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Description
Fiction. Literature. HTML: The story of a Japanese American picture bride, from Angel Island to Topaz Seeking an escape from life in her small village in Japan, Hana Omiya arrives in California in 1917, one of thousands of Japanese "picture brides" whose arranged marriages brought them to the United States. When she finally sets foot on a pier in San Francisco, she is disappointed to meet her soon-to-be husband, the stoic Taro Takeda, who looks much older than in the photo his family had shared. Far from the fantasy life she dreamed up back home, Hana confronts emotional distance from her husband and hostility from white neighbors, eventually focusing her energy to support others in her tight-knit community. Showing the complexity of Issei life, Hana's story is intertwined with the stories of others: her best friend Kiku and Kiku's husband Henry, who reject demeaning city work to become farmers; Reverend Okada, a community leader who eventually decides to return to Japan; and Hana's daughter, Mary, who rejects her family and runs away with her boyfriend. Ultimately, as Japanese Americans are evacuated from their homes and imprisoned in concentration camps, we see how Hana and others cope with the heartache of losing everything they worked hard to build. Revealing the human impact of migration, evacuation, and incarceration, Picture Bride is a wide-ranging portrait of Japanese American life in the early twentieth century..… (more)
User reviews
When Hana and Taro finally meet for the first time, Hana was disappointed. She was surprised to see that Taro was already turning bald, not handsome, and looked like he was older then thirty-one. In the beginning of the book Hana finds she is unhappy and in love with another man. But as time passes she discovers that Taro loves her more than anyone else. Hana and Taro raise a child who they love but she disappoints them at the end. After the bombing in Pearl Harbor, they are sent to desert camps to wait out the war. Can both of them make it through the challenges of the Influenza and more that may come?
The theme of the story is courage because she was brave enough to go marry a man she has never met and be able to have a happy life with him. Also I think it could be culture clash because In California, Hana finds that everything about her seems to be out of place. Her clothes are all wrong; her language is not understood; even the smell of her favorite foods annoys others. Her intelligence is belittled because she speaks a foreign language and cannot fully express herself, and her fine Japanese graces are mocked because they are different from American manners.
I really enjoyed this book, and thought it was great even though it was sad. It showed the hard work, courage, and prejudice they faced. I thought this book was fantastic! I thought this book was going to be boring but instead I found it to be a great book. I might have started reading slow but as I started reading more and more I got hooked to the book and found it to be good and interesting. I would recommend this book to anyone who likes a good book with time on their hand. I also recommend this book to anyone who likes reading books with history in it. If you want to know more about the book then READ IT!
Hana Omiya has left Japan and arrived in San Francisco, California.
In the early 20th century, she is one of many Japanese "picture brides",
facing an arranged marriage to a groom she knew only through photograph.
In all fairness, there may also have been "family recommendations of the possible
Resembling traditional matchmaking, it also bears some similarity to the concept of mail order bride.
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The tale begins with Hana in 1917 and winds to a close when" West Coast Japanese Americans are uprooted from their homes and imprisoned in desert detention camps."
I felt it was a realistic historical experience and a compelling look into the minds and hearts of these Japanese immigrants.
I didn't expect such a touching portrayal....
I'm happy with the time I spent and the insight it provided.
4.5 ★