Synopsis

On the peaceful Japanese island of Teshima there is a library of heartbeats, a place where the heartbeats of visitors from all around the world are collected. In this small, isolated building, the heartbeats of people who are still alive or have already passed away continue to echo.

Several miles away, in the ancient city of Kamakura, two lonely souls Shuichi, a forty-year-old illustrator, who returns to his home-town to fix up the house of his recently deceased mother, and eight-year-old Kenta, a child who wanders like a shadow around Shuichi’s house.

Day by day, the trust between Shuichi and Kenta grows until they discover they share a bond that will tie them together for life. Their journey will lead them to Teshima and to the library of heartbeats…

Review

The concept for this book was fantastic, but unfortunately, the execution was poor. This was not helped by the narrator, who was not good at all; their voice was so monotonous that I barely registered anything about the story and just wasn’t invested.

I do have the proof so will try to read it instead, as I think it will be a great story.

That said, the library of heartbeats didn’t materialise until about 75% of the way through so the synopsis is slightly misleading. It might be the translation, but it also felt a bit overwritten at times, although generally the prose is beautiful.

Thanks to Manilla Press for my proof copy, and to NetGalley for the audiobook version. Opinions my own.