A Gesture Life

Chang-rae Lee's 1999 novel had been recommended to me several times over the past several years and it was just a matter of time before I read it. I was not disappointed. Multi-layered, it initially is about a Japanese man, Doc Hata, who lives a very ordinary life in a small town in New England. Of course, that's only the surface and little by little you learn that much has happened in his recent as well as distant past--an adopted daughter from whom he is estranged and horrific incidents during WWII to name a few. This one will stay with you long after you turn the last page.