A review by kells30
The Forest of Wool and Steel by Natsu Miyashita

4.0

This is a short book but it’s a very cute and thoughtful piece about one specific subject: finding your passion, and how you know if you’ve got what it takes to pursue it. In the novel, Tomura is seventeen years old when he first hears a piano being tuned and it awakens in him emotions he’s never quite felt before. From that moment on he knows the path he wants to take ‘through the forest’ of life: to become a piano tuner himself one day. He enrols in a piano tuning school and then we follow Tomura on his journey in learning and watching his mentors. Tomura is not confident about his own abilities and is an endearing character to read about as he conscientiously tries to do the best job he can for each and every customer, honestly and thoughtfully. With a meticulous approach and plenty of hard work he is yet beset by doubts about whether he has any innate talent, whether he is good enough, whether he should give up or carry on, and I think this is something everyone can relate to. There’s also plenty of interesting facts about pianos and music that music lovers would find interesting!