Jamie Ford Knihy

NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • “An impressive, bitter, and sweet debut that explores the age-old conflicts between father and son, the beauty and sadness of what happened to Japanese Americans in the Seattle era during World War II, and the depths and longing of deep-heart love.”—Lisa See “A tender and satisfying novel.”—Garth Stein, bestselling author of The Art of Racing in the Rain In 1986, Henry Lee joins a crowd outside the Panama Hotel, once the gateway to Seattle’s Japantown. It has been boarded up for decades, but now the new owner has discovered the belongings of Japanese families who were sent to internment camps during World War II. As the owner displays and unfurls a Japanese parasol, Henry, a Chinese American, remembers a young Japanese American girl from his childhood in the 1940s—Keiko Okabe, with whom he forged a bond of friendship and innocent love that transcended the prejudices of their Old World ancestors. After Keiko and her family were evacuated to the internment camps, she and Henry could only hope that their promise to each other would be kept. Now, forty years later, Henry explores the hotel’s basement for the Okabe family’s belongings and for a long-lost object whose value he cannot even begin to measure. His search will take him on a journey to revisit the sacrifices he has made for family, for love, for country.

1909, Seattle. At the World's Fair, half-Chinese Ernest is raffled off as a prize. Working in the Red Light District, he falls in love with Maisie, the daughter of a madam, and Fahn, a Japanese maid. At the World's Fair in 1962, Ernest looks back on the memories he made with his wife as his daughter begins to unravel their tragic past.

In this powerful exploration of generational love, Dorothy Moy, a former poet laureate, channels her mental health struggles into her art. When her five-year-old daughter begins to exhibit similar behaviors and recalls memories from their ancestors' lives, Dorothy fears her child is destined to suffer the same debilitating depression that has plagued her. Seeking radical help, she undergoes experimental treatment aimed at addressing inherited trauma. This journey leads her to connect intimately with the women in her family’s past: Faye Moy, a nurse with the Flying Tigers; Zoe Moy, a rebellious student in England; Lai King Moy, a girl quarantined during a plague; Greta Moy, a tech executive; and Afong Moy, the first Chinese woman in America. As Dorothy confronts painful memories that affect her present, she realizes that trauma is not her only inheritance. A stranger, who has loved her across generations, is searching for her. Determined to break the cycle of pain and abandonment, Dorothy seeks peace for her daughter and the love that has long eluded her, knowing she may have to pay the ultimate price.

Seattle. È l'alba e il piccolo William si stropiccia gli occhi neri. Ancora avvolto nelle coperte, sente canzoni sussurrate in una lingua antica. Da cinque anni, però, non ascolta la voce di sua madre, da quando è entrato nell'orfanotrofio, dove la disciplina ha preso il posto delle carezze e l'odio è diventato la norma. William è diverso, è cinese. Oggi, nel giorno del compleanno di tutti i bambini dell'istituto, trova il coraggio di chiedere cosa sia successo a sua madre. Le risposte sono vaghe, ma una parola trafigge il suo cuore: è morta. William non ci crede e non vuole arrendersi. Sa che è ancora viva e l'unica con cui può confidarsi è Charlotte, una ragazza dai capelli rossi e dalla pelle delicata. Insieme decidono di fuggire dall'orfanotrofio per cercare sua madre, ma il mondo che li attende è pericoloso e oscuro. Le strade di Seattle nei primi anni Trenta sono violente, piene di locali e teatri. Qui, William incontra lo sguardo di una giovane cantante cinese, un incontro che non dimenticherà. Deve scoprire chi è e cosa nasconde. Nessun ostacolo è troppo grande, perché ora la speranza di essere amati e al sicuro potrebbe finalmente tornare a crescere.

Syv år gamle Tiller drømmer om at mamma skal være glad. En dag er mamma borte og Tiller bruker all tid på å lete etter henne. En kveld går hun ned i den mørke kjelleren, til døren med det blå lyset. Der finner hun mamma og livet blir ennå merkeligere.