Grief and Hope in The Phone Booth at the Edge of the World by Laura Messina

 

   

The Phone Booth at the Edge of the World by Laura Imai Messina follows the story of Yui who’s grief never left her after she lost her mother and 2 year old daughter to the 2011 tsunami. Set in Japan, this book is based on real events of the March 2011 tsunami. During work at her radio studio, Yui hears about the wind phones used to talk to people's lost loved ones. These phones are disconnected but it is believed the words spoken there will be carried by the wind to their loved ones and help people cope with their losses. 

Yui decides to go to the phone booth at Bell Gardia to see if she can find relief there. On her journey there, she meets Takeshi who is also visiting the wind phone. Yui learns that Takeshi lost his wife in the same tsunami and though his daughter survived, she hasn’t spoken a word ever since her mother’s death. When the two of them arrive at Bell Gardia, Takeshi uses the phone booth but Yuri does not. Ever since, the two have started to go to Bell Gardia every month together and Takeshi encourages Yui to use the phone booth each time. This journey creates a growing friendship between the two and they start to gain hope. Even though Yui never uses the wind phone, she starts getting relief by just going there. Though she wants to speak with her mom and daughter, she always just walks around the garden and looks out to the ocean. Takeshi and Yui also want to get Hana, Takeshi’s daughter, to start talking again so the three of them start spending more time together.

I really liked how this novel was based on real events. This made the story more very meaningful and themes of grief and growth makes the story more touching and relatable. I also really like how every other chapter had little extra pieces of information. Some of these chapters had names of books, playlists, quotes, drawings, and specific conversations between characters. These chapters were 2 pages at most and give small details to the story. Chapter 56 for example, listed what was in Hana’s bento box contained for lunch. Similarly, chapter 42 had the list of chocolates Yui and Hana ate together during a car ride. Some of the chapters were more for fun like the examples, but others were like reflections and a little more personal. These chapters helped understand the characters better and just made you feel closer to the story, it felt like reading someone's journal.

The book had a slow pacing at times and some chapters were uneventful. Some parts felt dragged out and longer than they needed to be. Also, the book had some unresolved questions by the end. For example, the book doesn’t clearly explain what happens to Yui’s and Takeshi's relationship or the future of some of the minor characters. This creates room for the reader to use their imagination but may be frustrating to some. Also, the book had a constant theme of grief so it could feel repetitive. While I didn't mind it, this would be something to keep in mind if you consider reading this book. 

After reading this book, I really enjoyed it and would recommend it to others. While it may have slow pacing, repetitive themes of grief and some unresolved questions, I think they are minor problems compared to the things I enjoyed about this book. If you like reading stories based on real events, this book is one you should check out.

-Niveditha