Wednesday, August 31, 2022
I’m about halfway through Ozeik’s 2021 novel. It’s a very creative, tightly interwoven work. Her style of writing fiction is fresh in that it both entertains and enlightens. The book is popular, is a candidate for the Bookings Prize, and has been reviewed frequently.
Ozeki is a Zen Buddhist priest; she teaches writing at Smith College. Her story in this book is influencing me, while reading, to pause and consider many elements surrounding me more deeply. For example, while following the plot and characters, I also think about the influences on their evolvements (and the same effects on myself!), such as the sky, earth, and various seemingly inanimate objects.
The novel is a brilliant work of fiction. It’s definitely no lecture but a story that can teach quietly and has the power to open a reader’s mind to unexpected senses. I find myself pausing and, in a larger sense, “feeling the book” in my hands and variations of light in my reading area and even the furniture near me.
Zen, indeed! I’m no Zen person, yet I’m discovering a high enjoyment of this novel and its influence on my state of being while reading. Perhaps an inspiration to write this suggests that, beyond actual reading moments, my overall awareness is expanding. Hopefully, that’s so.
Dear Friends: In today’s environment, quiet moments and awareness are pleasurable. Diana
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