ARC gifted by the publisher

following a 12-year-old girl and her stay at her aunt's family in the spring of 1972, MM is a deeply nostalgic and evocative tale of girlhood and friendship told through an innocent narrative voice. I enjoyed learning about the family via snapshots of a child's POV that's tinged with curiosity. Ogawa's wistful but not dramatic writing reminds me of the summers I spent wandering in the countryside in Taiwan with my cousins. While there is melancholy over the loss of my childhood, there's also an appreciation of those formative years that made me who I am. Even though the more-vibes-few-plot style doesn’t always work for me, I relish this story deeply