Choosing the perfect book for The Literary Queens is not easy. The criteria for choosing a book is whether or not the book is clean, is the book is worthy of discussion, and will the book appeal to everyone--this is the most difficult for us. We had fantastic luck with our first two choices, because everyone loved the books. Nikki and I were surprised that some of the ladies did not enjoy this selection, and a couple did not even finish it.
This was cause for a lively discussion.
Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet is set in Seattle, Washington in the early 1940's. It's a love story between Henry Lee, a Chinese American boy and Keiko Okabe, a Japanese American girl. Henry and Keiko both receive a special scholarship to attend an all white school. They meet while working in the school cafeteria. They quickly form an intense friendship which leads to platonic love. Keiko's family is among the Japanese Americans in Seattle, who are deported to an internment camp in Idaho. Henry and Keiko lose contact with each other because of circumstances beyond their control, but their affection for each other lasts for over four decades until they are able to cross paths again.
Our discussion centered around the mistreatment of the Japanese Americans. It's a shameful part of our history. Two of the ladies shared that they had family who were POW's in Japanese prison camps during WWII. It was interesting to hear about these men and how their lives were forever changed by this experience. What impressed me the most is our friend, Brindi, shared the experience of her Grandfather. He was imprisoned for three years and was a part of the group that was left behind in the Philippines after General MacArthur made his famous escape. He had a beloved wedding band that he miraculously kept hidden from the Japanese during the entirety of his imprisonment. This ring has been handed down to family members. Brindi told us that later in her Grandfather's life, he opened his home to Japanese exchange students. What an amazing example of overcoming hatred.
We had one favorite quote shared by our friend DeAnn:
Mr. Okabe expressed this to Henry when Henry gave him his "I am Chinese" button hoping that it may protect the Okabe family. "You just gave me hope and sometimes hope is enough to get you through anything."
I liked what the author said about Henry,"He'd do what he always did, find the sweet among the bitter."
This is good advice for all of us.
Next month: Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins
2 comments:
Sometimes it is much more fun for a discussion to read and talk about a book that doesn't appeal to everyone. I really liked reading all that you wrote about this book--I really enjoyed this read, too. Right now I am reading Gregor the Overlander, the first in a children's series by Suzanne Collins. Zoe and I like it, very different from The Hunger Games.
I will add that to my list...as I do all your suggested books. I like to read but I also like tons of other stuff so I don't always read as much as I would like. Thank you for sharing about your friend's grandfather - what a beautiful story of overcoming odds.
Post a Comment