Angela Davis-Gardner

Barbara Jefferson is an American teaching in Japan, and her professor, Michi, who was like a mother to her, died and leaves her a tansu chest full of plum wine. Each bottle of wine was made in a different year and has a paper wrapped aorund it with the story of that year written on it in Japanese. It's an odd inheritance for Barbara, who doesn't speak or read Japanese. She wants to read the story and know more about Michi, as she realizes she didn't know that much about her personally, although she was close to her in many ways.

An acquaintance of Michi's and fellow hibakusha (survivor of the Hiroshima bombing), Seiji, a moody and talented pottery artist, helps Barbara translate the papers. Their relationship grows, and with it, brings confusion to Barbara's world.

I liked and disliked this book. The interweaving of the stories about "kitsune," Japanese folklore about foxes, the stories of the hibakusha, and descriptions of Japan give the story great atmosphere and transport you to Japan. So those are the good points of hte book. But, as the cover says in one of its critic review, "A heartrending story of love and loss . . . .masterful."

There were a few standout scenes in the book. Michi and Barbara's visit to the Buddha of Kamakura, and feeling they were in the womb of the Buddha was interesting and provided a great backdrop for conversations about mothers and relationships. I liked Barbara's speculation about her mother's feelings: "My mother always wanted a daughter like her, someone adventurous but conventional. A suit-and-pants kind of woman who takes flying lessons."… (more)

This book that has been on my to read shelf for a couple of years, but it was not until this month that I decided to pick it up. The reason? My daughter just made her role debut in the opera Madama Butterfly!! The book became a must read NOW! I agree with other reviewers that the author did a good job of painting a picture of Midwest farm life and attitudes in the late 19th century, as well as researching both the time and place of both the US and Japan during this period. I encourage others to read interviews with the author about that aspect of the writing process. I was totally surprised by the final outcome of the novel and felt the author did a great job of capturing the reactions and feelings of the central characters. I highly recommend this book.… (more)

Felice. Angela Davis-Gardner. 1982. I really enjoyed the author’s Plum Wine, and expected to like this novel, after all it was set in a Catholic school/convent in Nova Scotia! It moved a little slow for me. We move in between Felice’s imagination and her reality as she grows from a child into a young adult. She is torn between the religious life and life outside the convent. The writing is beautiful, and I loved the descriptions of convent life and life in Scotia in the early 20th century, but did not find this book as satisfying I’d hoped.… (more)