Monday, January 27, 2025

The Happiest Ending

Written by: Yoshiko Uchida

First line: How did I ever let Mama talk me into this, I wondered.

Why you should read this book: Rinko isn't surprised when her mother directs her to help Mrs. Sugino make dinner after her Japanese tutor breaks her arm (Mama made Rinko spend the whole summer helping when Mrs. Hata lost her husband), but she is surprised to learn that Mrs. Sugino's boarder, Mr. Kinju, plans to marry Mrs. Hata's daughter, even though Teru is only nineteen and Mr. Hata is even older than Rinko's own father! As a Japanese-American girl who thinks of herself as very American, Rinko believes in marrying for love, and she just doesn't see how anyone as young and beautiful as Temu could ever love an old man she's never met like Mr. Hata. But the adults don't seem to see the problem, so it is up to Rinko to save Temu from the terrible fate of an unsuitable marriage. 

Why you shouldn't read this book: You married for love and it worked out terribly.

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