Play Book Tag discussion

Snow Falling on Cedars, by David Guterson (1995) is part trial novel, part mystery. Set in San Piedro, a remote island in the Puget Sound in the 1950s, it takes place in the years after World War II, where Kabuo Miyamoto, a Japanese-American stands trial for the murder of fellow fisherman, Carl Heine. Many of the men of San Piedro had fought in the War, and many are still skeptical of the Japanese.

Although Kabuo was born in the United States, and thus was American, he was born of immigrant parents. Even before the War, there was considerable prejudice against the Japanese who lived on the island. Furthermore, there were laws which prevented its Japanese citizens from owning land. Underlying this novel is a feud between the Heine and Kabuo families. Carl’s father had an arrangement to sell Kabuo’s father 7 acres of property for growing strawberries. Kabuo’s father was making regular payments, but before he could make the final two payments, he and his family were sent off to an internment camp. While Miyamoto family was interned, Carl Heine’s father died. Carl’s mother, Etta, was a bitter and prejudiced woman, who took the opportunity to sell the land to another strawberry family. When the Miyamoto family tried to claim their land, they were surprised to find it had been sold out from under them. This feud brewed for many years.

When Carl was found drowned under suspicious circumstances, the local law enforcement was quick to settle on Kabuo as their prime suspect. The novel begins with the trial, but the story is told in flashbacks as the reader meets the characters. The reader learns their backstories and the interactions between the townspeople and the island’s Japanese community. As evidence piles up against Kabuo, prejudices of the entire community are exposed. The novel builds the suspense to the end.

4 Stars

Lovely review of a lovely novel. I read it so long ago and your review brings back memories. Thanks. peace, janz

I love this novel and have read it twice. One of these days I plan to read it again. The writing works well for me. I eventually saw the film and even though it had to leave a lot out, it stayed true to the book overall, so I liked it.

Like Janz, I read this book more than a decade ago but still remember it as a lovely book. I enjoyed it so much I obtained a signed first edition of the novel.