"A vivid portrait of faith lost and found through the eyes of a Japanese Buddhist monk in America" (
Shelf Awareness) as he makes his way from an isolated monastery in Japan to the bustling streets of Brooklyn, New York.
Seido Oda spent his boyhood in a small mountainside village in rural Japan. When his parents hand him over to the monks at the nearby Buddhist monastery, he devotes himself to painting, poetry, and prayer--and avoiding human contact. But his quiet life is unexpectedly upended when he is ordered by his superior to open a temple in Brooklyn.
New York is a shock to the introverted Oda, who now must lead a ragtag army of eccentrics who make up the local Buddhist community. After tragedy strikes, Oda finally realizes his own long-buried sadness and spiritual short-comings. It is only with newly opened eyes that Oda comes to find in Brooklyn the home he has always sought.