"Expect the unexpected. This is Japan." That's Gaby Stanton trying to explain to Alex Thorn why his questions about the mysterious death of his son, an exchange student at a small Japanese university, are likely to go unanswered. But those words could also serve as the leitmotif for this exuberantly funny tale of Americans abroad in modern-day Japan.
After five years in Japan, Gaby herself has learned to expect the unexpected. Fired from her university position for no reason, she has taken the only job available to her: selling fantasy funerals to the Japanese. And because the firm she works for shipped Cody Thorn's body home, Alex has turned up on her doorstep, looking for answers. What ensues is a wild ride through the manners, mores, and prejudices of the Japanese.
Peopled with a cast of ill-assorted exiles from the West and with Japanese from every walk of life, American Fuji is many novels in one: a teasing mystery; a quest that is alternatively slapstick and tender; a revealing Baedeker to contemporary Japan; and a delightfully sophisticated romantic comedy. It is indeed about expecting the unexpected in a world where appearances are not all that they seem."
“Clever.”—The New York Times Book Review
“Highly entertaining.”—Publishers Weekly
“A lively debut about the innocence of Americans abroad in modern Japan.”—Kirkus Reviews
“Succeeds brilliantly in capturing the fugitive charms and mysteries of this extraordinary society with precision and great compassion.”—Simon Winchester, author of The Professor and the Madman
“Sharp, quirky details…an appealing read.”—Newsday
“Backer’s deft and delightful book braids mystery, romance, and comedy into one wild adventure…The characters are a marvelous set of cross-cultural lonely hearts; my particular favorite is Mr. Eguchi, president of Gone With the Wind funerals…who judges people by their toilets and whose English is limited to Beatles’ lyrics. Guaranteed to raise a smile.”—Karen Joy Fowler, author of Sister Noon
“Vastly entertaining…the incessant clashes between what Alex wants and what Gaby knows are very funny…American Fuji is sweet and funny, sad and inspiring: a big challenge for a medium-sized novel about a small country, but Backer carries it off. Expect to be surprised, as Gaby invites us—and delighted.”—Detroit Free Press
“A delicious read—both funny and touching, skillfully written, and with a diabolically clever and intricate plot that makes it hard to put down. Sara Backer is definitely a writer to watch.”—Lynne Sharon Schwartz, author of The Fatigue Artist
“Funny and fascinating, American Fuji sheds light on murky, quirky, and previously unexplored currents of Japanese life.”—Sara Davidson, author of Loose Change
“More than any book I have read about Japan in years, American Fuji succeeds brilliantly in capturing the fugitive charms and mysteries of this extraordinary society with precision and great compassion. The story is wonderfully exciting, too. Sara Backer has succeeded on all levels with an unforgettable first novel.”—Simon Winchester, author of The Professor and the Madman
“In this fine debut novel, an American travels to Japan to investigate the mysteries surrounding his son’s death and ends up discovering the larger answers to the meaning of love.”—Sue Grafton, author of P is for Peril
“There is more than one ‘laugh-out-loud’ situation in this wonderful book. Is there a flaw in it? Yes! It ends all too soon.”—I Love a Mystery Newsletter
