Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet
Encyclopedia
Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet is a historical fiction
bestselling novel (2009) by Jamie Ford about the love and friendship of a Chinese boy and a Japanese girl during the Japanese internment in World War II.
Henry Lee meets Keiko Okabe, a Japanese American
girl, in the early 1940s. They both attend an (otherwise) white prep school as "scholarship students" in Seattle. Henry's father is adamantly anti-Japanese, as is the increasingly hostile general population of Seattle following the Attack on Pearl Harbor
. In spite of this, Henry and Keiko begin an intense friendship until Keiko is taken to an internment camp with her family.
Henry finds her, first at local Camp Harmony. After failing to make his feelings known at Camp Harmony, he follows her with his friend, a local Jazz musician named Sheldon, to Minidoka, Idaho. Upon finding her there, he promises to wait for her. They decide to write each other letters until the war is over, and Henry returns to Seattle.
He religiously mails Keiko letters, but receives very few in return. His father is intent on sending him to China
, now that the Japanese are being pushed back, to finish his education traditionally. Henry arrives home one day to find a ticket to China in his name. He agrees to go on the condition that his father (as part of an association of elders) saves the Panama Hotel
from being sold. The Panama Hotel is where Keiko's family stored the larger part of their belongings when they were shipped to the concentration camps. Many families stored their possessions in the basement of the Hotel.
He then meets the woman he ended up marrying, Ethel, who worked at the post office and became casual friends with him. He did end up meeting Keiko again, though their postal contact was severed by Henry's father, who was stopping the letters in transit. With the help of Henry's son he finds Keiko in New York after she sent a package to Sheldon's funeral. He goes to see her and they have casual conversation, until Keiko begins a Japanese compliment that Henry had spoken to her in during their childhood, which Henry finishes.
2010 Washington State Book Award Finalist
2009 Montana Tree Award
2009 Borders Original Voices Selection
2009 Director's Mention, Langum Prize for American Historical Fiction
2009 One of BookBrowse's Top 3 Favorite Books
Historical fiction
Historical fiction tells a story that is set in the past. That setting is usually real and drawn from history, and often contains actual historical persons, but the principal characters tend to be fictional...
bestselling novel (2009) by Jamie Ford about the love and friendship of a Chinese boy and a Japanese girl during the Japanese internment in World War II.
Plot summary
Young Chinese AmericanChinese American
Chinese Americans represent Americans of Chinese descent. Chinese Americans constitute one group of overseas Chinese and also a subgroup of East Asian Americans, which is further a subgroup of Asian Americans...
Henry Lee meets Keiko Okabe, a Japanese American
Japanese American
are American people of Japanese heritage. Japanese Americans have historically been among the three largest Asian American communities, but in recent decades have become the sixth largest group at roughly 1,204,205, including those of mixed-race or mixed-ethnicity...
girl, in the early 1940s. They both attend an (otherwise) white prep school as "scholarship students" in Seattle. Henry's father is adamantly anti-Japanese, as is the increasingly hostile general population of Seattle following the Attack on Pearl Harbor
Attack on Pearl Harbor
The attack on Pearl Harbor was a surprise military strike conducted by the Imperial Japanese Navy against the United States naval base at Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, on the morning of December 7, 1941...
. In spite of this, Henry and Keiko begin an intense friendship until Keiko is taken to an internment camp with her family.
Henry finds her, first at local Camp Harmony. After failing to make his feelings known at Camp Harmony, he follows her with his friend, a local Jazz musician named Sheldon, to Minidoka, Idaho. Upon finding her there, he promises to wait for her. They decide to write each other letters until the war is over, and Henry returns to Seattle.
He religiously mails Keiko letters, but receives very few in return. His father is intent on sending him to China
China
Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...
, now that the Japanese are being pushed back, to finish his education traditionally. Henry arrives home one day to find a ticket to China in his name. He agrees to go on the condition that his father (as part of an association of elders) saves the Panama Hotel
Panama Hotel
The Panama Hotel in Seattle, Washington's International District was built in 1910. The hotel was built by the first Japanese-American architect in Seattle, Sabro Ozasa, and contains the last remaining Japanese bathhouse in the United States...
from being sold. The Panama Hotel is where Keiko's family stored the larger part of their belongings when they were shipped to the concentration camps. Many families stored their possessions in the basement of the Hotel.
He then meets the woman he ended up marrying, Ethel, who worked at the post office and became casual friends with him. He did end up meeting Keiko again, though their postal contact was severed by Henry's father, who was stopping the letters in transit. With the help of Henry's son he finds Keiko in New York after she sent a package to Sheldon's funeral. He goes to see her and they have casual conversation, until Keiko begins a Japanese compliment that Henry had spoken to her in during their childhood, which Henry finishes.
Awards
2010 Asian/Pacific American Award for Literature2010 Washington State Book Award Finalist
2009 Montana Tree Award
2009 Borders Original Voices Selection
2009 Director's Mention, Langum Prize for American Historical Fiction
2009 One of BookBrowse's Top 3 Favorite Books