Won from Firstreads. I was really looking forward to reading this book. While reading it I kept wavering between whether it should get 2 stars or 3. At times it flowed well, and I felt like I was really getting to know the characters. At other times, I found myself re-reading sections because there was a jump in time or a change in voice. Changing between Satomi and Rumi telling the story worked in some ways because we got each character's voice, but the transitions seemed abrupt and jarring. In the end I settled on 3 stars because I did enjoy the story and seeing the differences between 3 generations of women raised in an ever-expanding world reminded me a little bit of my own family.

A spectacular and totally absorbing novel about several generations of Japanese woman seeking to find and reestablish connections with their mothers and their pasts.

“Picking bones from ash” refers to the traditional Japanese practice of carefully removing the bones from ashes, with chop sticks, during special rituals involving cremation and burial. It is critical to one of the subplots in this book. Subtly it is a major theme in the book, symbolizing the search for the piece of one’s mother that a daughter carries forth into her own life. At a more universal level, the image suggests the process of finding and retaining what is true and important from the past for each of us.

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Although the book is mainly about the three generations of women (Akoki, Satomi, and Rumi) and how they affect each other, the story is also about family in general. The story shows how women are affected by their mothers and their mother's decisions and also how the rest of our family has an influence on women.

The book is divided into five sections which alternate between different points in time for the characters of Satomi and Rumi.

The characters in this story are quite realistic, well written, and have various types of personalities. There are about thirty characters in total, but ten of those have major roles in the story.

The story has moments of shock and mystery, as well as familiar scenarios that we deal with in our lives (ex. loss, love, etc).

The story contains many aspects of Japanese culture, such as food, ceremonies, traditions, etc.

The story goes at a good pace and I never lost interest in the story. ( )

I read Picking Bones from Ash as part of Book Club. I don't think I would have otherwise heard of this novel and that would have been a shame because I loved it. This review consists of the thoughts and comments I shared with the group last month. Although I've cleaned them up a bit, I couldn't really write a better review. I finished the novel the night before and they capture my thoughts and feelings well.

While reading about Satomi's early life, I felt as if I was in Japan and soaking up the differences in culture. The story and characters felt so real and honest. It was as fascinating to me as Snow Flower and the Secret Fan. I also kept making connections to The Thousand Autumns of Jacob De Zoet.
I could so much relate to Satomi. While I’m no prodigy, my mother has very distinct beliefs about how life should be lead. I kept to those while I lived with her, but when I moved away from home and encountered other ways of living, I explored and kept those explorations from her. I also very much related to Satomi’s experiences after giving birth. I am grateful that I never left Allison alone or ran away, but I daydreamed about it constantly during her first 4 or 5 months. I think with all that panic and anxiety her pregnancy and birth created, she fell back on her mother's ideals for life in order to find herself again. I do understand that daydreaming about leaving and actually leaving are two different things, but I could understand what led to Satomi's decision. Reading about it can be uncomfortable, but for many women, those types of feelings are an unwanted companion duriung those post-partum days.
Not everyone could buy that Satomi's decisions after giving birth to Rumi could be attributed to post-partum depression. It was never explicitly mentioned in the book. I could only respond by saying that I recognized what I saw in Satomi, so I didn’t need any other evidence. If what I was thinking and feeling after Allison were born were written into a book, I’m sure I would seem as narcissistic as Satomi seemed. I was so miserable I just wanted to feel good again. For me, that meant daydreaming about running away and leaving my entire life behind. To an outside person, I had a perfectly healthy and beautiful baby girl. Sure, she may have been fussy, but babies grow out of fussiness. At that moment in time, it didn’t feel that way to me. It felt like a permanent hell. I believe that Satomi felt equally trapped.
The second half of Satomi's life worked for me where it did not necessarily work for others. Here is why: In addition to a good dose of post-partum depression after Rumi was born, Satomi became a lot like her mother. She formed a commune of sorts where women had to live like her mother had wanted her to live – without men and to be the best at their art. After I moved to Virginia, I “left” my mother’s ways in a manner of speaking. After Allison was born, I tried to compensate for being so miserable by returning to a life more in tune to my mother’s way of thinking. Zs painful as it all was, I’m just glad that all that backfired. Now I’ve found my own path and am much happier with myself and with being a mother. I can’t say that this was the type of ending I dreamed of for Picking Bones from Ash, but it made sense.
I really enjoyed Mockett's writing and the glimpse she provided into Japanese life. I don't know if she intended for Satomi to have post-partum depression, but she certainly wrote what was true about it as I experienced it. Not everyone loved the book like I did, but it certainly created a great deal of open, in depth conversation the day of Book Club. I recommend Picking Bones from Ash to book clubs and other readers interested in Japanese culture and spirituality. When reading with others, your certain to have a lively conversation. ( )