Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet
by Jamie Ford
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Description
Set in the ethnic neighborhoods of Seattle during World War II and Japanese American internment camps of the era, this debut novel tells the heartwarming story of widower Henry Lee, his father, and his first love Keiko Okabe.Tags
Recommendations
Member Recommendations
JGoto This is also set in Washington state with a well-written story dealing with racism against Japanese Americans after World War Two.
241
hoosieriu97 This story is beautifully written about the same time period.
241
pdebolt This is also a story about an American family of Japanese descent sent to an interment camp.
40
tahcastle Both stories explain the Japanese Internment camps. Tallgrass was the town's views of the Japanese moving into their neighborhood. Hotel explained the moving of the Japanese out of their homes into the camp.
20
kqueue Both books deal with Asian-Americans at the onset of World War II and the injustices they suffered along with the tensions between Japanese-Americans and Chinese-Americans.
SqueakyChu Both books give a picture of the people of Japanese descent living in America during World War II.
cbl_tn Both books focus on young lovers separated by war.
Member Reviews
This is a work of historical fiction about an era we don't read or know enough about. Though published in 2009, the tragic and sorry themes of prejudice, racism, hatred and even internment of *others* are terribly timely and current. Our human species just never seems to learn anything does it?
The story is very character driven, and takes place in 2 time frames, 1942, and 1986. Henry and Keiko as 12-year-old friends in Seattle, during WWII, and as 50-something-year-olds in 1986. The themes of bullying, politics, family dynamics, culture and - wonderfully - jazz music, thread their way throughout the story. I was completely drawn in.
One thing bothered me, though and I have to wonder how this never was addressed. In the author's notes at show more the end, and through the many incarnations of how this story - originally written as a short story, then expanded to become the novel - how did no one ever mention this? Maybe it's just me, noticing something quirky (I do have that tendency), but at the very end of the story, the internet plays an important though small role. I was around in 1986 and as far as I can recall, no one used the internet, such as it was, in the way we are used to using it today. This little anachronism in the book just seems to me to be out of place though it truly doesn't detract from the story at all. show less
The story is very character driven, and takes place in 2 time frames, 1942, and 1986. Henry and Keiko as 12-year-old friends in Seattle, during WWII, and as 50-something-year-olds in 1986. The themes of bullying, politics, family dynamics, culture and - wonderfully - jazz music, thread their way throughout the story. I was completely drawn in.
One thing bothered me, though and I have to wonder how this never was addressed. In the author's notes at show more the end, and through the many incarnations of how this story - originally written as a short story, then expanded to become the novel - how did no one ever mention this? Maybe it's just me, noticing something quirky (I do have that tendency), but at the very end of the story, the internet plays an important though small role. I was around in 1986 and as far as I can recall, no one used the internet, such as it was, in the way we are used to using it today. This little anachronism in the book just seems to me to be out of place though it truly doesn't detract from the story at all. show less
In 1986, the current owner of the Panama Hotel begins remodeling, and finds possessions of several Japanese families who left Seattle in the 1940s when they were sent to internment camps. This discovery makes the news, and reminds newly widowed Henry Lee of his experiences as the son of Chinese immigrants in 1942. "Scholarshipping" in an all-white school, he makes a friend when Keiko Okabe transfers to his school and works alongside him in the cafeteria.
The narrative shifts between 1942 and 1986, and we see past and present from Henry's perspective. Ford evokes a rich sense of place in his descriptions of Seattle neighborhoods and the jazz scene in the 1940s. More a story of internal discovery than external events, the story and its show more characters insinuated their way into me until I found, to my surprise, that I cared enough to cry. show less
The narrative shifts between 1942 and 1986, and we see past and present from Henry's perspective. Ford evokes a rich sense of place in his descriptions of Seattle neighborhoods and the jazz scene in the 1940s. More a story of internal discovery than external events, the story and its show more characters insinuated their way into me until I found, to my surprise, that I cared enough to cry. show less
The basement of the boarded up Panama Hotel, in Seattle, Washington’s old International District, holds a secret for Henry Lee. In Henry’s childhood, during the early days of World War II, Japanese Americans families hid their possessions there before they were rounded up and interred in camps. Somewhere in the basement, buried under decades of dust and decay, is an object that promises to resurrect Henry’s memories of friendships and love forged in fire.
Jaime Ford penned a rare masterpiece of history and human emotion with [Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet]. The book rolls through Henry’s life, past and present, without a hitch – a feat that provides evidence of Ford’s talent for characterization, as he is able to show more create a character, in Henry, that has grown and changed over the course of decades but is still recognizable as the same person. Ford populates the rest of the story with troubled and complicated people who seem as real as the people you might meet in your own life. And he resists any urge to paint any of them as cardboard heroes, an urge to which far too many authors of historical fiction succumb. No, the people in Ford’s story are just people, looking for a way through an impossible time, failing as often as they succeed.
Bottom Line: Highly recommended – a rare story that places real people in a tumultuous historical context and never lets them be anything than real people.
5 bones!!!!!
A favorite for the year. show less
Jaime Ford penned a rare masterpiece of history and human emotion with [Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet]. The book rolls through Henry’s life, past and present, without a hitch – a feat that provides evidence of Ford’s talent for characterization, as he is able to show more create a character, in Henry, that has grown and changed over the course of decades but is still recognizable as the same person. Ford populates the rest of the story with troubled and complicated people who seem as real as the people you might meet in your own life. And he resists any urge to paint any of them as cardboard heroes, an urge to which far too many authors of historical fiction succumb. No, the people in Ford’s story are just people, looking for a way through an impossible time, failing as often as they succeed.
Bottom Line: Highly recommended – a rare story that places real people in a tumultuous historical context and never lets them be anything than real people.
5 bones!!!!!
A favorite for the year. show less
This is one of the first books I ever read for a book club. When the anniversary edition came out, I took the opportunity to revisit this fine novel. (I only vividly remember two books from that club year. This one, because I loved it, and another because I disliked it so much.) The book held up exceptionally well. I perhaps enjoyed it even a bit more this time because I am older, much closer to the protagonist Henry's age.
The book is a wonderful combination of a historical novel (dealing with the WWII internment of Japanese Americans), a coming-of-age story, love story, and a later life reflection. It certainly deserved its accolades.
The book is a wonderful combination of a historical novel (dealing with the WWII internment of Japanese Americans), a coming-of-age story, love story, and a later life reflection. It certainly deserved its accolades.
Una storia d'amore adolescenziale sullo sfondo della seconda guerra mondiale, ambientata nella Seattle degli anni '40, descritta con precisione (derivante,pare, da sopralluoghi veri dell'autore che disegnava i luoghi nel suo album per poi poterli descrivere accuratamente). Un ragazzino cinese figlio di genitori nazionalisti, che si innamora di una ragazzina giapponese, considerata il nemico dai suoi, che boicotteranno la loro relazione. Due ragazzi che si avvicinano in quanto si sentono non più cinesi o giapponesi ma americani; ma a cui la nuova patria offre un razzismo a volte strisciante, a volte esplosivo, che non risparmia nemmeno il cinese che pure è alleato di guerra. I giapponesi,invece, vengono alla fine internati in campi di show more custodia (fatto realmente accaduto,ovviamente con sistemi più umani dei lager nazisti, ma in pratica pur sempre una deportazione di massa di cittadini che si definiscono americani, anche se solo di seconda generazione). E da qui la sensazione per i nuovi americani,di essere doppiamente stranieri, sia nella prima che nella seconda patria.
Libro meritevolissimo, per tre motivi: la storia d'amore trattata in punta di piedi,senza melensaggini inutili; l'inquadramento storico e la riproposizione di un tema (la deportazione forzata dei nippoamericani in luoghi sicuri, lontani da punti strategici, in modo che eventuali spie o terroristi non potessero danneggiare obiettivi sensibili) passato parecchio sotto silenzio da stampa e media, e pressoché sconosciuto in Europa; la sottile analisi dello stato d'animo dell'immigrato, visto comunque con timore, attualissimo se si pensa alla paura dell'islam dopo l'11/9 e alle difficoltà di integrazione della seconda generazione,che non è né carne né pesce, né straniera né connazionale.
Lo consiglio vivamente, è stata una scoperta casuale ma graditissima. show less
Libro meritevolissimo, per tre motivi: la storia d'amore trattata in punta di piedi,senza melensaggini inutili; l'inquadramento storico e la riproposizione di un tema (la deportazione forzata dei nippoamericani in luoghi sicuri, lontani da punti strategici, in modo che eventuali spie o terroristi non potessero danneggiare obiettivi sensibili) passato parecchio sotto silenzio da stampa e media, e pressoché sconosciuto in Europa; la sottile analisi dello stato d'animo dell'immigrato, visto comunque con timore, attualissimo se si pensa alla paura dell'islam dopo l'11/9 e alle difficoltà di integrazione della seconda generazione,che non è né carne né pesce, né straniera né connazionale.
Lo consiglio vivamente, è stata una scoperta casuale ma graditissima. show less
One of my least favorite of the books this year. It seemed like I already read this book a hundred times -- oppressed people, Romeo X Juliet love, backwards family living in the past that doesn't understand you.
The story is about a Chinese boy living in Seattle during WWII, when Japanese were being sent to internment camps. The boy likes a Japanese girl, who gets interned. Meanwhile he's got to deal with stereotypical bullies, his fundamentalist father, and where his nationalist loyalties lie. Oh, and while this is happening, the story flashes to the present in 1986, where they can somehow digitize LP records. And the main character has petty, meaningless problems with his own son.
I've never read anything more pedantic and predictable. show more This story is like so many books oriented towards book clubs. It was tedious, and I never gave one rip about the character, because he acts like such a puss. I was never convinced he cared one whit about the Japanese girl. I would have rather read the story about her, and her experience in the internment camp. She had the more interesting obstacles to overcome.
But seriously, I don't recommend this book. There is nothing new, there is nothing interesting. There are no new ideas put forth, there is no emotion therein. show less
The story is about a Chinese boy living in Seattle during WWII, when Japanese were being sent to internment camps. The boy likes a Japanese girl, who gets interned. Meanwhile he's got to deal with stereotypical bullies, his fundamentalist father, and where his nationalist loyalties lie. Oh, and while this is happening, the story flashes to the present in 1986, where they can somehow digitize LP records. And the main character has petty, meaningless problems with his own son.
I've never read anything more pedantic and predictable. show more This story is like so many books oriented towards book clubs. It was tedious, and I never gave one rip about the character, because he acts like such a puss. I was never convinced he cared one whit about the Japanese girl. I would have rather read the story about her, and her experience in the internment camp. She had the more interesting obstacles to overcome.
But seriously, I don't recommend this book. There is nothing new, there is nothing interesting. There are no new ideas put forth, there is no emotion therein. show less
This is the story of the Japanese internment during WWII seen through the eyes of Henry Lee, a twelve-year-old Chinese-American boy living in Seattle. Henry has been sent by his parents to an almost exclusively Caucasian private school where he meets Keiko Okabe, a Japanese-American girl. A bond develops between these two. It is a dual-timeline narrative, half taking place in the 1940’s and half in the 1980’s. It opens with a scene from the Panama Hotel (a real place), where the belongings of Japanese families have been discovered, untouched since the 1940’s. Henry reflects on that time, which was sweet with the blossoming connection between himself and Keiko, but bitter with school bullying, bigotry, and internment of the show more Japanese. He gets permission to comb through the stored items, searching for a keepsake related to that time in his life. Themes include the innocence of first love, youthful rebellion against parental authority, identity, isolation, and loyalty.
Ford is skilled at writing interesting characters. I found they “came alive” on the page. Several of the secondary characters were particularly well-drawn, including Sheldon, an African American jazz musician, and Mrs. Beatty, the school lunchroom manager who takes Henry and Keiko under her wing. Ford is an accomplished storyteller and his language is direct. I particularly liked the descriptions of the Seattle jazz scene. Henry’s passion for jazz seemed very authentic and added a layer of complexity to the story. I also appreciated the author showing the process of “evacuating” (aka forcibly relocating) the families of Japanese descent, which brought this devastating time into focus at a personal level. At times the story veered toward the saccharine, but it was offset by some serious themes.
Overall, I very much enjoyed this story. I appreciated the message that despite hardship, prejudice, and sadness, there is hope for the future. I can also highly recommend another of Jamie Ford’s novels, [b:Love and Other Consolation Prizes|34402674|Love and Other Consolation Prizes|Jamie Ford|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1498738521s/34402674.jpg|54361389] (link to My Review). show less
Ford is skilled at writing interesting characters. I found they “came alive” on the page. Several of the secondary characters were particularly well-drawn, including Sheldon, an African American jazz musician, and Mrs. Beatty, the school lunchroom manager who takes Henry and Keiko under her wing. Ford is an accomplished storyteller and his language is direct. I particularly liked the descriptions of the Seattle jazz scene. Henry’s passion for jazz seemed very authentic and added a layer of complexity to the story. I also appreciated the author showing the process of “evacuating” (aka forcibly relocating) the families of Japanese descent, which brought this devastating time into focus at a personal level. At times the story veered toward the saccharine, but it was offset by some serious themes.
Overall, I very much enjoyed this story. I appreciated the message that despite hardship, prejudice, and sadness, there is hope for the future. I can also highly recommend another of Jamie Ford’s novels, [b:Love and Other Consolation Prizes|34402674|Love and Other Consolation Prizes|Jamie Ford|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1498738521s/34402674.jpg|54361389] (link to My Review). show less
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ThingScore 63
added by bkswrites
While the novel is less perfect as literature than John Hamamura's Color of the Sea (Thomas Dunne, 2006), the setting and quietly moving, romantic story are commendable.
added by Katya0133
Although Ford does not have anything especially novel to say about a familiar subject (the interplay between race and family), he writes earnestly and cares for his characters, who consistently defy stereotype.
added by Katya0133
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Author Information
10+ Works 10,229 Members
Jamie Ford graduated from the Art Institute of Seattle in 1988 and worked as an art director and as a creative director in advertising. He is also an alumnus of the Squaw Valley Community of Writers and the Orson Scott Card's Literary Boot Camp. His books include Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet and Songs of Willow Frost. (Bowker Author show more Biography) show less
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Common Knowledge
- Canonical title
- Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet
- Original title
- Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet
- Original publication date
- 2009
- People/Characters
- Keiko Okabe; Ethel Chen; Marty Lee; Sheldon Thomas; Oscar Holden; Samantha (show all 7); Chaz
- Important places
- Panama Hotel, Seattle, Washington, USA; Rainier Elementary; Minidoka War Relocation Center, Idaho, USA; Seattle, Washington, USA; New York, New York, USA; Washington, USA (show all 8); Idaho, USA; Camp Harmony, Puyallup, Washington, USA
- Important events
- World War II (1939 | 1945); World War II, Pacific Theater (1941-12-07 | 1945-09-02); Japanese-American Internment (1942 | 1945)
- Epigraph
- My poor heart is sentimental
Not made of wood
I got it bad and that ain't good.
--Duke Ellington, 1941 - Dedication
- For Leesha, my happy ending
- First words
- Old Henry Lee stood transfixed by all the commotion at the Panama Hotel.
- Quotations
- Henry stared in silence as a small parade of wooden packing crates and leathery suitcases were hauled upstairs, the crowd marveling at the once-precious items held within: a white communion dress, tarnished silver candlestick... (show all)s, a picnic basket – items that had collected dust, untouched, for forty-plus years. Saved for a happier time that never came.
…wandering over to the Panama Hotel, a place between worlds when he was a child, a place between times now that he was a grown man.
The years had been unkind. … Like so many things Henry had wanted in life – like his father, his marriage, his life – it had arrived a little damaged. Imperfect. But he didn’t care, this was all he’d wanted. Somethi... (show all)ng to hope for, and he’d found it. It didn’t matter what condition it was in.
“With that many people, what’s to keep you from just taking over the camp?”
"You know what keeps us from doing just that? Loyalty. We’re still loyal to the United States of America. Why? Because we too are Amer... (show all)icans. We don’t agree, but we will show our loyalty by our obedience. Do you understand, Henry?"
Henry had much to do. … He’d do what he always did, find the sweet among the bitter.
The man scooped it (a kimono) up, regarded it for a moment, hesitated, then threw it on the fire. The silky fabric lit and burning pieces floated out of the heat like butterflies whose wings caught flame, fluttering on the dr... (show all)aft, flickering out and raining down as black, ashy dust.
As he left the Hotel, Henry looked west to where the sun was setting, burnt sienna flooding the horizon. It reminded him that time was short, but that beautiful endings could still be found at the end of cold dreary days. - Last words
- (Click to show. Warning: May contain spoilers.)"Ureshii desu," Henry said, softly.
(Click to show. Warning: May contain spoilers.)means: I'm very happy - Blurbers
- See, Lisa ; Stein, Garth ; Tomlinson, Jim ; Gruen, Sara ; Jones, Louis B.; Frasier, Anne
- Original language*
- Engels
*Some information comes from Common Knowledge in other languages. Click "Edit" for more information.
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- Reviews
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- ISBNs
- 62
- ASINs
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