Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet, by Jamie Ford

Characters
1940s	1980s
Henry Lee Parents Ethel Chen – postal clerk Miss Beatty – cafeteria lady Keiko Okabe Parents Chaz Preston – bully Charles Preston – father, building developer Oscar Holden – jazz pianist Sheldon Thomas – sax player, street performer	Henry Lee Ethel Marty Samantha Sheldon Thomas Kay Hatsune – Keiko Palmyra Pettison – new owner of Panama Hotel

For Discussion:

NOTE: Page numbers are from the paperback edition.

1. Discuss Henry’s relationship with his parents:
1. Did not tell them about bullying at school
2. No common language – Henry forbidden to speak Chinese at home but parents could not understand English
3. Father disowning Henry because of Keiko

2. Discuss the relationship between Henry and Marty.  How was it affected by Henry’s upbringing?  Were you surprised that Marty approved of trying to find Keiko?

3. Discuss Henry’s father.  Henry’s mother told him that his father came to America as an orphan after experiencing Japan invading China and killing “many, many people.  Not soldiers but women and children, the old and the sick” (page 127).  Was it realistic to think his father would be able to feel differently toward Keiko?

4. At the end of his life, Henry’s father wanted to repair the relationship with his son.  Also, on his deathbed he “wanted to die with a clear conscience” (page 263) and confessed that he was responsible for the letters between Henry and Keiko never being delivered.   Was it possible for the breach between father and son to be repaired at this time and with the revelation of this information?  Should Henry have forgiven him?

5. Do you think Ethel played a part in the non-delivery of the letters?

 

6. On pages 114 and 115 when Henry and Keiko were in the record store to buy the Oscar Holden record, the owner said, “We don’t serve people like you – besides, my husband is off fighting.”   Keiko was surprised that grown-ups would act this way, but Henry knew, “from his own experience that sometimes grown-ups could be worse.  Much worse.”  Was it possible for the lady in the store to act any differently?

7. In 1942 when Henry was translating for Mr. Preston and his father about Mr. Preston’s interest in forcing the Nichibei publishing company out of business and buying the land, Henry purposefully mistranslated so that the sale did not happen.  Were you surprised that Henry would do that?

8. Discuss the different ways people in different cultures show affection.  On page 201 Henry states that affection in his family was shown with “usually a nod and occasionally a smile.  He just assumed all families were that way – all people too.” 

9. Discuss Samantha and her sudden dominance in the story.  Was this realistic?  Do you think she would have been accepted by Henry so readily in real life?

10. One of my favorite characters was Mrs. Beatty, the cafeteria lady.  When Keiko was sent away with her family, Mrs. Beatty served a Japanese recipe for lunch. Then she refused to serve Chaz who was taunting Henry.  She was described as having a “war face” when refusing Chaz (page 149) and an “intimidating mountain of a woman – and a person of few words” (page 150-1).  What did you think of her character?

11. In the tenth anniversary edition of the book, the author said that Sheldon and Mrs. Beatty were two of his favorite characters and that he had “written short stories starring each of them.  [He] just wasn’t ready to say goodbye” (page 326).  Did you like the characters?  Why?

12. Did you learn anything about the Japanese experience in America during the war?  Why do you think they were so cooperative when they had to leave everything behind?

13. Did you like the way the novel was written with the parallel stories?

*****
First Semester Success, 2nd edition, by Dr. Arden B. Hamer, is available as an eBook and hard copy from amazon.com and hard copy from wordassociation.com.