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Book releases November 19 and is available for pre-order on Amazon.
During World War Two Nathan and his
family are sent to Heart Mountain, an internment camp in Wyoming for
Japanese-Americans. Nathan's one desire is to protect the family's gold pocket
watch, a family heirloom brought over from Japan. He fails; the watch is
stolen. Struggling to make sense of his life in a bleak camp as the only
responsible man of the household, Nathan discovers truths
about his family,
God, and the girl he loves.
Alice says:
This novel takes
place in an internment camp in Wyoming where many Japanese-Americans
were sent after the bombing of Pearl Harbor. There's upheaval, frustration,
pain, and sorrow. Families are separated. Some members are accused
of being spies, like Nathan Mori's father.
To
balance the discrimination that evolved during this time period, I had to rely
on humor and romance.
One of
the most fun relationships I enjoyed crafting was between the main character,
Nathan, and his aunt Kazuko. Even though she's single and has no children of
her own, Aunt Kazuko knows how to keep Nathan and his brothers in line.
But even she knows a body can't live on hard work alone. Cookies are her friends! She keeps morsels in
her sweater sleeves, taking them out when she needs “a pep".
And of
course, there's young romance. Nathan dreams of the lovely singer, Lucy, and
wants her to notice him, but she seems more interested in his older brother,
Ken.
There
are two characters which are not people---one is Heart Mountain, the mountain
viewed every day from those in the barracks at the camp. Then there is
the Mori family's coveted gold watch, a family heirloom from Japan.
So the
questions form: Will Nathan get the girl? What happens to the
family heirloom during the war and after the war ends? Does Nathan's father
return? How does war and discrimination change hearts? How
does God's love prevail?
Recipe
from Under the Silk Hibiscus:
My character, Aunt Kazuko, is all about
eating a cookie . . . or two. She often
says she needs “a pep” to pep her up.
Here is her cookie recipe for raisin cookies, sure to add fun to
anyone’s day.
Recipe for Aunt Kazuko’s Oatmeal
Raisin Cookies (1946)
1 ½ cups all-purpose
flour
¼ teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon soda
1 teaspoon ground
cinnamon
½ cup shortening
1 cup sugar
1 egg
1 ½ cups rolled oats
2/3 cup buttermilk
½ cup chopped nuts
1 cup seedless raisins
Cream shortening, blend
in sugar and add egg. Beat until smooth and light. Sift flour with salt, soda and cinnamon. Stir half the flour in with egg mixture; add
milk, the rest of flour, and then oats, nuts and raisins. Stir till well mixed. Drop from a teaspoon onto a buttered baking
sheet and bake at 400 degrees F. for 10 minutes or until nicely browned. Yields about 36 cookies.
About Alice:
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Alice has authored four contemporary novels
published by Bethany House: Rain Song (Christy Finalist), How Sweet It Is (Christy Finalist), Hatteras Girl and A Wedding Invitation, and Still
Life in Shadows by River North/Moody. Her newest novel, Under the Silk Hibiscus (Lighthouse
Publishing of the Carolinas) is her first historical romance.
Since the death of her four-year-old son, Alice
teaches grief-writing workshops and her devotional, Getting out of Bed in the Morning:
Reflections of Comfort in Heartache (Leafwood), covers the many
losses we face and how God sustains us through each one. In 2012, Alice and her husband started a
business, Carved By Heart, where they
carve memorial plaques/remembrances, house number signs, bird feeders, rustic
clocks, and other home décor.
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