The Hare with Amber Eyes

[EmilyA]

Has anyone else read this - I thought it was stunning. An amazing true story, beautifully written about a man finding out about his family's past through "netsuke", the tiny Japanese carvings inherited from an uncle. Would love to know what others thought.

[Tom]

I found it a good read . And interesting about the experiences of his well connected banking family over the last 150 years.

But expected more considering all the hype - "masterpiece", "astonishing originality" etc.

[JeanS]

Sounds interesting - who is the author?

[Tom]

Edmund De Waal. He is a ceramic artist and this was his first book.

http://www.edmunddewaal.com/

Correction : This wasn't his first book, he has written books about ceramics

[dwrenched]

A belated response - I have almost finished this book, which has been wonderful to read. The book`s scope is fantastic and I was gripped by Edmund De Waal`s family and their interests and experiences - as well as the cultural connections they had. Imagine having an ancestor who may have been a moodel for Swann, or commissioned paintings from grat french painters, or a grandmother who corresponded with Rilke. Yet I found all the characters in the book very engaging despite their ernomous wealth and privilege, and I really wanted to know what happened to them.

[Will]

I've read it too. It's a rather strange and complicated book, which may be why I enjoyed it. It purports to be about Japanese art and collectibles but is really about family history; the author never manages to describe the so-called subjects of the book, apart from a few isolated examples. This may have been intentional on the part of the writer, but I'm not sure about that. It provides an interesting and different insight into Japanese culture, but is far more about being Jewish in France and Austria during the pre-WW2 era. There is an illustrated version too, but I think that might just spoil the quirkiness of the text-only story.