Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet
Staff Review by Melissa Nunez, Adult Department Assistant at Bremen Public Library
Hotel on the
Corner of Bitter and Sweet by Jamie Ford is the sentimental, tender story of a
first generation Chinese American named
Henry Lee. It's a tale of love and loss, fathers and sons, friendships and
racial differences. Shifting seamlessly between the 1940s World War II era and
1986 Seattle, we follow 12-year-old Henry as he forms a forbidden friendship
with Keiko, a young Japanese-American girl. As Henry and Keiko grow closer, so also
does WWII. Henry and Keiko face ridicule, discrimination, distrust, the
disapproval of Henry's father, and then ultimately, the Japanese internment. Yet
amidst all the trials, a heartwarming kindness comes to them from an unexpected
source. Going forward into 1986, the Panama Hotel has been reopened and
memories of love and heartache are stirred as hundreds of stored belongings are
unearthed belonging to Japanese families that never returned. Luggage and
letters, photos and artwork, all left unclaimed are brought to light. Henry,
now in the autumn of his life, embarks on a quest of love.
While the
author took some artistic license with minor time frame details, I thoroughly
enjoyed this sweet story and would rate it a 3.75. If you like historical
fiction, women's lit, or even romance, Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet
is a choice to consider.
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