The Teahouse Fire
Encyclopedia
The Teahouse Fire is a novel by Ellis Avery set in late nineteenth century Japan
published by Riverhead
in the US in 2006 and to be published by Random House
in the UK as a paperback original.
and is adopted by the family who own it: gradually falling in love with both the Japanese tea ceremony
and with her young mistress, Yukako.
As Aurelia grows up she devotes herself to the family and its failing fortunes in the face of civil war and western intervention, and to Yukako's love affairs and subsequent marriage. But her feelings for mistress seem doomed never to be reciprocated and, as tensions mount in the household, Aurelia begins to realise that to the world around her she will never be anything but an outsider.
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
published by Riverhead
Riverhead
Riverhead may refer to:* Riverhead, Kent, England* Riverhead, New Zealand* Riverhead, Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada* Riverhead, Nova Scotia, a community in the Canadian province of Nova Scotia* Riverhead , the debut album of Goldenhorse...
in the US in 2006 and to be published by Random House
Random House
Random House, Inc. is the largest general-interest trade book publisher in the world. It has been owned since 1998 by the German private media corporation Bertelsmann and has become the umbrella brand for Bertelsmann book publishing. Random House also has a movie production arm, Random House Films,...
in the UK as a paperback original.
Plot summary
Set in late nineteenth century Japan, The Teahouse Fire is the story of Aurelia, a young French-American girl who, after the death of her mother and her missionary uncle, finds herself lost and alone and in need of a new family. Knowing only a few words of Japanese she hides in a Japanese tea houseChashitsu
In Japanese tradition, architectural spaces designed to be used for tea ceremony gatherings are known as chashitsu ....
and is adopted by the family who own it: gradually falling in love with both the Japanese tea ceremony
Japanese tea ceremony
The Japanese tea ceremony, also called the Way of Tea, is a Japanese cultural activity involving the ceremonial preparation and presentation of matcha, powdered green tea. In Japanese, it is called . The manner in which it is performed, or the art of its performance, is called...
and with her young mistress, Yukako.
As Aurelia grows up she devotes herself to the family and its failing fortunes in the face of civil war and western intervention, and to Yukako's love affairs and subsequent marriage. But her feelings for mistress seem doomed never to be reciprocated and, as tensions mount in the household, Aurelia begins to realise that to the world around her she will never be anything but an outsider.
Awards and nominations
- Winner of the Ohioana Library Fiction Award
- Winner of the Lesbian Debut Fiction prize at the Lambda Literary Awards