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Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet
by Jamie Ford
Reviewed by Melanie Ho
Jamie Ford's debut novel Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet is a warm and tender novel which tells a story of compassion and cruelty, bitterness and, like its title suggests, sweetness.
Set in 1946 Seattle and then again in the city forty years later, Ford tells the story of Henry and Keiko, joined together by first love and the fact they are the only two non-white children in their school. They are both American, but they are separated by heritage -- Henry is Chinese, while Keiko's Japanese heritage means Henry is forbidden to be friends with her. Despite Henry's father's insistence that his son being brought up "American" and his hatred for the Japanese, Henry and Keiko forge a friendship that takes them on adventures through school bullies, Seattle's Japantown and the pair's adoration of jazz.
When Keiko and her family are forced to enter an internment camp, the two promise to reunite no matter how much times lapses. And forty years later, as a parasol from an old hotel triggers the memory of Keiko, Henry begins to search for another even more powerful object.
A moving story of love lost and perhaps once again found, Ford's dual settings of 1946 and 1986 allow him to narrate the story carefully and assemble a beautiful puzzle. By having his Henry and Keiko navigate their way through the Second World War as children, Ford is afforded a liberty to be able to question and critique the obvious, to not be weighted by the responsibility of what one should do, and truly allow them to play the role of the outsiders.
Henry and Keiko are so easy to like and to root for. Their innocent love is touching and readers can only want the best for them and for them to somehow succeed amidst parental rules and government laws during a very difficult time in the United States.
If there is a weakness in the novel, it is in its predictability. As the book progresses, too much of the future is given away in the present narration. And, if an ending is important, not simply as a conclusion but as a reward, then Ford's might come as a disappointment. The story ends how one reading the first two chapters or even the inside book jacket would lead one to think it would and means that one must be satisfied with the book's journey and not its destination.
And to be picky, there are a few oddities and cliches which do not do the majority of the novel justice. For example, it takes exactly one page and one paragraph for the book to reference Bruce Lee, one of the other Chinese "notables" in Henry's world. One oddity, or anachronism, occurs early in the book, when Ford references the online support group Henry's son Marty has joined to help deal with his mother's death. The problem lies in the time frame: 1986, a time when the majority of people still had never sent an email.
Nevertheless, Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet is an enjoyable and impressive debut.
--
Melanie Ho is a writer who has reviewed for publications in Hong Kong and Canada.
by Jamie Ford
Reviewed by Melanie Ho
Jamie Ford's debut novel Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet is a warm and tender novel which tells a story of compassion and cruelty, bitterness and, like its title suggests, sweetness.
Set in 1946 Seattle and then again in the city forty years later, Ford tells the story of Henry and Keiko, joined together by first love and the fact they are the only two non-white children in their school. They are both American, but they are separated by heritage -- Henry is Chinese, while Keiko's Japanese heritage means Henry is forbidden to be friends with her. Despite Henry's father's insistence that his son being brought up "American" and his hatred for the Japanese, Henry and Keiko forge a friendship that takes them on adventures through school bullies, Seattle's Japantown and the pair's adoration of jazz.
When Keiko and her family are forced to enter an internment camp, the two promise to reunite no matter how much times lapses. And forty years later, as a parasol from an old hotel triggers the memory of Keiko, Henry begins to search for another even more powerful object.
A moving story of love lost and perhaps once again found, Ford's dual settings of 1946 and 1986 allow him to narrate the story carefully and assemble a beautiful puzzle. By having his Henry and Keiko navigate their way through the Second World War as children, Ford is afforded a liberty to be able to question and critique the obvious, to not be weighted by the responsibility of what one should do, and truly allow them to play the role of the outsiders.
Henry and Keiko are so easy to like and to root for. Their innocent love is touching and readers can only want the best for them and for them to somehow succeed amidst parental rules and government laws during a very difficult time in the United States.
If there is a weakness in the novel, it is in its predictability. As the book progresses, too much of the future is given away in the present narration. And, if an ending is important, not simply as a conclusion but as a reward, then Ford's might come as a disappointment. The story ends how one reading the first two chapters or even the inside book jacket would lead one to think it would and means that one must be satisfied with the book's journey and not its destination.
And to be picky, there are a few oddities and cliches which do not do the majority of the novel justice. For example, it takes exactly one page and one paragraph for the book to reference Bruce Lee, one of the other Chinese "notables" in Henry's world. One oddity, or anachronism, occurs early in the book, when Ford references the online support group Henry's son Marty has joined to help deal with his mother's death. The problem lies in the time frame: 1986, a time when the majority of people still had never sent an email.
Nevertheless, Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet is an enjoyable and impressive debut.
--
Melanie Ho is a writer who has reviewed for publications in Hong Kong and Canada.
Available in Asia from Paddyfield.com
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