Fifty Words for Rain

Synopsis: In 1950’s Kyoto, an eight year old girl is left alone at the doorstep of her grandparent’s home. Nori has never met her grandparents, but her mother has abandoned her here with the parting words of “obey your grandparents.” Nori is the illegitimate daughter of a married Japanese woman of noble lineage, born of an affair with an African American GI in post war Japan. Nori’s very existence is an embarrassment to her grandparents. She is hidden in the attic, subjected to chemical baths in an effort to lighten her skin, and ignored (when she is not being beaten.) This sad existence is altered by the arrival of Nori’s half brother Akira. He becomes her first, and for a time only friend, exposing her to music and allowing her to imagine a life beyond the attic. The novel covers Nori’s coming of age and search for identity.

Review: Suggested by my long time friend Beth, I had no preconceived notions of this book before beginning. This definitely hit some high notes for me! I love good character development, and it’s common knowledge that this period of history is one of my favorites. I really enjoyed the tension and conflict of traditional Japanese culture and emerging globalization and modernization. Nori has a lot to endure, though unlike some tragedy porn books (ahem, A Little LIfe?) it stops short of feeling gratuitous. Like other reviewers, I was surprised and not in love with the ending. Nonetheless, that doesn’t stop me from giving this novel a good review.

Rating: 4/5

Recipe: Nori forges a very special bond with her half brother Akira. He occasionally takes her to local fairs or festivals, a special treat as she rarely gets to leave the house. A special treat for her is the yakitori chicken the she enjoys on those outings. Basically, it’s a skewer of grilled chicken with an Asian glaze, so what could be bad about that?

Ingredients:

1/2 cup soy sauce

1/4 cup mirin

1/4 cup sake

2 tablespoons brown sugar

4 large cloves of garlic

1 inch ginger root

2 pounds of chicken thighs

1 bunch of scallions, trimmed

1) Combine soy sauce, mirin, sake, brown sugar, garlic and ginger in a small pot, bring to a boil and thicken for a few minutes.

2) Cut the chicken and scallions into bite size pieces and thread onto skewers.

3) Grill, basting with sauce until done