Garden Of Stones by Sophie Littlefield – 301 pages
Book Blurb:
In the dark days of war, a mother makes the ultimate sacrifice. Lucy Takeda is just fourteen years old, living in Los Angeles, when the bombs rain down on Pearl Harbor. Within weeks, she and her mother, Miyako, are ripped from their home, rounded up-along with thousands of other innocent Japanese-Americans-and taken to the Manzanar prison camp.
Buffeted by blistering heat and choking dust, Lucy and Miyako must endure the harsh living conditions of the camp. Corruption and abuse creep into every corner of Manzanar, eventually ensnaring beautiful, vulnerable Miyako. Ruined and unwilling to surrender her daughter to the same fate, Miyako soon breaks. Her final act of desperation will stay with Lucy forever…and spur her to sins of her own.
My Review: 3.5 stars
This book has all the components of a winner for me: mother/daughter relationships, historical fiction, descriptive scenes and crafty writing, yet I lacked a deep emotional connection to it. The murder at the beginning of the story gets slightly put aside from the story as the POVโs of both the mother (1941) and daughter (1978) take over, which becomes the heart of the book. Both of these women suffered from their beauty and being in an internment camp only heightened this problem. The staggering difference between the ugliness of the camp and the beauty/goodness of these characters was evident. Having a character from more current times, the granddaughter, be the link to the past worked well. I feel this book couldโve stood on its own without the murder and I wouldโve liked to know more about what happened to the characters from the motel, as they were integral to who Lucy became. Definitely worth reading, interesting time period in American history that isnโt often discussed.
Quotes I liked:
Lucy thought of the clusters of women in the ironing house, gossiping and laughing over their work, or even fussing over sick children together. Sharing moments of levity and grief. Wasnโt that the way a womanโs life was supposed to be?
In the dream, Miyakoโs face and limbs were so thin that her bones protruded. Only her torso remained plump and full, the silky fabric stretched tight across her belly, her breast. Worry. She was made of worry, her skin stretched with it, her body stuffed with it, like one of those olives stuffed with bright red pimento.
Review:The Measure by Nikki Erlick was a book I waited far too long to read. I just couldnโt stomach the idea that everyone in the world would find out their relative life span. The whole idea of this scared me but when my book club chose to read it, I dug in with enthusiasm.Iโm so glad I did. This book is more about life and how we live it, rather than about dying. Itโs told by a cast of eight characters who are deeply affected by the strings they received. The length of the string parallels the length of your life. All the characters are struggling with their results because even if he or she gets a long string, there will still be people they know will be gone soon.How the world at large handles the strings was so well done. People are switching boxes hoping it could change their destiny. Support groups are offered. Protests occur. The world is in a very different place. Much of this book made me think about the differences between fate and destiny. This story offers many intertwined connections between the characters that makes for a powerful and meaningful ending. Iโm so looking forward to whatโs next from this author. @nikkierlick @williammorrowbooks William Morrow ๐ Would you open a box that told you how long your lifespan is?#themeasure #scifilight#bookreader#bookclubpick#goodbookfairy... See MoreSee Less