Snow Falling on Cedars : A Novel

Rating:
Summary: A sad and good book
Review: The book may well have stylistic faults. Only a Japanese can say if his countrymen are drawn accurately. And yet, if the old photos have any meaning, the book is a good one, if only to one of those you Europeans would seek to bomb for being barbarian. The author belongs on the shrinking list of the civilized.

Rating:
Summary: Very good!
Review: This was a very good book. The description in it was wonderful. The reason I red this book was because it was an assingment for school, but in the end that didn't matter. The reason I gave this book 4 stars instead of 5 was because some parts were kind of slow. The descriptions were wonderful, the characters were interesting, and the story was original, in all, a great book. Oh, and as for the school report on "Snow Falling on Cedars," I got an A!

Rating:
Summary: no stars is what i would really give
Review: This book was lent to me by a friend who's sister read it for a History class at college. She loved it and her sister loved it too, but unfortunately I cannot see what is so special about it. I think the book tries to be about the unfair treatment of Japanese Americans and their internment. I think it also tries to be about the differences in culture, tradition, values, and social behavior between the Japanese Americans and the people of San Piedro Island and the difficulties caused by these differences. However, I don't think that the book actually achieves either of these goals (assuming that is what Guterson wanted to achieve). In it's place is a very flimsy book taking on important issues and wrapping them up in a half-hearted love /murder/war story that never really goes anywhere. The book left me with a feeling of 'yes, i have managed to read the whole of it, but no, i don't think it made me think about anything in particular-what a waste of time. '

Rating:
Summary: wordy
Review: images were powerful but at times it was a little wordy. The uncovering of the mystery was a liitle hurried -- the discovery of the truth was done in a cursory manner as compared with the rest of the well thought out descriptions. The fact that Ishmael holds the truth is just a little too planed out and affected.

Rating:
Summary: Content enriched.
Review: The ending seemed a little rushed but the content and character descriptions made up for the short comings.

Rating:
Summary: SIMKA find SFOC Good but Overdrawn
Review: Snow Falling on Cedars by David Gutterson, is set on San Piedro Island north of Puget Sound. This book portrays a captivating murder trial intertwined with the histories of the island. Within our book group we had mixed feelings about the book. Some good points about the story were the plot, the character development and the diversity. The plot was extremely well thought out and got its point across clearly. Gutterson also created real characters so it was almost as if you were watching them. The strongest aspects of the book were the contrasting races. Gutterson described what it was like to be Japanese and Caucasian in those times. Some bad points of the book were that it was overdrawn and the flow was confusing at times. In many cases we found that details ruled over the plot, sometimes even clouding it. We also noticed that there were no transitions from one time period to the next, making the reader confused. Overall, however, the book paints a wonderful picture of life after World War II.

Rating:
Summary: Great Character Descriptions!
Review: The character descriptions in this book were just amazing. He made you feel like you reall yknew these people of Amity Harbor, San Piedro Island in Puget Sound. A Wonderfully Written Book!

Rating:
Summary: Captivating & compelling yet lacking a strong central theme
Review: Snow Falling on Cedars was a captivating and compelling story, entrapping me in its pages hours on end. However, even though the books central theme was strong enough to support any of the most boring works, it was barely able to keep itself afloat. Around the main story of the book were lengthy descriptive flashbacks and scenery description that I could have done without. As a whole, the book was enjoyable and I recomend it to people wrapped up in the court systems and lovers of nature.

Rating:
Summary: One of the best books ever!
Review: Snow Falling on Cedars is one of the best novels I've ever read. Guterson has a way with descriptions that is incredibly realistic. For example, in the scene where Ishmael watches the snow gather on the windowpanes of the courthouse, I actually got shivers while reading it! Not only is this a great murder mystery, but it is also a beautiful romance, and a history of one of America 's darkest actions from World War II. Snow Falling on Cedars is a perfect mix of all these genres.

Rating:
Summary: Great character development in this book!!
Review: I was so mesmerized by the details surrounding this painful time in our history when we isolated a segment of our population based on their heritage. (Remind me of other times and other people?)

David Guterson did a splendid job giving verbal snapshots of the variety of feelings and emotions around the events of this period in our history. Sure it's a mystery...but not in the usual way.

A must read--even more than once.