Dec 22, 2009
Like Kadohata’s literary debut, THE FLOATING WORLD (1989), IN THE HEART OF THE VALLEY OF LOVE is a coming-of-age story, though Francie, its nineteen-year-old narrator, manages to mature during a barbarous age that calls itself the Dark Century. In 2052, malls are boarded up, and rioting is commonplace. The fortunate few barricade themselves in “richtowns,” and everyone totes a gun or mace. People disappear into secret gulags spread across the desert. Though the air is toxic, the wonder is how exhilarating Kadohata’s fiction is. “I felt strangely enthralled with the...
[The entire page is 545 words long]
©2000-2009
Enotes.com Inc.
All Rights Reserved