Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet by Jamie FordI have heard many comments about this book, and the author currently lives in my state, so I borrowed the title from my Public Library.
It started off a bit slowly, but the writing was smooth so I kept at it as protagonist Henry Lee's life unfolds in a series of well-written flashbacks (1942) and contemporary (1986) scenes. Character development sort of grew on me; all characters, from Henry's war-obsessed father to Sheldon, Henry's sax-player best friend, and Henry's son, Marty are very well portrayed.
The story is essentially a love story, not my favorite read as I tend to find these stories a bit maudlin (this one teetered on the edge at the end). In Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet, the enduring commitment of Henry (Chinese American) with Keiko Okabe (Japanese American) is brought to life, beginning when they are twelve-year-olds and the only non-white students at a private Seattle school (I identified with this big time, since I was in a similar situation at twelve—albeit several years later than 1942, and not in Seattle).
I was, however, most interested in the World War II domestic history--the West Coast internment of Japanese citizens. The information was deftly given so it didn't seem like a history lesson; the characters' emotions and reactions were believable and dramatic. Even as I cringed about the government procedures, I could understand the mind-set; just as I could understand the conflict between Henry's parents and their only son.
This is a powerful story.
Recommended (especially for anyone born after 1980).
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1 comment:
Last Sunday ,one of my friend present me this book and its very interesting and looks like he made it readable ....
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