MixedMichigan DailyTranslated sparingly into English by Angus Turvill, the language of Lion Cross Point is at times strikingly minimalist and devoid of definition. Often a paragraph will be lost on the reader ... While most of the novel’s problems stem from a lack of discernible detail, at points it purely clicks and introspective clarity is achieved from simplicity. There may be no hopeful future or happy ending in sight for Takeru—really, there’s no ending at all—and it seems like he is destined for the same bleak life back home when the scorching summer stops. He may have suffered through terribly blunt acts of brutality, but in the kindness he encounters in his ancestral village, he experiences subtle, moving catharsis. A glance at the breathtaking panorama of Lion Cross Point may be brief, but for Takeru, the promontory is unforgettable and lasting in its importance, as magnificent as the dolphins gliding past it.
