28 Nov / The Legend of Fire Horse Woman by Jeanne Wakatsuki Houston [in AsianWeek]
Finally, the first (and much awaited!) novel from the co-author of Farewell to Manzanar, the classic memoir of the internment experience (written with hubby James Houston). Legend captures three generations of Japanese American women, led by proud, regal Sayo, who is sent from Japan to marry in America at the turn of the 20th century. Forty years later, she is interned with her daughter and teenage granddaughter, and in spite of their physical confinement, each of the three women find a sense of freedom and release that empowers not only themselves, but each other, as well.
Review: “New and Notable Books,” AsianWeek, November 28, 2003
Readers: Adult
Published: 2003
OK, this is a story about three generations of Japanese women. What does the “fire horse” title have to do with the story? Still puzzled, please explain.
“Fire horse” refers to the a specific year represented by the animal zodiac of the Chinese lunar calendar (LOTS of great books about that!) … like 2010 is the year of the white tiger. One of the characters is born in the year of the fire horse and that determines her fate …
Here’s a quick link I found about the Fire Horse: http://pages.infinit.net/garrick/chinese/horse.html — scroll down to see information specifically about “Fire Horse.”
Thanks for visiting. Come back soon!