Hello again, dear audiobooks friends. Today’s spotlight article is dedicated to Tokyo Tempos, the highly anticipated fourth audiobook in the award-winning Tokyo Moments series of non-fiction essays coming all the way from the exotic metropolis of Tokyo, Japan.
If you’re not familiar with these nonfiction works yet, you should get acquainted with them as soon as possible because I can assure you that each is exquisitely written by the esteemed professor and multiple award-winning author, Michael Pronko. As you should remember if you follow my articles here, I am a huge fan of Michael’s and always eagerly awaiting new installments in this captivating series.
I’m really glad to see once again multiple award-winning narrator and actor Peter Berkrot getting behind the mic to take us on another journey to Japan. The audio production is a little under 6 hours in duration, which is quite common for books in this series.
Now, let’s take a look at the Publisher’s Summary and find out more about Tokyo Tempos. After that, I will tell you a few things about the author and the narrator, because both of them are amazing artists and have been awarded many prizes.
In “Tokyo Tempos,” award-winning mystery writer Michael Pronko explores the mystery of everyday Tokyo life. Drawing on three decades of living, writing, and teaching in Japan, he delves into Tokyo’s dynamism to show what it’s like living with Japanese food, seasons, ceremonies, and special moments he calls “small intensities.” These pithy, pointed writings reveal how even massive cities like Tokyo live and breathe with the loves, hopes, pleasures, and meanings of the people who live there. These personal and philosophical explorations, part travelogue and part analysis, paint a vivid portrait of the city rich with curiosity and insight. Join Pronko on his journey into the contradictions, intricacies, and enigmas of Tokyo, a city that is old and new, immense and intimate, indifferent and yet very humane. Independent Book Review called the essays “A medley of vignettes that are as eclectic as they are eloquent.” Authentic and immersive, “Tokyo Tempos” takes readers deep into the compelling rhythms of Tokyo life.
Michael Pronko is a Tokyo-based award-winning writer of murder, memoir, and music. His writing about Tokyo life and his character-driven mysteries has won awards and five-star reviews. Kirkus Reviews selected his second novel, The Moving Blade, for their Best Books of 2018. The Last Train won the Shelf Unbound Competition for Best Independently Published Book. Michael also runs the website, Jazz in Japan, which covers the vibrant jazz scene in Tokyo and Yokohama.
During his three decades in Japan, he has written about Japanese culture, art, society, and politics for Newsweek Japan, The Japan Times, and Artscape Japan. He has read his essays on NHK TV and done programs for Nippon Television based on his writings. A philosophy major, Michael traveled for years, ducking in and out of graduate schools, before finishing his PhD on Charles Dickens and film. He finally settled in Tokyo as a professor of American Literature at Meiji Gakuin University. His seminars focus on contemporary novels, short stories, and film adaptations.
“All of my books are set in Tokyo, a city I’ve become addicted to for its size, sweep, and speed. It’s an amazing place to experience on a daily basis, to try to get hold of. I’m still overwhelmed by it at times, maybe most of the time, but writing about Tokyo in both fiction and non-fiction is one way to understand the place, and to understand myself, too,” Michael said. “I’ve come to feel that our lives are constructed by stories. We all have problems, conflicts, and confusions, but also moments when the sheer beauty of the world shines through. Thinking of those ups and downs, I feel stories are essential to live more freely and more creatively. They restore our humanity. Stories are also great fun! I feel privileged to keep working with stories and to be able to share those stories with others.”
More about Michael’s life and writings in Tokyo at: www.michaelpronko.com
A veteran of stage and screen, Peter Berkrot‘s career spans four decades. Highlights include feature roles in Caddyshack and Showtime’s Brotherhood, and appearances on America’s Most Wanted and Unsolved Mysteries. His voice can be heard on television, radio, video games, documentaries, and industrials. He is a prominent acting coach and a regular contributor to the award-winning news program Frontline produced by WGBH in Boston.
Peter served as director of narration for the Emmy-nominated The Truth About Cancer. He has also voiced over 600 audiobooks and more than 300 for children, winning 10 Earphones Awards and a 2012 Audie Award nomination. He received SOVAS awards in 2018 and 2019. His 2016 Audie Award was as part of a multi-cast performance for THE STARLING PROJECT, starring Alfred Molina, and was part of the ensemble in the Audible Original THE X-FILES: COLD CASES starring David Duchovny and Gillian Anderson.
He was honored along with a brilliant cast of actors for THE VAULT OF HORROR, directed by William Dufris, with an Independent Audiobook Award for AUDIO DRAMA. Favorite titles include Toby and the Secrets of the Tree by Timotee de Fombelle, Unholy Night by Seth Grahame-Smith, The Accident by Linwood Barclay, The Last Policeman trilogy by Ben H. Winters, the Junior Bender series for Timothy Hallinan, and Caddyshack: The Making of a Hollywood Cinderella Story in which he is also featured as a character.
Stay tuned for my review of Tokyo Tempos in the upcoming weeks, but until then, take care, stay safe, and don’t forget, always listen with your heart!
Victor Dima is an internationally recognized Audiobooks Industry specialist, consultant, insider and reviewer with almost 10,000 helpful votes on Audible. Listened to more than 1,400 audiobooks, have written reviews for almost 400 and rated close to 800 of them. If you want Victor to review your audiobook or if you need help with choosing the right narrator, you can get in touch at [email protected]
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