Sawako Ariyoshi (1931–1984)

Toyono, Hana, Fumio y Hanako. Cuatro generaciones de mujeres y una única constante en sus vidas: el fluir de las aguas de un río que las ha visto nacer, crecer y convertirse en esposas, madres, abuelas… y a las más jóvenes también en mujeres trabajadoras.

En su viaje hacia el océano, el Ki —corto, vertiginoso y ancho como la mayoría de los ríos nipones— atraviesa un paisaje de montañas y pueblos, presas y arrozales donde imperan las leyes y costumbres del Japón más tradicional. Entre finales del siglo XIX y mediados del XX, casi sesenta años de historia quedan fijados en las delicadas páginas de esta bellísima saga familiar: el fin de la era Meiji, la guerra sino-japonesa, la Segunda Guerra Mundial y su devastadora estela… Grandes acontecimientos que van dejando huella en la vida cotidiana de estas cuatro mujeres, divididas entre la tradición y la modernidad, cuyas historias y decisiones conforman un retrato elegante y certero de la situación de la mujer en Japón.

Una novela sobre la sabiduría, el amor, el legado, las tragedias y la emancipación, los modelos que queremos perpetuar y los que es necesario abolir.… (mehr)

Set in the late 18th century in rural Japan, this novel is a fictionalized version of the life of an actual physician who developed the first general anesthetic long before Western medicine got around to that. The story is told from his wife's POV. From girlhood, Kae had admired the serenely beautiful Otsugi, wife of an esteemed country doctor, and mother of a promising young man studying medicine in Kyoto. When Otsugi approaches Kae's family requesting that they agree to marriage between Kae and her son, there is some reluctance, but eventually the match is arranged, and Kae goes to live in the Hanaoka household to await her new husband's return from his studies. Otsugi treats Kae as a beloved daughter, until Seishu comes home. Then, the mother-in-law begins throwing obstacles in the path of the young couple's relationship, setting up a competitive atmosphere that will last for decades. The elder Dr. Hanaoka soon dies, and Seishu takes over the role of respected local medical man. He also embarks on extensive research into the use of plant extracts to create pain-killing medicines and anesthetics, experimenting on animals, and eventually even on his mother and his wife, who vie with great determination to be his first human subject. Fascinating glimpse into Japanese family life of the time, as well as the state of medical practice before the human body was completely understood. (It was believed that a woman's breasts were vital organs, and that any attempt at surgery on them would prove fatal. When a local woman was gored by a bull and certain to bleed to death, Seishu proved this belief a fallacy by surgically repairing the damage, and saving the woman's life.) The ending of the novel dissolves into a factual presentation of the final events of the lives of Seishu, his mother and his wife, abandoning any attempt at story-telling. But this is a matter of a few pages, and while abrupt, it did not hurt my enjoyment overall.… (mehr)

This Japanese novel was originally published in 1972, but many aspects felt very much from today. The novel follows Akiko a middle-aged wife and mother whose father-in-law becomes senile and his care falls to Akiko. So many themes here--taking care of the elderly, quality of life and indignities in aging, the sandwich generation, how care responsibility often falls on women, and the bewilderment of the system of elder care. I would be reading along in this novel and would learn a bit about Japanese culture in he 20th century only to then be struck by Akiko's story and how familiar it felt to the experience here in the US in the 21st century.

This wasn't exactly a feel-good novel. In fact, it dredged up a whole lot of feelings and made want to give my brother a hug for all he does for our mother in Southern California every day. And this book also made me re-experience that year of bewilderment and pain our family had when Mom fell ill and we had to make the decision to put her in a senior home. A piece of advice--get your parent a good geriatric attorney to help you sort everything out. I'll be visiting her here in just a few weeks. For years, I called my Mom every single day but she is at that point now where she can't call me anymore, and if I talk to her on the phone she won't stay on for long. This summer I visited I had the opportunity to sit with her for a couple of hours, and it was the first time in a long time that we seemed to have a real conversation like we did for so many years. I miss my Mom. And I take a little comfort from some scenes with Akiko that sometimes you just need to hold on to these small moments--one where she finds her father-in-law looking at a beautiful magnolia blossom or the small joy he gets from watching a bird they buy him.… (mehr)

The strength of this book is as a family saga that broadly focuses on three generations of women. It paints the life of a family living through the tumultuous Meiji era. Although its prose flows quite smoothly, it doesn't have a discernible plot and the narrative distance from its characters is substantial. Therefore, those who like a more intimate connection with their characters might be disappointed.

(Side note: This is the era of my grandparents who were also farmers. I saw some cultural similarities between aspects of the book and my family's life like persimmons and grafting fruit trees.)… (mehr)