In silken prose and with subtlesuspense, Nina Schuyler brings us a mesmerizing novel of language andtranslation, memory loss and heartbreak, and the search for answers in aforeign country.When renowned translatorHanne Schubert falls down a flight of stairs, her injury is an unusual but realcondition — the loss of her native language. She is left speaking onlyJapanese, a language learned later in life. With her personal life at acrossroad, Hanne leaves for Japan. There, the Japanese novelist whose work shetranslated stunningly confronts her publicly for sabotaging his work. Reeling, Hannestruggles for meaning and seeks out the inspiration for the author’s novel — atortured, chimerical actor, once a master in the art of Noh theater. Throughtheir passionate and intriguing relationship, Hanne begins to understand themasks she has worn in her life, just as the actor dons the masks that have madehim a legend of Noh. The demonsfrom her past and present begin to unfold and Hanne sets out to make amends inthis searing and engrossing novel.