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Touch
Touch | Olaf Olafsson
8 posts | 7 read | 16 to read
A mesmerizing, panoramic story of one man's search to find a lover who suddenly disappeared decades beforeWhen the pandemic hits, Kristofer is forced to shutter his successful restaurant in Reykjavik, sending him into a spiral of uncertainty, even as his memory seems to be failing. But an uncanny bolt from the blue--a message from Miko Nakamura, a woman whom he'd known in the sixties when they were students in London--both inspires and rattles him, as he is drawn inexorably back into a love story that has marked him for life. Even as the pandemic upends his world, Kristofer finds himself pulled toward an answer to the mystery of Miko's sudden departure decades before, compelling him to travel to London and Japan as the virus threatens to shut everything down.A heart-wrenching love story and an absorbing mystery, Touch delves into the secrets of the past to explore the hidden lives that we all possess, the pain and beauty of our past loves and friendships that continue to leave their mark on us. Searching and lyrically rendered by acclaimed author Olaf Olafsson, Touch is a stunning tribute to the weight of history and the complexities of the human heart.
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review
Night_Reader
Touch | Olaf Olafsson
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Panpan

2/5 🌟

Despite the intriguing plot, the execution lacked depth, leaving the book aloof and disappointingly dull, with a flat and emotionally distant main character.

review
Litsi
Touch | Olaf Olafsson
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Pickpick

During what looks like the end of the world, a 70 yr old is determined to learn whether his memories were worth the lifetime of longing. Nostalgia is low on society‘s heirarchy of feelings. It sits on the border of silly and useless. But in this novel it‘s a force of nature as the character quests to actually touch his past. Faulkner told us that the past is not even the past. Olafsson adds that it is worth a visit.

BarbaraBB Lovely review 2y
5 likes1 comment
review
Cinfhen
Touch | Olaf Olafsson
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Mehso-so

I started this one late December and then decided to wait until January to continue because it worked for #PandemicStory #Booked2023 😷 Kristofer, living in Iceland, receives a message from his long lost lover Miko, a woman he hasn‘t seen in over 50 years. It‘s early March 2020 and the world is beginning to experience a global pandemic, Kritofer decides to fly to Japan before his second chance for great love is lost again. #MoreMehThanYeah

Cinfhen This is my #DoubleSpin @TheAromaofBooks 😌 and it‘s from the #ToB23 long list - I know lots of friends really liked this book but I wasn‘t too invested. It‘s bittersweet with a touch of nostalgia but something in the tone and alternating time shifts didn‘t work for me 🤷🏼‍♀️ 2y
See All 11 Comments
Wannabe_Quijote Olafsson can be so hit-and-miss 2y
BarbaraBB Oh wow, I loved this one. Weird how great minds sometimes don‘t think alike 🤣 2y
Cinfhen Hehehene @BarbaraBB I totally get why you loved this book..,,it‘s JAPAN 🇯🇵 This was my first book by the author @Wannabe_Quijote I‘m not sure if I‘ll read more by him. Is there a book you‘d recommend ?!? 2y
TheAromaofBooks Sometimes a book just doesn't jive with you, even though it seems like it should check all the boxes!! 2y
BarbaraBB Of course, the Japan connection always works for me 😉 2y
squirrelbrain I‘m not sure if I‘ll get to this one, as it‘s difficult to get hold of over here. 2y
Librarybelle Love the hashtag…I‘ll probably pass on this one 2y
Cinfhen You might like this one @squirrelbrain but I think it‘s ok to take a pass @Librarybelle 2y
91 likes1 stack add11 comments
review
Chelsea.Poole
Touch | Olaf Olafsson
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Pickpick

A meandering audiobook from the #tob2023 long list, featuring a back-and-forth narrative in time. Present day time is 2020, on the cusp of the pandemic, Kristofer receives a message from his onetime lover, Miko, who he hasn‘t seen in 50 years. He embarks on a journey to see her and remembers the past while dealing with masks and travel restrictions…and even in the 60s-set timeline, characters reminisce about the past. #booked2023 #aboutapandemic

BarbaraBB Great review 🤍 2y
Cinfhen I just finished this one!! Fabulous review! It was bittersweet but didn‘t grab me the way it did for some others…I‘m looking at you @BarbaraBB xx 2y
Chelsea.Poole @Cinfhen yes, definitely melancholic tone…one I liked but didn‘t love as much as @BarbaraBB 😊 I‘m wondering if I would have had a different reaction to the print book, as the audio was a bit detached. Did you do audio or print @Cinfhen? 2y
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Cinfhen Audio and yes, I think the narration left me slightly put off ( detached is the right word choice) !! 2y
BarbaraBB @Chelsea.Poole @Cinfhen You should have done print 😀 2y
Chelsea.Poole @BarbaraBB apparently! Ugh, one of the many bookworm struggles…”which format will work best!?” 😊 2y
Megabooks Really glad I went print now! 2y
82 likes7 comments
blurb
BarbaraBB
Touch | Olaf Olafsson
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#12BooksOf2022

My favorite of December is this one, a wonderful story about a man traveling the world on the brink of the pandemic in search of a woman he used to know.

Cathythoughts Sounds wonderful ♥️ I have it stacked already. 2y
Andrew65 Looks a great choice. Thanks for playing along, it‘s been a good way to review the year. 2y
Megabooks So glad you loved it! 💜 2y
BarbaraBB @Megabooks I did. Very much. I wanted to travel with him every step of the way 🥰 2y
55 likes4 comments
review
BarbaraBB
Touch | Olaf Olafsson
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Pickpick

I loved this book. The plot, the setting and the style.
A student from Iceland meets a Japanese girl in Londen in the early 1970s. They fall in love until she suddenly disappears. Many years later they reconnect on Facebook, just when Covid hits the world. It is another gorgeous read from the #toblonglist. Many thanks for sending me this one Meg, it‘ll make my #top22of22 🤍

Megabooks Fantastic! So glad you loved it! The blurb sounded perfect for you, and I enjoyed it too. 💜 2y
Chelsea.Poole Ooh. Adding this to my list! 2y
Ruthiella Another positive review! 👍 2y
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Suet624 Stacked!! 2y
Hooked_on_books I look forward to this one! 2y
squirrelbrain This one sounds so good! ❤️ 2y
Cinfhen Great review and fun photo 😘im saving this for #Booked2023 #PandemicStory 2y
BarbaraBB @Megabooks Yes it is totally my kind of book. I loved all the descriptions of Japanese food and of Hiroshima ❤️ 2y
Cathythoughts Sounds great! Stacked. 2y
Reggie This sounds great! Stacked. 2y
BarbaraBB @Chelsea.Poole @Suet624 @Hooked_on_books @squirrelbrain @Cinfhen @Cathythoughts @Reggie While the author is not Japanese, the book has those vibes of a Japanese book in which each word is meant to be, a kind of minimalism and no drama that I love. 2y
95 likes10 stack adds11 comments
review
Megabooks
Touch | Olaf Olafsson
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Pickpick

I was touched 😉 by this story. Christmas makes me nostalgic and looking back on lovers from your 20s really resonated with me.

Kristofer, an Icelandic widower, was in love with a Japanese woman 1960s London. He never gets over their abrupt breakup even though he marries another woman. When he hears she‘s sick in 2020, he travels to Japan racing against lockdowns to be with her.

Another winner from the #toblonglist

Cinfhen I think this might be the book I‘m looking for right now 🥰 2y
Megabooks @Cinfhen yes!! It‘s really good! 2y
BkClubCare I was just thinking that I need to add some Icelandic lit to my tbr! Ty 2y
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Cinfhen I just remembered that I‘m saving this book for #Booked2023 #PandemicStory 2y
squirrelbrain Great review! Another one that sounds as though it should have made the shortlist! 2y
Ruthiella Sounds interesting! I also might use it for #Booked2023🤔 2y
sarahbarnes Great review! This makes me want to read it! 2y
Megabooks @BkClubCare it touches nicely on Iceland, England, and Japan, and there‘s a lot of subtle commentary on cultural differences among the three, which was a great bonus. 2y
Megabooks @Cinfhen @Ruthiella it would be a GREAT choice for that prompt! 2y
Megabooks @squirrelbrain @sarahbarnes thank you! It definitely would‘ve been a great addition to the shortlist. 2y
Hooked_on_books He‘s definitely an author I want to read. I think I have another of his on Libro, so I‘ll tackle that one first, but I look forward to this one! 2y
BarbaraBB It should have made the shortlist!! 2y
Megabooks @Hooked_on_books yes! I definitely want to read more by him. I‘m interested in your review of his other book when you read it. 2y
Megabooks @BarbaraBB agreed!! 2y
76 likes3 stack adds14 comments
blurb
BarbaraBB
Touch | Olaf Olafsson
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I am sorry I opened your BookDepository parcel Meg!! I had no idea it would arrive here so soon and I had ordered some books from BD myself too 🤷🏻‍♀️

On the other hand… I am not sorry at all because I am extremely excited you sent me the book that was most appealing to me from the #ToB Longlist but not available here yet! I am so happy you chose this one and now I‘ll be able to take it with me on vacation! Thank you so much my dear friend ❤️❤️

Megabooks You are welcome!! I‘m so glad you have it to read on vacation!! Merry Christmas, B! 💜🎄 I‘m keeping an eye out for your package to me. Tracking says it‘s somewhere in the US. 2y
BarbaraBB @Megabooks That is good news! Let‘s hope it‘ll be there in time. You can open the parcel, gifts are wrapped to put under your tree - or wherever 😀😘 2y
squirrelbrain Ooh, this one sounds so good! ❤️ 2y
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BarbaraBB @squirrelbrain Yes this was one of my favorites when I read about the longlisted books. But I couldn‘t get a copy! 2y
squirrelbrain It‘s one that isn‘t available at all here either, not even for a lot of money…it‘s just not on any platform or bookshop. 2y
KarenUK Oooh this sounds so good! 2y
61 likes6 comments