Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet by Jamie Ford
Release date: 2009 / 285 pages
Synopsis (from Library Journal): “Ford expertly nails the sweet innocence of first love, the cruelty of racism, the blindness of patriotism, the astonishing unknowns between parents and their children, and the sadness and satisfaction at the end of a life well lived. The result is a vivid picture of a confusing and critical time in American history.”
First line: “Old Henry Lee stood transfixed by all the commotion at the Panama Hotel.”
Review: Instead of including the plot summary from the jacket cover, I decided to use this excerpt from a Library Journal review of this exquisite novel. As soon as I finished this novel (read in one sitting on a glorious, cloudless day at the cabin), I was overwhelmed by the task of reviewing it.
This novel is multi-layered and yet simply a great read – profoundly sad, yet so sweet – frighteningly honest with regard to our country’s past sins, yet thoroughly patriotic in its own way. So, I turned over the novel and read the above excerpt and thought – perfect. Can you imagine a novel being everything expressed in that sentence? Well, Hotel is.
My mother recommended this novel months ago, and I soon found myself numbered in the 200s on my library’s waiting list. Fortunately, my mom remembered to bring a copy of Hotel on her last visit, and all I can say is – please read this. I taught students about the Japanese internment camps for many years and am yet again amazed by not only the similarity of the various reports of that experience, but by the quiet dignity and refusal to succumb to bitterness that colors the Americans who endured this experience.
This novel is unusual in that the narrator is Chinese – imagine looking like the enemy of America, yet having been born in America, and your ancestors are actually allied with America. Interesting premise already… Then, imagine falling in love with a fellow American whose twice-removed ancestors were Japanese. So deliciously, painfully complicated – and Ford uses this premise as a loving vehicle to examine the complexity of father-son relationships, loyalty, misguided “patriotism” and racism. Not to mention love.
Here is a taste of Ford’s prose:
“Henry breathed a sigh of quiet relief and sat down on an old milk crate. Like so many things Henry had wanted in life – like his father, his marriage, his life – it had arrived a little damaged. Imperfect. But he didn’t care, this was all he’d wanted. Something to hope for, and he’d found it. It didn’t matter what condition it was in.” (142)
I strongly recommend this novel – it would be a perfect choice for book clubs – but even if you are not a member of a book club… treat yourself!
I am trying to get hold of it with no success!
TSS: The Jewel Trader of Pegu by Jeffrey Hantover
I would love to read this book!
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I’m looking forward to reading this book AGAIN. It is totally captivating in its innocence, its sweetness. There is much for the Japanese characters to be bitter about, yet they are not. Bitterness colors Henry’s father, obsessed with the Sino-Japanese war. Irony shows up in every generation.
Read it, read it, read it.
Glad to see you really liked this book. I’ll be reading it for a TLC tour in January. I hope it’s okay that I linked to your review on War Through the Generations.