Cutting Back: My Apprenticeship in the Gardens of Kyoto

I enjoyed this book purely for the descriptions of Kyoto's gardens and the peacefulness of nature. I will stress that this was in spite of the author herself. I did not find her likable and her lack of social skills was cringey at the best of times, and often downright distracting.

There are many characters in this book, but they all serve as secondary players to the author. Not once is anyone given substance, even the author's boyfriend. I think that serves to illustrate the point - in all her time working with others she never bothered to get to know anyone. However, she does attempt to cheat on her boyfriend with a coworker and then sulks when he rejects her.

She also frequently pouts when she's asked to follow the traditions and procedures of her employers, as if that were the most tragic thing a person could endure. In all her time in Japan she barely attempts to learn the language yet has the audacity to moan about how no one speaks English... in Japan.

If this was supposed to be a book about character development, it failed.

My favorite part was about the tiny bonsai tree, mainly because the focus was on something other than her for a change.