Bridge Of Scarlet Leaves by Kristina McMorris – 420 pages

Los Angeles, 1941. Violinist Maddie Kern’s life seemed destined to unfold with the predictable elegance of a Bach concerto. Then she fell in love with Lane Moritomo. Her brother’s best friend, Lane is the handsome, ambitious son of Japanese immigrants. Maddie was prepared for disapproval from their families, but when Pearl Harbor is bombed the day after she and Lane elope, the full force of their decision becomes apparent. In the eyes of a fearful nation, Lane is no longer just an outsider, but an enemy.
When her husband is interned at a war relocation camp, Maddie follows, sacrificing her Juilliard ambitions. Behind barbed wire, tension simmers and the line between patriot and traitor blurs. As Maddie strives for the hard-won acceptance of her new family, Lane risks everything to prove his allegiance to America, at tremendous cost.

Bridge Of Scarlet Leaves is a fulfilling book that captures the time of post Pearl Harbor America and how it affects, Lane, a Japanese American in love with an American woman (Maddie) as well as Lane’s relationship with his best friend TJ, who happens to be Maddie’s brother. Feeling the great divide for Japanese Americans, this book took on a unique perspective and one which I really enjoyed. I learned quite a bit about the internment camps from the inside looking out.
Romance, family loyalties, cultural expectations, guilt, forgiveness and the emotional repercussions of war are beautifully expressed through this novel. Often predictable moments, didn’t scar this book from being a winner of a historical war romantic novel. Please take time to read the author’s afterward. She offers great recipes that tie Japanese and American cuisine together as well as some interesting stories about brothers who fought for different sides of the war. Her tale about Chairman Mao and his plan to destroy all sparrows is a real life fable in which we can learn quite a bit from.