I can’t remember if I already said this, but I’m going to try switching to this format for Book Spotlight posts as well as Interlude posts. My thoughts seem to flow more naturally in this format and lately I’m trying to be better about testing new ways of doing things for better results. Now, to business.

I regret not picking up this book sooner! It was one of those cases of pushing it further down the TBR after reading the back cover, as it sounded like it might be a theater story, and I wasn’t really in the mood for a theater story. I really liked Abby as a character. I wouldn’t mind reading more of her future adventures.

The color palette of the art was interesting. Initially, I found it rather stark and unappealing, but as the story progressed, I realized the colors were doing an excellent job of setting the atmosphere of various scenes.

At the end of the story, I realized I’d been waiting for some explicit reference to Abby’s nikkei-ness, but I also think including such references would have made it a very different story, and it seems that was not Tamaki’s goal here. There appear to be racial undertones to many of Abby’s experiences with the other students, but nothing that seemed specifically Japanese and/or nikkei. I did wonder about Jessica, as she appears to be Asian, but I didn’t see this confirmed anywhere in the text.

The most ‘explicit’ othering of Abby by her peers seems to focus on their assumptions about her sexual orientation. No one says anything outright about her race and I wondered about the reason for this. If we assume that at least some of the students’ pointed exclusion of Abby is, consciously or not, driven by their perceptions of her race, I wonder if these initial, more subtle (but not less harmful) behaviors laid the groundwork for the students’ subsequent, very pointed speculation about whether she is gay. If my interpretation is correct, it’s an excellent depiction of how layered prejudices operate in a school setting.

Lastly, I appreciate the moment when Abby says she is questioning her sexual orientation, as I can’t immediately recall any examples of this in the nikkei-authored books that were around when I was her age. It’s great to think today’s young nikkei readers have a much better chance of seeing their diverse identities reflected in books.

Title: This Place Kills Me

Author: Mariko Tamaki

Genre: Contemporary

Book Type: Graphic novel

Would read this author again: Yes – past readers of this blog will know this isn’t my first Mariko Tamaki book and I very much doubt it’ll be my last!

To learn more about Book Spotlight, read this.

The Mochi Makers, written and illustrated by Sharon Fujimoto-Johnson, portrays the author’s family mochi-making tradition.

What I liked:

• I really love it when I come across another nikkei author whose work feels so familiar. I felt this the most in the small details in Fujimoto-Johnson’s illustrations that were echoes of home to me, like the way the characters dress or how the kitchen looks.
• There was a lot of pink in this book! Does Fujimoto-Johnson like pink? I like pink. I don’t usually think of sakura mochi when I think of mochitsuki, but I definitely felt a quasi-hanami vibe from Fujimoto-Johnson’s palette. I also like ohagi, so yay for that reference!

What I learned:

• I’ve only ever made mochi with a machine (and I’ve seen it pounded by hand), so I hadn’t really thought about the logistics of making it in a rice cooker. It makes sense, though I wonder if a large batch can be made in a rice cooker. That said, maybe a smaller batch is better if there are only two people in the kitchen. We have a lot more people at our family mochitsuki – we need all the hands to roll the mochi before it gets hard. Come to think of it, I’ve never asked our family friends, who are nikkei (including multiracial nikkei), if they feel any sort of connection to Japanese culture from participating in mochitsuki every year. Same with some of my cousins (they are multiethnic nikkei and, I think, probably more familiar with their Chinese heritage) – I’ve never asked if they come to mochitsuki to retain a connection to their Japanese heritage.

Questions I had:

• Did Fujimoto-Johnson envision a particular audience for this book? It felt a bit like how a nikkei kid and their parent might explain mochitsuki to a classroom full of predominantly non-nikkei students. At the same time, I enjoyed the story as a nikkei reader who was already familiar with the content. I actually think this book would flow well in Japanese – has Fujimoto-Johnson considered writing a Japanese version?

Follow-up:

• I believe Fujimoto-Johnson has another picture book coming out, so I’ll be on the lookout!