Gail Tsukiyama Bücher

Im japanischen Ferienhaus seiner Familie trifft der junge Chinese Stephen auf den wortkargen Hausverwalter Matsu. Wie die beiden in Herkunft und Nationalität so unterschiedlichen Menschen sich vor der Kulisse von Matsus Garten, einem Werk von erlesener Schönheit, näherkommen und welches Geheimnis Matsus verschleierte Gefährtin Sachi umgibt, erzählt Gail Tsukiyama in diesem poetischen, im wahrsten Sinne des Wortes bezaubernden Roman.

Dies ist die Geschichte der 27jährigen Pei, die mit der 14jährigen Waise Ji Shen 1938 nach Hongkong kommt. Ein Roman über die Menschen ihrer Umgebung und ihrem jahrzehntelangen Kampf ums Überleben.§Der Roman spiegelt das Leben in Hongkong bis in die siebziger Jahre wieder. Er ist gleichzeitig ein historisch-sozialer Bericht aber vor allem eine Erzählung von Frauen unterschiedlichen Alters, die an einem immerwährenden Beziehungsnetz über alle gesellschaftlichen Strukturen hinweg weben und das als Überlebenshilfe ebenso notwendig wie sinnstiftend ist.§

Tokio 1939. Hiroshi und sein jüngerer Bruder Kenji haben keine Eltern mehr, doch ihre Großeltern geben ihnen alle Liebe, die sie brauchen, und lassen sie von einer Zukunft träumen, die fest in den Traditionen des alten Japan verankert ist. Doch in der neuen Zeit, die nun anbricht, scheint es keinen Platz mehr für die alten Werte zu geben. Kenji träumt davon, ein berühmter Maskenschnitzer für das traditionelle Nõ-Theater zu werden. Hiroshi dagegen ist fasziniert von der Kunst des Sumo-Ringens: Es gelingt ihm tatsächlich, von Tanaka, einem angesehenen Meister, aufgenommen und ausgebildet zu werden. Dessen Töchter, die zarte, verträumte Aki und ihre willensstarke Schwester Haru, bezaubern Hiroshi jede auf ihre Art. Beide Jungen blicken voller Hoffnungen in die Zukunft, doch dann bricht der Krieg aus, und ihr Leben ändert sich dramatisch. Als immer mehr Bomben auf Tokio fallen, schicken die Großeltern ihre Enkel aufs Land, um sie zu retten. Alle Träume von Ruhm und Ehre scheinen zerstört. Werden Hiroshi und Kenji ihren Weg in einer neuen Welt finden?

Von Hongkong bis San Francisco von den frühen 30ern bis in die späten 60er Jahre spannt sich der Bogen dieser einfühlsam erzählten Familiengeschichte, in deren Mittelpunkt die unterschiedlichen Entwicklungen zweier japanischer Schwestern stehen. Emmy und Joan Lew erleben als Kinder, wie japanische Truppen das bunte Leben in Hongkong ersticken. Gemeinsam leiden sie unter der gesellschaftlichen Deklassierung ihres Vaters, aber auch unter der Angepaßtheit und Enttäuschungsbereitschaft ihrer Mutter, die sich immer mit der traditionellen Frauenrolle zufriedengegeben hat. §Glücklicherweise ist da noch Auntie Go, eine warmherzige, entschlußkräftige und vorurteilsfreie Frau. Mit großem Geschick vertritt sie die Interessen ihrer Nichten bei ihrer Mutter: Emma träumt davon, ihren Bildungshunger und ihr Fernweh auszuleben, und Joan, die impulsivere und hübschere der beiden, gibt die Hoffnung nicht auf, in der Filmindustrie Fuß zu fassen, die in Hongkong nach dem Zweiten Weltkrieg aufblüht.

Readers of Women of the Silk never forgot the moving, powerful story of Pei, brought to work in the silk house as a girl, grown into a quiet but determined young woman whose life is subject to cruel twists of fate, including the loss of her closest friend, Lin. Now, in bestselling novelist Gail Tsukiyama's The Language of Threads, we finally learn what happened to Pei, as she leaves the silk house for Hong Kong in the 1930s, arriving with a young orphan, Ji Shen, in her care. Her first job, in the home of a wealthy family, ends in disgrace, but soon Pei and Ji Shen find a new life in the home of Mrs. Finch, a British ex-patriate who welcomes them as the daughters she never had. Their idyllic life is interrupted, however, by war, and the Japanese occupation. Pei is once again forced to make her own way, struggling to survive and to keep her extended family alive as well. In this story of hardship and survival, Tsukiyama paints a portrait of women fighting the forces of war and time to make a life for themselves.

Readers of Women of the Silk never forgot the moving, powerful story of Pei, brought to work in the silk house as a girl, grown into a quiet but determined young woman whose life is subject to cruel twists of fate, including the loss of her closest friend, Lin. Now we finally learn what happened to Pei, as she leaves the silk house for Hong Kong in the 1930s, arriving with a young orphan, Ji Shen, in her care. Her first job, in the home of a wealthy family, ends in disgrace, but soon Pei and Ji Shen find a new life in the home of Mrs. Finch, a British ex-patriate who welcomes them as the daughters she never had. Their idyllic life is interrupted, however, by war, and the Japanese occupation. Pei is once again forced to make her own way, struggling to survive and to keep her extended family alive as well. In this story of hardship and survival, Tsukiyama paints a portrait of women fighting the forces of war and time to make a life for themselves.

Gail Tsukiyama's A Hundred Flowers is powerful novel about an ordinary family facing extraordinary times at the start of the Chinese Cultural Revolution China, 1957. Chairman Mao has declared a new openness in society: "Let a hundred flowers bloom; let a hundred schools of thought contend." Many intellectuals fear it is only a trick, and Kai Ying's husband, Sheng, a teacher, has promised not to jeopardize their safety or that of their young son, Tao. But one July morning, just before his sixth birthday, Tao watches helplessly as Sheng is dragged away for writing a letter criticizing the Communist Party and sent to a labor camp for "reeducation." A year later, still missing his father desperately, Tao climbs to the top of the hundred-year-old kapok tree in front of their home, wanting to see the mountain peaks in the distance. But Tao slips and tumbles thirty feet to the courtyard below, badly breaking his leg. As Kai Ying struggles to hold her small family together in the face of this shattering reminder of her husband's absence, other members of the household must face their own guilty secrets and strive to find peace in a world where the old sense of order is falling. Once again, Tsukiyama brings us a powerfully moving story of ordinary people facing extraordinary circumstances with grace and courage.

The narrative delves into the intricate bonds of mother-daughter relationships and lifelong friendships, showcasing the emotional depth and complexity inherent in these connections. Through her poignant storytelling, Gail Tsukiyama reveals the nuances of love, loss, and understanding, inviting readers to reflect on the significance of these enduring ties in their own lives.

The story revolves around two sisters whose lives diverge due to their differing ambitions while still being tied together by cultural traditions. Set against a rich backdrop, the novel explores themes of family, identity, and the struggle between personal desires and societal expectations. As the sisters navigate their contrasting paths, their relationship is tested, revealing the complexities of love and rivalry within familial bonds.

PARADE's Best Books to Read this Summer "A rich historical novel that illustrates why connection is more important and more vital than ever." -New York Times bestselling author Lisa See Daniel Abe, a young doctor in Chicago, is finally coming back to Hawai'i. He has his own reason for returning to his childhood home, but it is not to revisit the past, unlike his Uncle Koji. Koji lives with the memories of Daniel's mother, Mariko, the love of his life, and the scars of a life hard-lived. He can't wait to see Daniel, who he's always thought of as a son, but he knows the time has come to tell him the truth about his mother, and his father. But Daniel's arrival coincides with the awakening of the Mauna Loa volcano, and its dangerous path toward their village stirs both new and long ago passions in their community. Alternating between past and present--from the day of the volcano eruption in 1935 to decades prior--The Color of Air interweaves the stories of Daniel, Koji, and Mariko to create a rich, vibrant, bittersweet chorus that celebrates their lifelong bond to one other and to their immigrant community. As Mauna Loa threatens their lives and livelihoods, it also unearths long held secrets simmering below the surface that meld past and present, revealing a path forward for them all.