A PALE VIEW OF HILLS<i> By Kazuo Ishiguro (Vintage: $8.95) </i>

In this haunting first novel, Kazuo Ishiguro intertwines stories of love, suicide and the traditional family roles in Asian and Western culture. As Etsuko, the narrator, reflects on her decision to leave her aloof Japanese husband for a happier marriage in England after World War II, she recalls the desperate life of her friend, Sachiko, who tried to euchre an American GI into marrying her and freeing her from life in the ruins of Nagasaki. Sachiko’s hypocritical pose of sacrificing herself to her daughter’s happiness initially make her more interesting than the stolidly patient Etsuko. But by the end of the book, the reader realizes that both women conceal reservoirs of passion beneath their polite exteriors, and the scenes from their lives begin to blur, like landscapes viewed through a rain-streaked window.