Alexis' Book Club :)

Since this blog is about Japan I figured that it would be appropriate to write about a book that I just read. It is rainy season, seriously it is killing me I am so pale to begin with that I am about to glow in the dark, so I have been able to do some reading. My mom sent me this book and I recommend it if you are interested in sumo or the history of Japan. The Street of a Thousand Blossoms by Gail Tuskiyama covers about a 30 year time period in Japan that starts right before Japan's involvement in World War II. The main story is about two brothers, orphaned by their parents and raised by their grandparents, and how their lives and dreams develop. I throughly enjoyed going to the sumo tourament and this book delves into all the aspects of sumo since once brother becomes involved in sumo, the other into Noh theater masks. The books also describes the wedding ceremony, which only made me understand more about what Bridget and I witnessed in Tokyo. I highly recommend the book if you are interested in sumo, Japan, or the effects of World War II. Beware it is not a quick summer beach read and it is 432 pages but it is very interesting and I found it to be worth it.