Review: The beautiful one Has Come: Stories

Author: Suzanne Kamata
Publisher Format: Wyatt-MacKenzie Publishing Paperback, 212 pages 
Year of publication: 2011 
Subject: American women married to Japanese, living in Japan
Setting: various Japanese town
Genre: short series
Source: e-galley ARC from publisher

 This superb collection of short stories is going to be one of my best of the year when it comes time to make up that list in December.  Suzanne Kamata has given us a portrait of American women living in foreign countries, marrying foreigners, and often giving up life as they know it to reside in their husband's native country.  Most were set in Japan, a setting that resonates with me, since I lived in Japan for a total of five years quite awhile ago.

I especially identified with the American woman in the story "You're so lucky" about a woman who is having a C-section in Japanese hospital--she looks at the clock as they begin to administer the anesthetic. It was shockingly similar to my own experience when my son was born there, although he was born in the American Naval hospital.  Of course, she gives birth to twins, and must then begin to deal with physical disabilities that many preemie babies have.

In the next story, "The Naming," we are treated to almost the same event but from the perspective of the Japanese father, who as a baseball coach is struggling with a team that has lost 19 straight games. He is suddenly called away from his team when his wife goes into labor, and hurries to the hospital while his team of underdogs wins without him. His internal struggle with the children's disabilities mirrors his wife's, and it is not until he comes to grips with their ability to survive that he can face naming the children.

Kamata continues with stories of the family dealing with these children.  In "Polishing the Halo" the mother is worried that "Not only was Ana a girl in a society that favored boys, not only was she a mixed race child in a country that cherished pure blood, but also she was disabled."   As she watches, another mother, herself deaf,  signs a halo and says she is an angel, giving Ana's mom hope and a new perspective.

Throughout all the story, Kamata's sympathetic and compelling picture of multi-cultural marriage, of different customs and traditions, and unmet expectations adds to her ability to give us insight into the hearts and minds of these women who have chosen to abandon the familiar in order to remain with the love of their lives.

Wyatt-MacKenzie Publishing proves again that small publishers can and do spot the winners.  My thanks for the opportunity to review this one. 

Review: Shot to Death

Author: Stephen D. Rogers
Format: 257 pgs
Subject: crime
Setting: various
Genre: short stories
Source: ARC from author
Challenge: ARCs completed

This is a delightful collection of short (3-8 page) stories. While the title and cover would leave one to believe they all have a murder (or at least a death by gun) as a central motif. Actually, they are much broader in their scope, their actions, their plots, and their resolutions.

The author suggests that this is not a book to be read straight through. Rather, each story stands alone and can (and should) be read separately. This is exactly how I read it. It is a perfect book to pick up when you have only 5-10 minutes to read. Each story is robust enough that it could be expanded into a decent novella, if not full length novel or mystery story. Each leaves the reader pondering what just happened and what might happen if there were 20-100 more pages. For example, there is the story where a woman is trying to hire a hit man.  We never know who she wants to kill, or why, and we are left wondering what would have happened next if the story had continued.

It would be an especially good book to leave on the nightstand of the guest room. Perfect for sleepy guests who just want a little something to read, and much classier than a magazine or guide book.

Thanks to Stephen Rogers for the opportunity to get an early look by providing a review copy.

Hidden In Plain View Thursdays: A Christmas Book by Norman Rockwell

Norman Rockwell's Christmas Book

by Norman Rockwell

Welcome to the weekly feature where we use Random.org to pick a book from our library shelves (real or virtual) and bring it out into daylight.  To join in, follow the guidelines posted here.

Be sure to leave us a link to your post so we can compare notes. Unlike previous weeks, we won't ask you to try to pick this one off a shelf--it's been hiding in a credenza where I keep the Christmas goodies.  It will come out later next week to reside on the coffee table next to the bowl of nuts and candies.

This is one of my favorite Christmas books.  It has stories, poems, pictures, music, and many beautiful Rockwell illustrations.  We received it years ago as a gift from my inlaws, and it has been a family treasure since then.  If you can find a copy, grab it.  It will be one book that even non-readers will browse through, over and over again.  And it is one book that does NOT translate to the Kindle or to an audio book.


Do you have favorite seasonal books that you bring out for short periods every year?  Be sure to leave a comment.

Review: Our Lady of the Artichokes....

When I first saw the title, I laughed out loud and ordered it. I think I expected something on the line of 'Dave Barry poking fun at the Japanese' humor. HOWEVER....this is a serious, well-written, at times very deep, collection of stories that could only have been written by a Luso(Portuguese)-American. I'm married to one. We have many relatives in California's central valley where several of the stories are set. This morning as we ate breakfast, my husband related his memories of the Holy Ghost Festivals (today being Pentecost) and we discussed the story The Man who was made of Netting. Manny wanted his daughter to be the star of the festival and so found some creative financing to get her a gem studded cape (at a mere $10K!) to wear in the procession. The results of this desire/decision are in that category of 'would be comical if it weren't so sad.' The story of the young Portuguese girl writing to Sr. Lucia (the last survivor of the Fatima miracle and the keeper of the 'last secret') is one every woman who ever had a dream as a pre-teen can relate to. Written as a series of letters, it shows the progression of dreams being dashed by reality. The title story, Our Lady of the Artichokes --so California in addition to being so Portuguese--I won't do spoilers-- is again funny and sad. All the stories have a desolate beauty, a longing for a better life while being resigned to what is here and now. A Portuguese saudade if you will. The prose is so sharp it can cut. For example:

Women were leaning over windowsills, looking altogether like open flaps in an Advent Calendar.

I didn't like the first story Taking a Stitch in a Dead Man's Arm and put the book down over a month ago, but came back to it and found on a re-read that while I may not like it, I can feel it, and appreciate the prose. The final story, The Lisbon Story -- about two dying men--one young, one old-- who are brought together by a house in Lisbon is a stunner, and will cause me to come back periodically to pick up this book and read a story here and there again and again.

I suspected it was five in the morning, an hour I worship; the sky pounds the black pearl of the night until it is in pieces and for a brief time, right then, the white of day is the grout holding it together, a perfect tiled mosaic to greet us...

This is definitely a sleeper. If you live in California, or have any Portuguese relatives or friends, you'll really enjoy this wonderful collection by Katherine Vaz.

Review: The Frozen Thames

In its long history, the river Thames has frozen solid forty times. Thus begins this stunning collection of short stories which presents 40 short fictional account of events tied to each of those deep freezes. Humphrey's prose is as crystal clear as the ice she describes. Each vignette addresses how the river is so central to many lives in London, and how the ice floes in a tidal river impact that life. Living on a tidal river, I can truly appreciate how the ebb and flow of the tide effects the ice that forms in winter. We don't get the solid freeze described in the book, (although many rivers in Maine do!), but we do get the 'iceberg' effect so eloquently described in one of her stories. Her words give us a clear picture of the tribulations of waterman who normally ferried people across the river, the shopkeepers who depended on goods being delivered by boat, the inability of people such as stone cutters to work properly due to the extreme temperatures, and the difficulties getting animals to walk on ice. The stories of sweating sickness on the one hand, and the glorious tented fairs on the other provide sharp contrasts. One really touching story tells of families bringing birds into their houses and letting them build nests inside to prevent them from freezing to death. Stories of plague, fire, heriosm, and city life from 1142 to 1895 are exquisitely written and easy to read. The book itself is beautifully done with excellent illustrations to enhance the text. It's a beautiful afternoon read.

Review: Audio --New England Days by Sarah Orne Jewett

I've been trying to acquaint myself with as many Maine authors as possible (we have almost 100 in our little town library) and stumbled across this one on the state's audio download list. It is actually a collection of some of Jewett's best. There are 8 stand alone stories set mostly in Maine, many of them featuring 'old' (or as we pc people now say 'chronologically advantaged') women and how they dealt with the hardships of either widowhood, or spinsterhood. Many highlighted how their fellow townspeople helped out. One story "Flight of Betsy Lane" features 3 woman who are living in the 'poorhouse' ---an actual instutituion that existed here in Maine until 1977 (I looked it up!). One of them (Miss Lane) is visited by an old friend who gives her some money. She neglects to tell the town selectmen about her good luck (shades of early welfare fraud?), nor does she share the news with her friends. Instead, one mornin' she ups and walks off -- she wanted to go see the exposition in Phillie. Those left behind begin to believe she may well have 'done herself in.' When she returns, with small gifts for each of them, she brings enough wonder and stories of what she saw to keep them all in gossip for at least a lifetime. The last story, "The Hilton's Holiday", almost made me cry. It is the story of a couple who have a barebones existence on a farm, whose only son, who would have been expected to help out and do the hard work with the father, had died. The Hiltons however, instead of bemoaning their bad luck, were thankful for and accepted, nurtured and valued their daughters. In fact, Mr. Hilton decides the girls need a little vacation, so he hitches up the wagon and takes them to town (17 miles away!) for a day of sights, treats , and just enjoying a day off from chores with their dad. The fact that he was able to show off his girls made it a great trip for dad too. Many years ago, my dad drove me and 5 of my friends to high school (I went to private school so there was no bus) every day and that time we spent together was precious beyond words. This story brought it all back. So well written, and exceptionally well narrated, it just made you ache for the simple life and people who could live with so little and still be happy.