hotel on the corner of bitter and sweet

When the book title includes 'bitter' and 'sweet' you know it is going to be an emotional one right? I didn't exactly cry this time, but I was touched. It was a beautifully written story surrounding the repercussions of WWII in Seattle for the Chinese and Japanese. Told from the perspective of Henry, an American born Chinese, back and forth between his pre-teens and his senior years.

He talks about the persecution of the Japanese, immediately following the bombing of Pearl Harbor, and how he had to wear a button that said, "I am Chinese" so no one would think he was Japanese. How he formed a friendship with a Japanese little girl, and had to watch her evacuated and sent to an intern camp. As an adult, when a new proprietor purchases the Panama Hotel in Seattle and discovers hundreds of items that the Japanese put in 'storage' when they were evacuated, and how he wants to find his friends stuff.

A great perspective on Seattle, America, the Chinese, and the Japanese during this war torn time. I really enjoyed it.