a good thing, I was very much affected by the story. The distinctive characters and atmosphere will stay with me for a long time.

“He showed me that life is not just from within, it extends all around you, whether you wish it to or not.”

[Tatiana Belovska · Rating 5 out of 5]

Историята в „Градината на самурая“ започва бавно, мудно, и в един момент вече си заживял в Таруми, гледаш отстрани героите и ти се иска и ти да познаваш такива хора, които могат да открият красотата дори в най- тежката и грозна картина.
Прекрасно написана, трогателна и в същото време уютна книга. Чудесен разказ за себеоткриването, любовта, търпението и примирението и не на последно място- душевното и физическо оздравяване.
„Всички сме на този свят, за да следваме съдбата си.“
„Животът не е само вътре в теб, а се простира навсякъде около теб, независимо дали го желаеш или не.“
„ Сачи сан, ти познаваш само обикновената красота, която се проявява външно. Може би сега ще изпиташ желание за нещо по- дълбоко. „