Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet by Jamie Ford

Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet by Jamie Ford is about Henry Lee, a twelve year old Chinese boy growing up in Seattle in 1942, during World War II. Henry's parents send him to an all white school where he is forced to work in the lunch room and clean the classrooms at the end of the day to earn his tuition. Henry is the only non-white student in the school... until the day Keiko, a twelve year old Japanese girl, arrives. She, too, is "scholarshipping", or working for her school entrance. Henry has grown up with a very traditional father who strongly shows his support for his home country of China, against the Japanese in the war - in fact, Henry's father forces Henry to wear a button that reads "I am Chinese" every day (the Chinese and United States were allies during WWII). Henry knows his friendship with Keiko is forbidden, but he is drawn to her anyway. Their friendship grows as they work together and walk home from school together, until the day Keiko and her family are moved to a Japanese internment camp, for "their own protection". Henry finds them at the train station and offers his button to Keiko, hoping he can save her from leaving. During her stay at the temporary camp, and her longer stay in the permanent camp in Idaho, Henry finds ways to stay in contact with his best friend. Until one day, when his final letter to Keiko is returned to sender unopened. It is at this time that Henry decides to stop defying his father, who hasn't acknowledged Henry for over two years because of his friendship with Keiko's family, and return to China to finish his schooling. It is also at that time when Henry begins dating Ethel, the woman he will end up marrying and having a son with.

This book is also about the adult Henry, sharing his grown-up story in 1986 with his son Marty and Marty's fiance, Samantha. A famous Japanese-built hotel in Seattle has been purchased, and in the basement a virtual museum of possessions found. Trunks and personal possessions from the Japanese families sent to the internment camps, stored in the basement for 40 years. Henry is sure he'll find something of Keiko's he's been searching for on and off for many years, in that basement. Struggling with feelings of guilt about his recently deceased wife, and excitement at the thought of finding Keiko again, Henry finds what he was looking for and is able to fix something he'd always thought he had broken.

This book was amazing! I read it in one day because I couldn't put it down. I loved the way the author took the story back and forth between the 1940s and 1986. I don't typically read books written for adults, but I'm glad I read this one. I think it can be enjoyed by my 6th graders, as well! Another great read about Japanese internment camps during World War II is Weedflower by Cynthia Kadohata.

Weedflower by Cynthia Kadohata

Weedflower by Cynthia Kadohata is set in the United States, just before and right after the bombing of Pearle Harbor. Sumiko and her brother, Tak Tak, lost their parents in a car accident several years before. Since then, they have been living with their aunt and uncle in California, working on their family run flower farm - their specialty? Kusabana, or weedflower. When Pearle Harbor was bombed, all of the Japanese people were suspected of being spies for Japan and were rounded up and sent to different internment camps around the United States. Sumiko's uncle and grandfather were seen as leaders of their community and were sent to North Dakota. The rest of the family, Sumiko and her brother, their aunt and two cousins, were sent to Poston, Arizona. This internment camp was on an Indian Reservation. It was hot, dusty, and hostile - like nothing Sumiko had ever experienced before. Everyone in the camp tried to make the best out of the situation by trying to work, planting gardens, starting a school, and even developing sports teams! The work was hard and paid very little. Sumiko met an Indian boy named Frank who was interested in the ways her cousins irrigated their little flower farm back in California, and wanted to learn more about it. She arranged the meeting. Eventually, the Japanese people were asked to relocate again, this time to places outside of camps so they could contribute to the workforce within the United States. They were also asked to sign up to fight in the war on the side of the US. Anyone who refused to agree that they were loyal to the US and not Japan, was sent to a "segregation" camp. Sumiko's older cousins both went to the military, and her aunt decided to move everyone else to Chicago to look for work. Sumiko hated this decision, because she finally felt like she belonged somewhere.

This was a really good book. I learned a lot about the history of both the Native Americans who lived on the reservation in Poston, Arizona, as well as the history of the Japanese people who were living in the US during WWII. The author, Cynthia Kadohata's father was a prisoner at the camp in Poston. His experiences contributed to those described in the story.


Iowan to Receive her Dream Degree
The above link is to a news story out of Ames, Iowa about a woman whose husband worked with my dad for many years. It is about her story and experience living in the Japanese Internment Camp in Arizona.