SOURCE: "First Forays Into Novel Writing," in The Christian Science Monitor, September 23, 1994, p. 12.

[In the following excerpt, Rubin offers an unfavorable review of Snow Falling on Cedars, stating "unfortunately, almost nothing in this novel comes alive."]

David Guterson, a contributing editor at Harper's Magazine and author of a story collection and a book on home schooling, would seem to have assembled the right elements for his first novel, Snow Falling on Cedars, about the murder trial of a Japanese-American fisherman set on Washington's scenic San Piedro Island in the 1950s. There's the issue of anti-Japanese bigotry, the unique beauty of the setting, and the added drama of a love triangle involving the accused man's lovely Japanese-American wife and a local reporter covering the trial.

Unfortunately, almost nothing in this novel comes alive. The leaden narrative fails to generate the suspense or the human empathy to propel the reader...