A Tale for the Time Being

By: Ruth Ozeki

Narrated by: Ruth Ozeki

Length: 14 hrs and 43 mins

Publisher's summary

Short-listed, Man Booker International Prize

A brilliant, unforgettable, and long-awaited novel from best-selling author Ruth Ozeki

"A time being is someone who lives in time, and that means you, and me, and every one of us who is, or was, or ever will be."

In Tokyo, 16-year-old Nao has decided there's only one escape from her aching loneliness and her classmates' bullying. But before she ends it all, Nao first plans to document the life of her great grandmother, a Buddhist nun who's lived more than a century. A diary is Nao's only solace—and will touch lives in ways she can scarcely imagine.

Across the Pacific, we meet Ruth, a novelist living on a remote island who discovers a collection of artifacts washed ashore in a Hello Kitty lunchbox—possibly debris from the devastating 2011 tsunami. As the mystery of its contents unfolds, Ruth is pulled into the past, into Nao's drama and her unknown fate, and forward into her own future.

Full of Ozeki's signature humor and deeply engaged with the relationship between writer and listener, past and present, fact and fiction, quantum physics, history, and myth, A Tale for the Time Being is a brilliantly inventive, beguiling story of our shared humanity and the search for home.

©2013 Ruth Ozeki (P)2013 Penguin Audio

Critic reviews

“An exquisite novel: funny, tragic, hard-edged and ethereal at once.”—David Ulin, Los Angeles Times

“As contemporary as a Japanese teenager’s slang but as ageless as a Zen koan, Ruth Ozeki’s new novel combines great storytelling with a probing investigation into the purpose of existence. . . . She plunges us into a tantalizing narration that brandishes mysteries to be solved and ideas to be explored. . . . Ozeki’s profound affection for her characters makes A Tale for the Time Being as emotionally engaging as it is intellectually provocative.”—The Washington Post

“A delightful yet sometimes harrowing novel . . . Many of the elements of Nao’s story—schoolgirl bullying, unemployed suicidal ‘salarymen,’ kamikaze pilots—are among a Western reader’s most familiar images of Japan, but in Nao’s telling, refracted through Ruth’s musings, they become fresh and immediate, occasionally searingly painful. Ozeki takes on big themes . . . all drawn into the stories of two ‘time beings,’ Ruth and Nao, whose own fates are inextricably bound.”—The New York Times Book Review

Enjoyed this book

In some ways reminiscent of Haruku Murakami in that it goes a straight line and then somewhere in the middle an abrupt turn into another universe. Parts were frustrating, because I wanted so badly for something to happen that didn’t, but that is what creates creative tension. Narration was excellent. I was sad when it was over.

Ruth Ozeki (the author) is a SUPERB reader

What made the experience of listening to A Tale for the Time Being the most enjoyable?

The author's performance was superb. She did a nice job with the voices without going over the top. In particular her voicing of Nao vs. Ruth allowed the listener to distinguish the two without being overly dramatic.

What did you like best about this story?

The concept of finding a diary washed up on shore and working through the life of the diarist was really fun.

What about Ruth Ozeki’s performance did you like?

Voicing of the characters

Did you have an extreme reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?

Laughed in many places. Kinda awkward sitting on a plane with headphones on and laughing out loud.

Sad and disturbing yet thoroughly engrossing

This is a difficult book for me to review. First, let me say that it was always engrossing but not in a demanding sort of way. That is, I could listen at a leisurely pace and did not feel I had to race to find out the outcome. It was certainly not a feel-good type of book by any stretch of the imagination.

The listening experience evoked many adjectives: sad, brutal, disturbing, puzzling, informative, and hopeful. I came to like the characters the longer I listened, and I became more and more interested in the Japanese cultural practices. However, I was very disturbed at the bullying which was a huge part of the story, both by Nao's schoolmates and the uncle's superior officers. The war atrocities described sickened me--the only saving grace was that the book was being read to me, and I could not linger very long on what was being described. The theme of suicide played a big role in this story, frighteningly so. Then, I became confused at the element of fantasy that was brought into the story--and the very strange way the author attempted to justify its relevance (Schrodinger's Cat!). I also was a bit put off by the easy way the ending was so easily turned around to make it hopeful and pleasant.

So, you can see I did not love many facets of the story. Yet, I am giving it a good rating and I hope I do not deter anyone from choosing to read it. This is a very unique, different sort of story that stretches the reader's imagination in very different ways, perhaps due to such different cultural issues.

I want to add that the author did a spectacular narration, which certainly added to the listening experience and to my high rating.

This is one of the finest books on tape ever

Where does A Tale for the Time Being rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?

near the top

What about Ruth Ozeki’s performance did you like?

I loved her grasp of Japanese and French. She lived the characters for me.

I’ve never read a story that made me fall in love so deeply...

I first read this book in print. I sat at Barnes and Nobel reading in the cafe before buying the book. I was immediately taken in and had to buy it!
This book has been with me through some difficult time. It’s lessons teach you like your grandma teaches you, with eyes that see right into your mind, and words you didn’t know you needed to hear, but that go into your heart and make you better for their wisdom. I almost feel like I can flip through the book to any page and start reading and, just like Ram Dass’s Here and Now, I will be wiser for what I have read.

I got half way through the book and life got busy. I got divorced... sadness and depression filled my life and too much time had past so I couldn’t remember enough to continue reading. So Ruth and Nao were stuck still for a few years.
I moved home a few times and I kept putting this book on my bookshelf every time I moved. I loved the book so much and I wanted to finish it. So I got the audiobook. A Tale for the Time Being has become my favorite book. I know I will read it again and again throughout my life. I am so thankful.

I wish I could write all the ways I feel connected to this book and share it with Ruth. I wish I could thank her for writing a story I will always hold dear to my heart.

Great listen - read by author!

Loved every part of this books with all its twists and turns and history. Learn a little bit about Japanese culture while you are amply entertained!

Fascinating and incredible

I cannot explain this book, but I can tell you that I love it. You simply must experience it. I found the audio book to be compelling. Now I want to hold it in my hands.

Confusing

The overall concept is confusing and a little depressing. The story is not what I expected from the summary. However the audio performance was good.

Brilliant & Sad

A Tale for the Time Being is a brilliant, sad, gut-wrenching piece of literature.

Love it. Really enjoyable

A fascinating read. Grabs you and you don't want to put it down. Well worth reading